The Ministry of National Defense has just received a petition from voters in Ninh Binh province requesting to study, amend, supplement and unify regulations related to the selection and handling of violations of military service to be more suitable to current practice.
In which, voters believe that it is necessary to specifically and clearly stipulate the recruitment standards for citizens with tattoos and mild refractive errors (under 3 diopters), ensuring uniformity in application, limiting difficulties and confusion for localities in examination and recruitment work and ensuring recruitment sources.
Answering voters' opinions, the Ministry of National Defense said that the selection and conscription of citizens with tattoos, handwriting and refractive errors has been specifically regulated.
For citizens with tattoos, the tattoos are specified in Clause 9, Article 5 of Joint Circular No. 50 of the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Public Security; Circular No. 97 dated August 29, 2025 of the Minister of National Defense stipulates not recruiting for service in the army in the following cases: "on the body with tattoos, tattoos containing content opposing the regime, dividing ethnicity, terrifying, bizarre, sexually inciting, violent. Tattoos, tattoos causing offense in exposed positions, such as: face, head, neck; from 1/2 upper arm down, from 1/3 lower thigh down. Tattoos, tattoos occupying an area from 1/2 back, chest, abdomen upwards".
The Ministry of National Defense believes that the regulations on citizens with tattoos and handwriting are complete and strict to select citizens.
However, through the work of selecting and calling citizens to enlist in some localities in recent years, it shows that many citizens of enlistment age have tattoos and handwriting, mostly tattoos and handwriting with small areas, in exposed positions; cases with tattoos and handwriting occupying a large area on the body (from 1/2 of the back, chest, abdomen upwards) do not account for a large number, and do not greatly affect the source of recruitment of citizens to enlist in localities.
However, in reality, some citizens have taken advantage of this regulation to intentionally tattoo images and letters on their bodies before the medical examination or after preliminary selection to know they are qualified to be called into the army in order to evade military service.
To overcome this situation, every year, the Ministry of National Defense has directed to summarize, draw experience and have specific instructions in admission consideration, contributing to limiting the act of citizens taking advantage of tattoos and letters on their bodies to evade military service.
No enlistment of citizens with a nearby vision greater than 1.5 diopters
For citizens with refractive errors, according to Circular No. 68 dated July 3, 2025, citizens with nearsightedness greater than 1.5 diopters, hyperopia of various degrees are not called into the army. For some agencies, units and key, confidential positions in the army; paratroopers, ceremonial forces; professional guards and military control forces, there are separate selection standards according to the regulations of the Ministry of National Defense.
In addition, the process of examination and classification of eye health in selection and enlistment for citizens with refractive errors has also been specifically and uniformly regulated by Circular No. 105 dated December 6, 2023 amended and supplemented with a number of articles in Circular No. 106 dated September 30, 2025 and guidance from specialized functional agencies of the Ministry of National Defense.
The Ministry of National Defense affirmed that the health standards for performing military service in general and the health standards when selecting and calling citizens for military service in particular have been fully and uniformly regulated, along with a strict examination and classification process as a basis for localities to examine, select and call citizens for military service annually conveniently, ensuring the selection of citizens with sufficient health to serve in the army.
The Ministry of National Defense will direct functional agencies to continue to monitor, promptly detect, issue or propose to competent authorities to issue legal normative documents to handle arising problems related to, ensuring that enlisted citizens have sufficient standards according to regulations, meeting the requirements of building the army and protecting the Fatherland in the new situation.
