Key Summary
- StandardOverseas submission documents such as power of attorney and CFS do not need to be authenticated once but must be renewed at regular intervals for each country.
- ExampleIn Vietnam, the sales power of attorney is renewed approximately every 5 years, while in other countries, it is renewed every 3 years.
- DangerMissing renewals can result in local registration expiration or transaction gaps.
There are frequently asked questions. “I received a Power of Attorney Apostille a few years ago and am exporting it. Do I need to get it again?”
It could be so. Documents used for overseas transactions cannot be used permanently once they are certified. Some documents, such as power of attorney or registration documents, must be updated at regular intervals according to local law. If you do not know the timing of this renewal, your local registration may expire or your transaction may be blocked.
In this article, we will summarize which documents have renewal cycles, how the cycles differ from country to country, and what to manage so as not to miss renewals. This will be helpful if you are a company that has repeatedly exported or registered products overseas.
Why is there an update cycle on documents?
First, let’s point out why an update is necessary. The reason why there is an update cycle for foreign transaction documents is because the information they contain can change over time.
For example, a sales authority delegation states that a Korean company delegates sales authority to a specific local company. However, business relationships do not last forever. The delegation may change or the terms of the transaction may change. So the local agency will require you to resubmit the documents after a certain period of time to ensure that the mandate is still valid. The same goes for product registration documents, where we periodically check whether the product continues to be sold normally locally.
Representative documents requiring renewal
Let’s see what documents are subject to the renewal cycle.
The most representative one is a power of attorney for sales. It is a document that delegates sales authority to a local importer or seller, and often needs to be renewed periodically as long as the transaction is maintained. The Free Sale Certificate, or CFS, may also require renewal to maintain product registration. This is especially true for products that require local registration, such as cosmetics or medical devices.
In addition, various documents related to local registration may be subject to renewal. Which documents are subject to renewal depends on the regulations of the country of submission and the type of product, so it is recommended to check the renewal cycle at the time of registration.
The cycle is different for each country
There is an important point here. Renewal cycles vary by country.
For example, Vietnam requires a sales power of attorney to be renewed every five years. Other countries require it to be renewed every three years. Because the cycle is different for each country, companies that export or register products in multiple countries must manage the cycle for each country separately.
If you only think about one country's cycle and neglect other countries' documents, the registration in that country may expire at some point. Therefore, it is important to organize which documents need to be renewed and by when for each country.
What happens if you miss an update
The importance of management becomes clear when you know what problems actually arise if you miss the renewal date.
If your sales authorization expires, your local distributor may no longer have the authority to sell our products. If the product registration document expires, the local registration itself may become invalid and sales may be halted. If this happens, you must re-issue the documents and submit them after notarization and authentication, but in the meantime, there is a gap in local transactions or sales.
The particular problem is that updating also takes time. It takes a few days or more to issue a new document and go through translation, notarization, and Apostille or consular authentication. If you find out later that it has expired and process it in a hurry, you will incur a loss as trading stops in the meantime. So it is safer to prepare for renewal before expiration.
Renewal management, how to do it
It is recommended to have a management system in place to avoid missing updates.
First, list the documents currently submitted overseas, when each was certified, and what the renewal cycle is. And we manage your schedule so you can start renewals well in advance of the expiration date. The more documents span multiple countries and types, the more important this management becomes.
If you are a company that exports repeatedly, it is also a good idea to entrust this renewal management with a document agency. If you pay attention to the timing of renewal and prepare in advance, you can prevent transaction gaps due to expiration.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Once I receive a power of attorney, can I continue to use it?
No. A power of attorney to sell often must be renewed at regular intervals depending on local law. If you miss a renewal, your local sales authorization may expire.
Q. How many years is the renewal cycle?
Varies by country. In Vietnam, it is renewed every 5 years, while other countries renew it every 3 years. It varies depending on the submission country regulations and product type, so it is recommended to check at the time of registration.
Q. What documents are subject to renewal?
The sales power of attorney, certificate of free sale (CFS), and local registration documents are mainly subject to renewal. It is recommended to check the renewal cycle at the time of registration as it varies depending on the submission country and product.
Q. What happens if I miss the renewal?
When the power of attorney expires, local sales authority is lost, and when registration documents expire, local registration becomes ineffective and sales may be halted. There will be a gap in transactions as it must go through re-issuance and authentication.
Q. Does renewal take time?
Yes. It takes time to issue new documents, translate them, notarize them, and go through Apostille or consular authentication. It is safer to prepare for renewal before expiration.
Conclusion
Overseas transaction documents do not end once they have been certified; they often need to be updated according to the cycle for each country, such as power of attorney or registration documents. The cycle is different, about 5 years in Vietnam and 3 years in other countries, and if you miss renewal, your transaction may stop due to local registration expiration. Managing renewal times by country and preparing in advance before expiration is the way to prevent transaction gaps.
Nanum Global handles everything from translation of overseas submitted documents to notarization, apostille and consular authentication, and also helps manage renewal timing for each country. We will guide you through which documents need to be renewed and when, and what you need to prepare before expiration. If you are concerned about renewing documents submitted overseas, please let us know the country of submission, type of document, and time of certification. We will guide you through the renewal schedule and procedures. If you are a company that exports repeatedly to multiple countries, we can take full responsibility for country-by-country renewal management.
Document renewal management, leave it to Nanum Global
If you tell us the country of submission, document type, and certification time, we will guide you through the renewal schedule and Apostille and consular authentication procedures.
