Law Amending the Law on Treaties 2025, No. 137/2025/QH15

LAW

AMENDING AND SUPPLEMENTING A NUMBER OF ARTICLES OF THE LAW ON TREATIES

Pursuant to the Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, as amended and supplemented by the Resolution No. 203/2025/QH15;

The National Assembly issues the Law on Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Treaties No. 108/2016/QH13.

Article 1. Amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Treaties

1. To amend and supplement Clause 1 Article 8 as follows:

“1. The Supreme People’s Court, the Supreme People’s Procuracy, the State Audit Office of Vietnam, a ministry, a ministerial-level agency or a government-attached agency (below referred to as proposing agency) shall, within the ambit of its tasks and powers, request international cooperation and propose the Prime Minister for submission to the President the negotiation of a treaty in the name of the State, or propose the Prime Minister the negotiation of a treaty in the name of the Government.”.

2. To amend and supplement Clause 2 Article 9 as follows:

“2. The consulted agencies and organizations prescribed at Point c, Clause 1 of this Article shall be responsible for giving replies in writing within 10 days from the date of receiving a complete dossier for collection of opinions.”.

3. To add Clause 1a after Clause 1 and amend and supplement Clause 2 Article 11 as follows:

“ 1a. In cases where a competent agency of the Party, the President, or the Prime Minister has issued a document approving the policy on treaty negotiation, the dossier to be submitted on the negotiation only requires to include a report clearly stating the proposal for authorization of negotiation.

2. In cases where the proposing agency proposes the conclusion of treaty negotiations, the dossier to be submitted must include a draft treaty reflecting the plan for conclusion of the negotiation.”.

4. To amend and supplement a number of clauses of Article 13 as follows:

a) To amend and supplement Clause 1 as follows:

“1. Based on their tasks and powers and requirements for international cooperation, the agencies prescribed in Article 8 of this Law shall propose to the Prime Minister for submission to the President the decision on the signing of treaties in the name of the State, or authorize the Government to decide on the signing of treaties in the name of the Government.”;

b) To amend and supplement Clause 4 as follows:

“4. The consulted agencies and organizations prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article shall be responsible for giving replies in writing within 10 days from the date of receipt of complete dossiers or within the time limit prescribed in Clause 1 Article 18 and Clause 1 Article 20 of this Law.”.

5. To amend and supplement Clause 1 Article 18 as follows:

“1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall be responsible for examining a treaty within 10 days from the date of receipt of a complete dossier as prescribed in Article 21 of this Law, or within 20 days in cases where a treaty examination council is established as prescribed in Clause 3 of this Article.”.

6. To amend and supplement Clause 1 Article 20 as follows:

“1. The Ministry of Justice shall be responsible for appraising a treaty within 10 days from the date of receipt of a complete dossier as prescribed in Article 21 of this Law, or within 20 days in cases where a treaty appraisal council is established as prescribed in Clause 3 of this Article.”.

7. To amend and supplement Article 21 as follows:

“Article 21. Dossier of request for examination or appraisal of a treaty

1. A dossier of request for examination or appraisal of a treaty must comprise:

a) A written request for examination or appraisal of the treaty, which includes the contents prescribed in Clause 2 Article 18 and Clause 2 Article 20 of this Law;

b) A draft dossier to be submitted on the proposal for signing of the treaty as prescribed in Article 17 of this Law, excluding the examination opinions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the appraisal opinions of the Ministry of Justice.

2. The dossier of request for examination or appraisal of a treaty shall be submitted in an electronic version and 01 paper copy. The electronic version must comply with standards prescribed by law regulations; the proposing agency shall be responsible for the accuracy of both the paper copy and the electronic version.

3. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice shall receive and check the dossier of request for examination or appraisal of a treaty. In cases where the dossier does not comply with Clause 1 of this Article, within 03 working days at the latest from the date of receipt of the dossier, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Ministry of Justice shall request the proposing agency to supplement or complete the dossier.”.

8. To amend and supplement Clause 3 Article 22 as follows:

“3. The head of a delegation to an international conference shall be mandated in writing by the Prime Minister, except for international conferences whose contents are not related to the negotiation or adoption of a treaty, or the amendment or supplementation of a treaty to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a contracting member, for which the head of the proposing agency shall decide on the authorization for attendance.

In cases where it is necessary to mandate members of a Vietnamese delegation to participate in an international conference in accordance with the regulations of such conference, the proposing agency shall submit the case to the Prime Minister for decision or the head of the proposing agency shall decide the case in accordance with this Clause.”.

9. To amend and supplement Article 30 as follows:

“Article 30. Proposal for ratification of a treaty

1. The proposing agency shall submit to the Prime Minister for further submission to the President the ratification of a treaty after having obtained written opinions from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice. Depending on the nature and contents of the treaty, the proposing agency shall decide on the collection of opinions from relevant agencies and organizations.

2. The Prime Minister shall submit to the President for further submission to the National Assembly the ratification of a treaty that are subject to ratification by the National Assembly.

3. The consulted agencies and organizations prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article shall be responsible for giving replies in writing within 10 days from the date of receipt of a written request for collection of opinions.”.

10. To amend and supplement Article 39 as follows:

“Article 39. Proposal for approval of a treaty

1. The proposing agency shall submit to the Government for decision the approval of a treaty after having obtained written opinions from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice. Depending on the nature and contents of the treaty, the proposing agency shall decide on the collection of opinions from relevant agencies and organizations.

2. The consulted agencies and organizations prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article shall be responsible for giving replies in writing within 10 days from the date of receipt of a written request for collection of opinions.”.

11. To amend and supplement a number of clauses of Article 41 as follows:

a) To amend and supplement Clause 1 as follows:

“1. “The agencies prescribed in Article 8 of this Law shall, based on their tasks and powers and requirements for international cooperation, propose to the Government for decision, or propose to the Prime Minister for further submission to the President for decision, or submit to the President for further submission to the National Assembly for decision, the accession to a treaty in accordance with the competence prescribed in Clauses 1, 2 and 3 Article 43 of this Law.”;

b) To amend and supplement Clause 3 as follows:

“3. The consulted agencies and organizations prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article shall be responsible for giving replies in writing within 10 days from the date of receiving a complete dossier for collection of opinions.”.

12. To amend and supplement Clause 2 Article 48 as follows:

“2. In cases where a foreign contracting party makes a reservation to a treaty after the proposing agency has submitted to the competent agency the signing, ratification, approval of, or accession to the treaty, immediately upon receipt of information about the reservation to the treaty made by the foreign contracting party, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall notify the proposing agency thereof. The proposing agency shall be responsible for additionally submitting a proposal for the acceptance of, or objection to, such reservation after obtaining written opinions from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, and relevant agencies and organizations.”.

13. To amend and supplement Article 54 as follows:

“Article 54. Amendment and supplementation, or extension of a treaty

1. A treaty shall be amended, supplemented, or extended in accordance with the provisions of such treaty or as agreed upon between the Vietnamese party and the foreign contracting party.

2. A document deciding on the amendment and supplementation, or extension of a treaty shall include the following contents:

a) Name of the treaty to be amended and supplemented, or extended; the time and place of signing and the effective date;

b) Contents of the amendment and supplementation, or the duration of the extension of the treaty;

c) Responsibilities of the proposing agency, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and relevant agencies and organizations.

3. The order and procedures for deciding on the amendment and supplementation, or extension of a treaty shall be implemented as follows:

a) The proposing agency shall be responsible for collecting examination opinions from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and appraisal opinions from the Ministry of Justice, and simultaneously collecting opinions from relevant agencies and organizations before submitting to the Government or the Prime Minister the amendment, supplementation, or extension of the treaty. A dossier of request for examination and appraisal does not necessarily have to include opinions from relevant agencies and organizations. The consulted agencies and organizations shall be responsible for giving replies in writing within 10 days from the date of receipt of a complete dossier for collection of opinions;

b) The Government shall decide on the amendment, supplementation, or extension of a treaty of or to which it has decided on the approval, accession or signing and which is not subject to ratification or approval; the Prime Minister shall submit to the President for decision the amendment, supplementation, or extension of a treaty of or to which the President has decided on the approval, accession or signing and which is not subject to ratification;

c) The President shall decide on the amendment, supplementation, or extension of a treaty of or to which the President has decided on the ratification, accession or signing and which is not subject to ratification; and submit to the National Assembly for decision the amendment, supplementation, or extension of a treaty of or to which the National Assembly has ratified or decided the accession;

d) The National Assembly shall decide on the amendment, supplementation, or extension of a treaty of or to which the National Assembly has ratified or decided the accession in accordance with the order and procedures similar to those for ratification of a treaty as prescribed in Articles 32, 33, 34, 35, and 36 of this Law.

4. A dossier to be submitted on the amendment, supplementation, or extension of a treaty shall comprise:

a) A report of the proposing agency, which clearly states the purpose, requirement, legal bases and legal consequences of the amendment and supplementation or extension of the treaty;

b) Examination opinions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, appraisal opinions of the Ministry of Justice, and opinions of relevant agencies and organizations; a report on the explanation and acquisition of examination opinions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, appraisal opinions of the Ministry of Justice, and opinions of relevant agencies and organizations; and proposals for handling measures;

c) The text of the treaty;

d) The request for the amendment and supplementation, or the extension of the treaty from the foreign contracting party or relevant Vietnamese state agencies.”.

14. To add Clause 3 after Clause 2 Article 58 as follows:

“3. Dossiers of proposal for the conclusion of treaties and texts of treaties shall be archived in accordance with the law on archives.”.

15. To amend and supplement Clause 1 and Clause 2 Article 60 as follows:

“1. Treaties that have taken effect with respect to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam must be published on the e-Official Gazette and the portal of the proposing agency, except for cases where there is another agreement between the Vietnamese party and the foreign contracting party or a decision of a competent state agency.

In case a treaty is requested not to be published, the proposing agency shall submit such request to the Government for decision, after having obtained written opinions from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Justice and relevant agencies and organizations. The proposing agency shall be responsible for notifying the contents to be implemented to the agencies, organizations, and individuals that directly implement the relevant provisions of the treaty.

2. The Official Gazette agency shall publish the treaty on the e-Official Gazette within 15 days from the date of receipt of the copy of the treaty that has taken effect as sent by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The text published on the e-Official Gazette shall have the same validity as the copy of the treaty prescribed in Article 61 of this Law.”.

16. To amend and supplement Clause 4 Article 63 as follows:

“4. The proposing agency shall be responsible for promptly submitting to the Prime Minister for decision any changes relating to the persons authorized to sign a treaty in the name of the Government; or submitting to the Prime Minister for the latter to submit to the President for decision any changes relating to the persons authorized to sign a treaty in the name of the State.

In cases where there is a change of the persons mandated, the proposing agency shall be responsible for promptly submitting it to the competent agency for decision.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall complete foreign procedures for the issuance of full powers or credentials as prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, and 3 of this Article after the decision of the competent agency is issued.”.

17. To amend and supplement Clause 1 Article 64 as follows:

“1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall notify the foreign contracting party or the depositary of a multilateral treaty of the ratification, approval of, or accession to a treaty within 10 days from the date of receipt of a document from the National Assembly, the President, or the Government on the ratification, approval of, or decision on accession to the treaty, except for the cases prescribed in Clause 2, Article 71a of this Law.”.

18. To amend and supplement Clause 3 Article 70 as follows:

“3. The order, procedures, and dossiers for the negotiation, signing, ratification, approval, amendment, supplementation, extension, termination, and implementation of treaties on official development assistance loans and foreign preferential loans shall be implemented in accordance with the law on public debt management.”.

19. To amend and supplement Article 71 as follows:

“Article 71. Combined proposal for negotiation and signing of a treaty

In cases where the proposing agency determines the contents and collected all necessary documents for a dossier of proposal for signing of a treaty as prescribed in Article 17 of this Law, the proposing agency may concurrently propose the negotiation and signing of the treaty. The order, procedures, and dossier to be submitted for combined proposal for negotiation and signing of a treaty shall be implemented in accordance with Section 2, Chapter II of this Law.”.

20. To add Article 71a after Article 71 as follows:

“Article 71a. Combined proposal for signing and approval or ratification of a treaty

1. In cases where the proposing agency determines that a treaty may be ratified immediately after signing, is sufficiently clear and detailed for implementation, and collects all necessary documents in the dossier of proposal for ratification of the treaty under the competence of the President as prescribed in Article 31 of this Law, it may simultaneously propose the signing and ratification of the treaty. The dossier to be submitted shall be implemented in accordance with Article 17 and Article 31 of this Law.

2. In cases where the proposing agency determines that a treaty may be approved immediately after signing, is sufficiently clear and detailed for implementation, and collects all necessary documents in the dossier of proposal for approval as prescribed in Article 40 of this Law, it may simultaneously propose the signing and approval of the treaty. The dossier to be submitted shall be implemented in accordance with Article 17 and Article 40 of this Law.

3. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall conduct diplomatic notification procedures on the approval or ratification within 10 days from the date of receipt of the original text of the treaty as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 26 of this Law.

4. In cases of any changes leading to the combined signing and approval or ratification no longer being appropriate, the proposing agency shall coordinate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to report to the Government or the President for consideration and decision.”.

21. To amend and supplement Article 72 as follows:

“Article 72. Negotiation and signing of a treaty according to simplified order and procedures

1. Simplified order and procedures shall apply to the negotiation and signing of a treaty in the following cases:

a) A treaty which is made according to a form prescribed in another treaty between the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the same foreign contracting party or according to the form approved by a competent agency as prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article;

b) As decided by the Prime Minister or another competent agency on the application of simplified order and procedures for one or several times based on the proposal of the proposing agency.

2. After having obtained opinions from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice, the proposing agency shall submit to the Prime Minister for decision on the model treaty in the name of the Government, or submit to the Prime Minister for the latter to submit to the President for decision on the model treaty in the name of the State.

3. Simplified order and procedures for the negotiation and signing of a treaty shall be implemented as follows:

a) The dossier to be submitted on the negotiation as prescribed in Article 11 of this Law only needs a proposal for authorization of negotiation;

b) The consulted agencies and organizations prescribed in Clause 2, Article 13 of this Law, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Justice shall be responsible for giving replies in writing within 05 working days from the date of receipt of complete dossiers for collection of opinions, request for examination, or appraisal;

c) A dossier of request for examination or appraisal of a treaty must comprise a document of request for examination or appraisal of the treaty, a draft report to the Government on the proposal for signing of the treaty, opinions of relevant agencies and organizations, and the text of the treaty;

d) A dossier to be submitted on the signing of a treaty shall comprise the documents prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, and 6, Article 17 of this Law;

dd) The report on the signing of a treaty must include an assessment of political, national defense, security, socio-economic, and other impacts of the treaty; an assessment of the compatibility between the treaty proposed for signing and other treaties in the same field to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a contracting party; and an assessment of the conformity of the treaty with Vietnamese law.”.

22. To add Article 72a after Article 72 as follows:

“Article 72a. Authorization in special cases

In cases of necessity to handle practical requirements or urgent foreign relation requirements, after having obtained opinions from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, and relevant agencies and organizations, the proposing agency shall propose to the Prime Minister to report to the President on authorizing the Prime Minister to decide on the negotiation, signing, amendment, or supplementation of a number of treaties in the name of the State under the competence of the President within a specified period. This provision shall not apply to the treaties prescribed at Points a, b, c, and d, Clause 1, Article 4 of this Law.”.

23. To amend and supplement the title and a number of clauses of Article 73 as follows:

a) To amend and supplement the title of Article 31 as follows:

“Article 73. Amendment and supplementation, or extension of a treaty according to the simplified order and procedures

b) To amend and supplement Clause 1 as follows:

“1. In cases where the contents of amendment, supplementation and the extension of an existing treaty are merely technical or do not change the fundamental rights and obligations of Vietnam, the proposing agency may not be required to collect opinions from relevant agencies and organizations prescribed at Point a, Clause 3, Article 54 of this Law before submitting to the Government or the Prime Minister. In cases where opinions are requested, the consulted agencies shall be responsible for giving replies in writing within 05 working days from the date of receipt of a complete dossier for collection of opinions.”;

c) To amend and supplement Clause 4 as follows:

“4. A dossier to be submitted on the amendment, supplementation, or extension of a treaty according to the simplified order and procedures shall comprise the documents prescribed in Clause 4, Article 54 of this Law, excluding the opinions of relevant agencies and organizations.”.

24. To add Clause 8 after Clause 7 Article 79 as follows:

“8. To assuming the prime responsibility for and coordinate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, and relevant agencies and organizations in reporting to the Prime Minister on the implementation of procedures as prescribed in a treaty or as agreed upon by members of a treaty to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a contracting member regarding the accession to such treaty by a foreign contracting party, and proposing an appropriate order and procedures.”.

25. To replace a number of phrases as follows:

a) To replace the phrase “The National Assembly’s External Relations Committee” with the phrase “The National Assembly’s Committee for National Defense, Security and External Relations” in Article 33;

b) To replace the word “days” with the phrase “working days” in Article 60 and Article 63.

26. To repeal Article 19 and Article 74.

Article 2. Implementation provisions

1. This Law takes effect on January 1, 2026.

2. To amend and supplement a number of clauses and points of the Law on Organization of the Government No. 63/2025/QH15 as follows:

a) To amend and supplement Clause 3 Article 10 as follows:

“3. To decide on special amnesty in accordance with law regulations;”;

b) To amend and supplement Point a Clause 3 Article 13 as follows:

“a) Awarding orders, medals, state prizes and state honorary titles; deciding on naturalization in Vietnam, renunciation or deprivation of Vietnamese citizenship; to submit to the President for decision the ratification of, accession to, or termination of effect of treaties under the competence of the President;”.

Article 3. Transitional provision

In cases where dossiers of proposal for the negotiation, signing, amendment, supplementation, or extension of treaties or other dossiers related to treaties have been submitted to competent agencies before the effective date of this Law but have not yet been settled, the Law on Treaties No. 108/2016/QH13 shall apply.

This Law was adopted on December 10, 2025, by the XV^th National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam at its 10^th session.