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July 10, 2025

Regulations on E-signatures and Trust Services in Vietnam

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For companies and individuals doing business in Vietnam, a common question is whether electronic signatures (e-signatures) are legally recognized under Vietnamese law. This matter is governed by Law No. 20/2023/QH15 on Electronic Transactions issued on June 22, 2023 (ETL 2023) and its guiding legal documents such as Decree No. 23/2025/ND-CP dated February 21, 2025, and Circular 06/2024/TT-BTTTT dated July 1, 2024 (Circular 06).

Recognition of Validity of E-signatures in Vietnam

As a general principle, the ETL 2023 confirms that an e-signature cannot be denied legal validity solely due to its electronic form.

The law categorizes e-signatures into three types:

  • Type 1: Specialized e-signatures for organizations
  • Type 2: Public digital signatures for individuals and organizations
  • Type 3: Specialized digital signatures for government agencies

Among these types, only secure specialized e-signatures (a secure e-signature of type 1) and digital signatures (type 2) are explicitly granted the same legal validity as handwritten (wet) signatures. This distinction is particularly important in legal disputes and for transactions with government agencies. (For more details, please refer to our previous article.)

Domestic e-signatures

A domestic organization can choose to use secure specialized e-signatures (type 1) and/or digital signatures (type 2) while a Vietnam-based individual can choose digital signatures (type 2) for their transactions—particularly for those involving government agencies and transactions of high value and complexity which require stronger legal protection.

Specialized e-signatures (type 1) can be created by the organizations themselves, and additionally must be “secure” to be explicitly recognized as having the same legal validity as handwritten signatures. For clarity, “secure” specialized e-signatures are those certified (granted a safety certificate) by the Ministry of Science and Technology (MST). (This was formerly the responsibility of the Ministry of Information and Communications, which was merged with MST under Vietnam’s 2025 administrative restructuring.)

Digital signatures (type 2) are issued to organizations and individuals by licensed public digital signature certification service providers. Other types of e-signatures could be legally recognized and protected when they meet all the requirements outlined in the ETL 2023.

Foreign e-signatures

Cross-border e-transactions raise the question of how foreign e-signatures are legally recognized and protected under Vietnamese law. While Vietnamese law does not provide explicit guidance, two main pathways for recognition can be inferred:

First, foreign organizations and individuals can obtain e-signature certificates from foreign e-signature certification service providers recognized in Vietnam, provided these providers meet statutory conditions and are duly recognized in Vietnam. However, to date, no foreign e-signature certification service providers have been officially recognized in Vietnam, creating a significant barrier to legal recognition of foreign e-signatures in practice.

Second, it is possible under Vietnamese law for (i) foreign organizations and individuals, and (ii) Vietnamese organizations and individuals whose Vietnamese e-signatures and e-signature certificates are not recognized abroad to apply for recognition of specific foreign e-signatures and e-signature certificates from MST. However, Circular 06 limits eligibility for recognition with regard to “foreign organizations and individuals” under the second pathway to only foreign organizations legally operating in Vietnam and foreign individuals residing in Vietnam. This effectively excludes foreign organizations and individuals without a local presence, who must rely on the first pathway.

Foreign E-signatures Accepted in International Transactions:

Article 27 of the ETL 2023 allows foreign e-signatures to be accepted in international transactions, but it remains ambiguous whether such acceptance equates to legal protection under Vietnamese law, or merely shifts the legal risk to the accepting party.

While foreign e-signatures in this context are not expressly granted the same legal status as handwritten signatures, one could argue that, provided they satisfy all the requirements set out in the ETL 2023, they should not be denied legal validity under the general principles established by the law.

Trust Services

Trust services—including timestamping, data message certification, and public digital signature certification—play a critical role in ensuring the authenticity of involved parties, integrity of data messages, and non-repudiation of e-transactions.

Timestamping services attach time information to data messages, with timestamps generated as digital signatures. Data message certification encompasses services for storing and verifying the integrity of data messages, as well as services of sending and receiving secure data messages. Public digital signature certification refers to certifying digital signatures (type 2) provided by licensed public digital signature certification service providers.

These trust services are regulated businesses and require providers to meet specific licensing criteria under Decree 23.

Outlook

Vietnam’s legal framework appears to offer a more workable approach for domestic e-signature deployment and use, while still presenting practical challenges for cross-border recognition of foreign e-signatures. However, as Vietnam continues to prioritize digital transformation, the digital economy, and digital society, and as the demand for e-transactions and e-signatures grows, these limitations are expected to be addressed in the near future to better support e-government and the digital economy.

In the meantime, the use of e-transactions and e-signatures is inevitable and unstoppable in today’s fast-paced digital era. Parties engaging in international transactions with Vietnamese counterparts should ensure they fully understand the legal requirements for the acceptance of foreign e-signatures, enabling them to fully leverage the benefits of digital transactions in their business operations.

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