1. New Employment Law

On 16 June 2025, the National Assembly adopted the Law No. 74/2025/QH15 on Employment (“Employment Law 2025”). The Employment Law 2025 takes effect from 1 January 2026 and replaces the Employment Law 2013. Below are some major provisions of the Employment Law 2025.

Scope

The Employment Law 2025 governs job creation support policies, registration of labourers, labour market information system, development of occupational skills, employment services and unemployment insurance.

The Employment Law 2025 defines the term “employee” as a Vietnamese citizen who is at least 15 years of age, has the ability and need to work. This is the same as the definition of an employee under the Employment Law 2013. However, the Employment Law 2025 further clarifies that junior employees must comply with the conditions imposed by the Labour Code.

Jobs requiring certificate of national occupational skills

Employees doing jobs that directly affect the safety and health of themselves or of the community must obtain certificate of national occupational skills. The Government will specify list of jobs which require the employees to have such certificate.

Unemployment insurance

Under the Employment Law 2025, employees must participate in unemployment insurance while they are working under (i) indefinite term contracts, contracts with a term of at least one month, or other agreement which have nature of a labour contract (including those who work part-time and receive a monthly salary that is equal to or greater than the minimum salary used as the basis for payment of compulsory social insurance), or (ii) employment contracts. In addition, salaried managers (e.g. directors, board members etc.) are now required to participate in unemployment insurance.

All agencies, organisations, enterprises, cooperatives, business households or individuals who hire or employ the above-mentioned employees must participate in unemployment insurance.

Employers are required to make a maximum contribution of 1% of the monthly salary fund for employees participating in unemployment insurance to the unemployment insurance fund. Employees also make a maximum contribution of 1% of their monthly salary to that fund. Salary used as the basis for payment of unemployment insurance is capped at 20 times the regional minimum salary set by the Government at the time of payment of unemployment insurance.

Remarkably, employees who do not receive salary for 14 working days or more in a month are not required to contribute unemployment insurance for that month.

Employment service enterprises

Enterprises providing employment services must obtain an employment service licence issued by the competent authority. In order to be licensed, such enterprises must comply with the conditions on facilities, qualified staff and escrow deposit which will be regulated by the Government.

2. Special Consumption Tax

On 14 June 2025, the National Assembly adopted Law No. 66/2025/QH15 on Special Consumption Tax (the “SCT Law 2025”). The SCT Law 2025 takes effect from 01 January 2026 and replaces the Law on Special Consumption Tax 2008, as amended (the “current SCT Law”). Significant issues of the SCT Law 2025 are highlighted below.

Taxable objects

Beverages according the Vietnamese standards with sugar content being greater than 5g/100ml will be subject to special consumption tax (SCT) from 1 January 2027.

The SCT Law 2025 amends some categories of goods subject to SCT, including tobacco, liquors, beer, motor vehicles with less than 24 seats, airplane and cruisers, and air-conditioners with a capacity of 90,000 BTU or less. For example, motor vehicles with less than 24 seats now include passenger cars, 4-wheeled vehicles for transporting persons, pick-up cars, pick-up trucks with double cabin, vans with two rows of seats or more and fixed partitions between the passenger compartment and the cargo compartment.

Goods subject to SCT are the complete products, excluding components for assembling those goods.

SCT rates

Beverages with sugar content being greater than 5g/100ml will be subject to the SCT rate of 8% from 1 January 2027, and 10% from 1 January 2028 onwards.

The SCT Law 2025 increases the SCT rates for beer, liquors and tobacco, specifically:

• The SCT rates for beer and liquors will remain at 65% or 35% (for liquors below 20% alcohol by volume) through 2026. These rates will be increased by 5% every year from 2027 to 2031. From 01 January 2031 onwards, the rate will be set at 90% for beer and liquors with 20% alcohol by volume or higher, and 60% for liquors below 20% alcohol by volume.
• For tobacco, the SCT rate of 75% will be applicable until the end of 2026. Starting 1 January 2027, the SCT Law 2025 adds specific tax rates to the current rate of 75%. There are different specific tax rates for (a) cigarettes, (b) cigars, and (c) fine-cut tobacco or other tobacco products. These specific tax rates will be increased every year, from 2028 to 2031.

The SCT Law 2025 amends and supplements SCT rates for some types of motor vehicles with less than 24 seats such as pick-up trucks with double cabin, vans with two rows of seats or more and fixed partitions between the passenger compartment and the cargo compartment, and vehicles run on natural gas.

Taxable price

The SCT Law 2025 adopts the same principles of calculation of taxable price as under the current SCT Law and its implementing regulations (such as the taxable price of goods or services is the selling price or the service supply price exclusive of SCT, environmental protection tax and value-added tax). Nevertheless, it revises the provision on calculation of taxable price for imported goods to be consistent with laws on import-export tax.

3. Economic and efficient use of energy

On 18 June 2025, the National Assembly adopted the Law No. 77/2025/QH15 (the “Law 77/2025”) amending the Law on economic and efficient use of energy 2010, as amended. The Law 77/2025 takes effect from 1 January 2026. Following are some notable changes introduced under the Law 77/2025.

Under the Law 77/2025, the Minister of Industry and Trade shall stipulate the levels of energy usage applicable to energy production establishments, energy transport establishment and energy distribution establishments. These establishments need to co-ordinate with the Ministry of Industry and Trade to elaborate such energy using levels. On the other hand, the Minister of Construction shall stipulate the levels of energy usage applicable for, specifically, designing, construction and building material production. 

The Law 77/2025 adds a new requirement on major energy-using establishments to maintain their metering system which satisfies criteria required by laws for supervising their energy consumption. The provincial People’s Committees will issue annual list of major energy-using establishments in the locality and send that list to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Regarding energy labelling, the Law 77/2025 requires businesses to affix energy labels to vehicles, equipment and construction materials that fall within the lists of vehicles, equipment and construction materials subject to energy labelling before they are put on the market. Those lists will be promulgated by the Minister of Industry and Trade and the Minister of Construction.

To encourage investment and use of more efficient technologies and equipment, the Government will provide land incentives, credit incentives, other incentives and technical supports for enterprises producing energy-saving products and materials; enterprises expanding production scale through the application of energy-saving technologies; and projects in energy-saving establishments that optimize solutions for use of energy or reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The Prime Minister will establish a State financial fund to support projects and activities that promote economic and efficient use of energy.

4. Development of supporting industries

On 14 July 2025, the Government issued Decree No. 205/2025/ND-CP (“Decree 205”) amending Decree No. 111/2015/ND-CP dated 3 November 2015 on development of supporting industries (“Decree 111”). Decree 205 takes effect from 1 September 2025.

Decree 205 revises the definition of supporting industries as industries that manufacture, process materials, auxiliary materials, supplies, components and spare parts for manufacturing finished products. Decree 205 contains two annexes which provide the list of products eligible for incentives, i.e. Annex I with the list of supporting industry products prioritised for development (referred as “SI products”) (this list will replace the list of SI products in the Annex of Decree 111); and Annex II with the list of SI products which have been produced domestically prior to 1 January 2015.

Incentives for projects manufacturing SI products include tax incentives, land and water surface rental incentives and other investment incentives which will be granted in accordance with tax laws, land laws and relevant laws. In order for enjoying these incentives, a project must satisfy the conditions set out in Decree 205, including, among others: (i) the project’s products fall within the list of products specified in Annex I or Annex II of Decree 205, and (ii) there must be at least one small and medium enterprise that manufactures and supplies essential materials and supplies, or components and spare parts used in manufacturing SI products requesting an incentive certificate.

An enterprise having a project manufacturing SI products shall submit the application dossier to the Ministry of Industry and Trade or the provincial People’s Committee (if the applicant is a small and medium enterprise) to obtain an incentive certificate. Once a complete and valid dossier is submitted, the competent agency shall evaluate and grant the incentive certificate to the enterprise within the timeline stipulated in Decree 205.

Incentivized projects are subject to post-inspections measures (“hậu kiểm” in Vietnamese), which will be conducted periodically (every two (02) years) or on an ad-hoc basis, to review enterprises’ compliance with conditions under Decree 205. Failure to comply or report changes to the projects can lead to the revocation of the incentive certificate.

Decree 205 also amends support policies for development of supporting industries. Among these are (i) providing further supports to promote application and transfer of technologies to manufacture SI products, and (ii) offering support of up to 50% of expenditures for testing and verifying the quality of products for enterprises manufacturing SI products as specified in Annex I.

5. Import -Export Tax

On 8 July 2025, the Government issued Decree No. 199/2025/ND-CP (“Decree 199”) amending Decree No. 26/2023/ND-CP dated 31 May 2025 on the Export Tariffs, Preferential Import Tariffs, List of goods and absolute tax rates, combined tax rates, off-quota import tax rates. Decree 199 takes effect from the date of signing.

Decree 199 provides for the adjustment to the export tax rate for yellow phosphorus (subheading 2804.70.00.10). This rate will remain at 5% till the end of 2025 but will be increased to 10% from 1 January 2026, and to 15% from 1 January 2027.

There are some goods in the Preferential Import Tariff subject to import tax rate increases including polyethylene (subheadings 3901.10.92 and 3901.20.00), and tin-mill blackplate (subheading 7209.18.10), among others. Specifically, the rate of 2% will apply to the said polyethylenes from 8 July 2025, while the rate of 7% will apply to tin-mill blackplate from 1 September 2025 (replacing the rate of 0% provided under Decree 26/2023/ND-CP).

Regarding the Preferential Tax Program granted for manufacture or assembly of automobiles, Decree 199 amends the condition on minimum output for enjoying the import tax rate of 0% for imported auto parts under heading 98.49. In addition, when applying for the zero rate, enterprises are no longer required to submit written explanations of the technical designs and technical drawings of automobiles appraised by the Vietnam Register.