You are using an outdated browser and your browsing experience will not be optimal. Please update to the latest version of Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox. Install Microsoft Edge

January 12, 2023

Vietnam 2022 ICT Legislation Year in Review

Subscribe to Updates

The year 2022 witnessed a dynamic environment in the development of information and communications technology (ICT) policy in Vietnam. The following are some highlights of remarkable legislative developments in the ICT space from the past year, and some notes on key draft laws and regulations that are in the pipeline for 2023.

1. Telecommunications

Although it has helped Vietnam develop modern telecommunications network infrastructure and a diversified and competitive telecom market with a variety of services, Vietnam’s Telecom Law, which has been in effect since 2010, has posed problems and inadequacies in meeting today’s more complex evolution of new service types and new business models as well as the trend of convergence of telecom, information technology, and automation.

Accordingly, the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) has been working to replace the existing Telecom Law, with a Draft Telecom Law made available for public consultation from October 27 to December 27, 2022 (the Vietnamese version can be accessed here).

The primary amendment of the Telecom Law focuses on widening the scope of application to regulate data center and cloud computing services. Data center services include data center space rental services, server rental services, and data storage space rental services. Cloud computing services include services providing server resources, storage capacity, and networks (IaaS services); services that provide the ability to create, develop, manage, and operate software, including applications (PaaS services); and software delivery services, including applications (SaaS services).

According to the Draft Telecom Law, it could be interpreted that all providers of data center services and IaaS cloud computing services, whether onshore or offshore, must obtain a permit to provide the services by registration with the MIC via its online portal; while PaaS and SaaS cloud computing services are exempted from this requirement.

In addition, the Draft Telecom Law adds new content related to the management of OTT telecom services, or “information communication service without using telecom number storage” according to the language of the Draft Telecom Law (for example, WhatsApp, Zalo, Viber, Line, etc.). These services have not been regulated before and for a long time the MIC has attempted to regulate these services via a draft Circular on OTT telecom services, without success. This content is now put into the Draft Telecom Law but with much lighter requirements compared to the previous draft Circular. The Draft Telecom Law allows cross-border provision of OTT telecom services to Vietnam with regulations on service providers’ responsibilities in service provision as well as requirements for notification to the MIC. The content for notification includes representative name and contact information (phone, email). Forms and procedures for notification must comply with the government’s regulations.

Another new area contemplated in the Draft Telecom Law which is worthy of mention is telecom wholesale and retail services. The Draft Telecom Law supplements obligations of telecom companies with a dominant position in the market for important retail services that require state management of competition, as well as obligations of telecom enterprises providing telecom wholesale services with the aim of creating favorable conditions for enterprises to negotiate and buy telecom traffic, and to promote the wholesale market and contribute to promoting competition in the retail market through the wholesale market.

The Draft Telecom Law is scheduled to be discussed by the National Assembly in May 2023 and submitted for approval in October 2023.

2. Cybersecurity

The long-awaited Decree 53 on the implementation of the Cybersecurity Law (which took effect in 2019) was issued on August 15, 2022, with an effective date of October 1, 2022. Decree 53 provides further guidance on a number of key issues, including:

  • Data localization requirements which may create potential troubles for not only overseas enterprises but also domestic enterprises;
  • Takedown of illegal online content with corresponding responsibilities of the Ministry of Public Security (MPS), the Ministry of Defense, and the MIC;
  • Collection of electronic data relating to illegal activities in cyberspace to serve the purposes of investigation and handling of such activities according to stipulated conditions and procedures;
  • Suspension or stoppage of information system operation, and/or revocation of domain names when the operation of the information system violates the laws on national security and cybersecurity, or when the information system is being used for the purpose of infringing upon national security or social order and safety; and
  • Responsibilities of relevant stakeholders in coordinating and assisting the authorities in preventing and handling the violations, including cross-border violations.

Regarding the controversial issue of data localization requirements, it is worth noting that domestic enterprises may be impacted more than overseas enterprises.

For overseas enterprises, only those fulfilling all the following conditions are subject to the MPS’s decision to store regulated data and establish a branch or representative office in Vietnam within a grace period of 12 months:

  1. Providing services falling within 10 enumerated types of regulated services;
  2. Collecting, exploiting, analyzing, and/or processing regulated data; and
  3. Have received a warning from the Department for Cybersecurity and Prevention of High-Tech Crime (A05) under the MPS but have not taken any measures for avoiding, dealing with, fighting against, or preventing the breach mentioned in the notification, or have resisted, obstructed, or ignored requests from the relevant authorities.

For domestic enterprises, the requirements are more stringent. Without further clarification of the MPS, nearly all online domestic service providers which collect, use, analyze, and/or process regulated data are required to store the regulated data in Vietnam without triggering conditions and without a grace period. For more information of the Decree 53, please refer to our previous articles here and here.

3. Data Privacy

The government recently released Resolution 156/NQ-CP on December 6, 2022, which requires the MPS to quickly finalize the draft Decree on Personal Data Protection (draft PDPD) and submit it to the government for submission to the National Assembly Standing Committee for comments before the government promulgates it. Therefore, it is expected that the PDPD could be issued in 2023. Within 2022, there was no official updated version of the draft PDPD available for public assessment of the major changes from the previous publicly accessible version. For more information of the main content of the draft PDPD, please see our previous articles here, here, and here.

4. OTT TV Services & VOD Films

Decree 71 was issued on October 1, 2022, with an effective date of January 1, 2023, to amend the prior Decree 06 on the Management, Provision, and Use of Radio and Television Services. The new decree will have a major impact on over-the-top (OTT) television services and on-demand content (VOD) in Vietnam. Although there are still ambiguities in the wording of Decree 71, the government has expressed a clear intention to regulate the cross-border provision of foreign OTT TV services, including provision via Internet applications. Accordingly, overseas companies might no longer be eligible to provide OTT pay TV services to users in Vietnam on a cross-border basis as they are currently doing with regard to OTT VOD, but may now have to establish a company in Vietnam or cooperate with a licensed Vietnamese pay TV service provider to provide such services.

The MIC has recently taken their first moves to enforce the new requirements under Decree 71. The Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information (ABEI) under the MIC has announced the enforcement actions via two official letters on their website, whose main points are summarized as follows:

  • On January 5, 2023, the MIC sent an official letter to a number of foreign OTT service enterprises, requesting a report by January 15, 2023, on the plan to carry out the procedures for applying for a license to provide pay radio and television services The official letter clearly states that if the enterprises continue to maintain the current service provision and do not comply with the provisions of Decree 71 (i.e., do not establish an enterprise in Vietnam to apply for the pay TV license or do not comply with other obligations of local service providers), they will be administratively sanctioned according to the provisions of Decree No. 119/2020/ND-CP dated October 7, 2020.
  • Via official letter No. 6272/BTTTT-PTTH&TTDT dated December 31, 2022, the ABEI has also requested businesses importing, manufacturing, and distributing smart TVs in Vietnam to review the legality of pre-installing unlicensed OTT apps in smart TVs and/or including shortcut buttons on remote controls of smart TVs allowing users to easily access to unlicensed OTT apps, to ensure that they do not violate the provisions of Decree 71.

Interestingly, Decree 71 does not differentiate between provision of film-only VOD from the provision of other types of VOD, which leads to a potential inconsistency between the state management of film-only versus other types of VOD, i.e., more specifically, there may be a potential inconsistency between Decree 71 and the Cinema Law and its guiding decree, Decree No. 131/2022/ND-CP promulgated by the government on December 31, 2022 (“Cinema Decree”). We discuss the new Cinema Decree in more detail in this article.

According to Decree 71, films are specified as a type of “on-demand radio and television content,” and the provision of “on-demand radio and television content” via the internet/internet applications falls within the definition of “TV services,” which are subject to the same requirements imposed on other types of TV services, including local establishment and licensing requirements.

Under the Cinema Law and the Cinema Decree, however, there is no such requirement for foreign providers of VOD films. According to the Cinema Decree, offshore enterprises are allowed to disseminate their films in Vietnam’s cyberspace without having to establish a company in Vietnam and to obtain a license. The film disseminators must only comply with the obligation to self-rate their films according to the government’s guidance.

Given the foregoing potential inconsistency in application of Decree 71 and the Cinema Law, it is strongly recommended that the government should clearly exempt the provision of films on demand in cyberspace from the governing scope of Decree 71 and clarify that such provision is subject to the requirements under the Cinema Law and the management of Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. For further information on Decree 71, please refer to our previous article here.

5. E-Commerce

The government has entrusted the MIC to draft a new Law on E-Transactions, because after 17-years, the existing law has shown shortcomings in the new era of rapid technology and e-commerce development. The Minister of the MIC emphasized that the Law on E-Transactions should be amended to reflect and fully govern current industry technologies, including those relating to the digital environment’s traditional transactions, but with varying degrees of reliability, different costs, and different complexity. The revised law must ensure a wide scope of application and lower costs and less complexity of e-transactions compared to traditional transactions.

Accordingly, the Draft Law on E-Transactions (version 4 of which is publicly accessible) widens the scope of application to attempt to cover all areas of transactions. It retains key principles of the current law, but also provides more comprehensive regulations relating to e-contracts, e-signatures/digital signatures, and data messages. Furthermore, it provides new regulations on e-certificates, trust services and information systems serving e-transactions (digital platforms). For more information, please refer to our previous article here.

The Draft Law on E-Transactions was reviewed for the first reading by the National Assembly in November 2022; however, later draft versions are not available for public access. This draft law is scheduled for approval on the second reading by the National Assembly in May 2023.

Related Professionals

Industries

Technology

Location

RELATED INSIGHTS​ 

April 23, 2026
Vietnam has progressively positioned blockchain as a strategic technology within its broader digital transformation agenda over the past decade. From early policy orientations to more recent legislative developments, the regulatory approach has gradually shifted from high-level recognition to more concrete legal integration. Against this backdrop, a new draft decree regulating activities relating to product and goods identification, authentication, and traceability (the “Draft Decree”) marks a notable turning point. Rather than merely referencing blockchain as a policy priority, the Draft Decree incorporates blockchain directly into a nationwide regulatory system, positioning it as part of the underlying infrastructure for data governance and public administration in relation to the management, verification, and traceability of product-related data. Evolution of Vietnam’s Blockchain Legal Framework: The Draft Decree in Context Vietnam’s blockchain legal framework has developed in several distinct phases. The first phase, beginning around 2019, was characterized by high-level policy recognition in several resolutions of the Party Central Committee. Particularly, blockchain was identified as part of the broader category of digital technologies critical to industrial modernization and participation in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. These resolutions did not regulate blockchain directly, but established its strategic importance at the national level. The second phase (2023 to 2025) saw the introduction of national strategies and technology policies that more explicitly recognized blockchain as a priority technology. Those policies collectively signaled a clear policy commitment to developing blockchain infrastructure and applications. However, these instruments remained largely at a policy-level and did not establish binding regulatory frameworks. The third phase (from 2025) involves the gradual integration of blockchain into sectoral legislation. Laws such as the Law on Digital Technology Industry (2025), the Law on Personal Data Protection (2025), and the Law on Science, Technology, and Innovation (2025) have introduced concepts such as digital assets, crypto assets, and even specific
Read More
April 21, 2026
Thailand’s Personal Data Protection Committee (PDPC) has launched a public consultation period on a draft notification setting out criteria for data subject access requests (DSARs). The draft notification addresses practical uncertainties in handling DSARs by introducing standardized procedural requirements for data controllers. The consultation period runs from April 16 to May 15, 2026. The notification will enter into force 30 days from the date of its publication in the Government Gazette. Key Features of the Draft Notification The draft notification covers the following key areas: Scope of information subject to access. Data controllers must enable data subjects to access at least the following upon request: (1) personal data collected directly from them; (2) personal data obtained from other sources; and (3) the source of personal data obtained from other sources without consent. Information required under section 23 of the PDPA and information that must be recorded pursuant to section 39 of the PDPA—such as the categories of personal data collected and purposes of processing—must also be made available. Submission channels and formal requirements. Data controllers must provide at least in-person and postal channels for DSARs, while electronic or other channels are optional. Requests may be made either directly by the data subject or through an authorized representative, and must be signed and include sufficient identifying information, a preferred response method, and DSAR details. Identity verification documents (and proof of authority if the request is through a representative) are required, and additional documentation may be requested for verification or communication purposes. Data controllers may use different verification methods for DSARs submitted via electronic or other channels, provided this does not create undue obstacles to the exercise of data subject rights. Verification and response timelines. Data controllers must complete preliminary verification within seven business days of receiving a request. If a
Read More
April 10, 2026
Thailand has introduced new regulatory guidance requiring digital platform operators to adopt structured, transparent, and fair fee practices. On March 16, 2026, the Electronic Transactions Development Agency (ETDA) published Announcement No. DPS 2/2569, titled “Guidelines for Transparency and Fairness in Digital Platform Service Fee Determination,” issued under the Royal Decree on Digital Platform Service Business Operations B.E. 2565 (2022). The guidelines establish a framework governing how digital platform operators should set, disclose, and adjust fees charged to users and related service providers such as logistics and payment providers. Although framed as best-practice guidance rather than legally binding rules with explicit penalties, the guidelines carry regulatory weight under the royal decree and represent a significant step toward structured governance of digital platform fee practices in Thailand. The guidelines establish various transparency principles and divide fees into two distinct categories—compulsory and additional—with specific governance principles for each. Transparency Principles The guidelines recommend that digital platform operators adopt several transparency measures to ensure that users can fully understand the costs of using a platform. Fee catalog. All fees should be consolidated into a single, accessible location, which should include the fee name, definition, scope of covered services, calculation methodology, rate, billing period, and calculation examples. Minimum service disclosure. Operators should disclose the minimum service that users can expect, such as baseline visibility, product listing capabilities, access to transaction data, and back-end dashboard access. Price structure disclosure. Operators should disclose the categories of costs underlying their fees, such as system maintenance, cybersecurity, and operational costs. While exact cost figures need not be made public, operators should be able to provide numerical data to regulators upon request. Clear fee formulas. Fee calculations should be simple and easy to understand—for example, percentage of net sales, cost per order, or cost per product listing. Operators should
Read More
April 10, 2026
As digital commerce continues to reshape consumer behavior in Thailand, the Office of the Consumer Protection Board (OCPB) has been taking steps to review and update key regulations for online platforms. The OCPB has had a particular focus on addressing the risks posed by e-marketplace businesses—from misleading product information to fraudulent online transactions. Some of the regulator’s current legislative efforts related to Thailand’s labeling regulations as well as potential changes to the country’s law on direct sales and marketing. Proposed Changes to Consumer Protection Labeling Regulations On February 24, 2026, the OCPB convened a public hearing to review the Notification of the Committee on Labels re: Specification of Goods as Controlled Label Goods B.E. 2565 (2022) and its annex issued under the Consumer Protection Act. The closed-door session, which started the OPCD’s process of seeking feedback on the proposed changes, brought together representatives from government agencies, business operators, and consumer groups. The OCPB explained that its review of the labeling regulations aims to address regulatory gaps arising from evolving commercial practices, particularly the expansion of e-commerce and cross-border transactions. Authorities highlighted recurring issues involving product information that is unclear, incomplete, or potentially misleading in digital sales channels. The proposed revisions are intended to improve consumers’ access to accurate and complete product information, ensure that label disclosures remain relevant amid the growth of e-commerce, and strengthen protections against deceptive or misleading digital advertising. The review is being undertaken pursuant to the Consumer Protection Act B.E. 2522 (1979). As part of the initiative, the OCPB signaled a potential update to the categories of “controlled label products” as well as enhanced disclosure obligations for business operators, with the broader aim of promoting greater transparency, reinforcing operator accountability, and aligning Thailand’s labeling framework with current market conditions. The OCPB secretary general emphasized that
Read More