VLLF

This presents Vietnam with an opportunity not only to attract more FDI, but also to select high-quality projects that generate greater added value, promote technology transfer and help create new growth drivers.

The Draft Law on Cultural Industry Development aims to establish a unified legal framework to foster a favourable environment for businesses and creators to develop high-quality cultural products that generate economic value while preserving Vietnam’s cultural identity.

The Ministry of Finance has issued circular No. 117/2026/TT-BTC, effective from August 15, 2026 to February 28, 2027, offering incentives to citizens who meet the prescribed conditions.

Under the revised rules, once a document is integrated into the national ID app, agencies handling administrative procedures, public services, or civil transactions must retrieve the information directly from the system rather than requiring people to submit it again.

The Prime Minister has recently approved a scheme to develop national key research and testing centres and laboratories focused on strategic technologies, targeting mastery of at least 10 core technologies to support strategic technology products and tackle major national challenges.

The Ministry of Public Security is taking the lead in drafting a Law on Electronic Identification and Authentication that would significantly expand Vietnam’s identification framework beyond individuals and organisations to cover virtually all entities in the physical and digital worlds.

The directive by General Secretary and President Lam reflects a shift in Vietnam’s development mindset, in line with the Politburo’s Resolution 57-NQ/TW dated December 22, 2024 on breakthroughs in sci-tech, innovation and national digital transformation. For the first time, sci-tech has been placed at the very centre as a driver of growth model.

The 2025 E-Commerce Law establishes a unified legal framework for e-commerce in Vietnam, with clearer rules governing foreign platforms, overseas sellers, transaction data and foreign investment in major digital marketplaces.

National Assembly deputy Do Duc Hien of Ho Chi Minh City said "The draft Law on Urban Development is designed to grant Ho Chi Minh City greater autonomy in issuing legal documents to detail and implement the powers delegated to it."

With hundreds of special and exceptional powers granted to the Hanoi authorities, the 2026 Capital Law is expected to remove bottlenecks, unlock resources, and enable the Capital to take greater initiative and adopt more innovative approaches to governance and development.

A draft revision of the Land Law would codify the principle that people whose land is recovered by the State must enjoy housing and living conditions equal to or better than those before relocation, while proposing greater land-recovery powers for local authorities and a special mechanism to speed up site clearance for important projects.

Foreign enterprises providing cross-border telecommunications and Internet services in Vietnam could face fines of up to 5 per cent of their global revenue for serious violations related to data security, according to a draft Law on Data Security proposed by the Ministry of Public Security.

The Government has issued Resolution 208/NQ-CP, adopting an action programme to implement the 14th Party Central Committee's Conclusion 75-KL/TW on environmental protection and proactive climate change response in the new era.

The programme, issued under Resolution 218/NQ-CP dated August 7, seeks to translate the Party Central Committee’s Resolution 20-NQ/TW on building and developing Vietnam into a strong maritime nation, into specific tasks.

Deputy Director of the Department of Customs Nguyen Thanh Hung said the draft law establishes a legal framework to convert fragmented customs documents into standardised digital data, enabling AI to process and analyse information for automated customs clearance.