E-commerce has witnessed a rapid growth in recent years, especially in Vietnam. This is a highly attractive market that is open to doing business with entrepreneurs from different countries. Online shopping has become increasingly popular among Vietnamese consumers, with the amount of online transactions increasing significantly every year. However, setting up an e-commerce website for sale in Vietnam is not without challenges. It is important to understand the laws and regulations that govern e-commerce in the country, in order to do business legally and successfully.
Understanding how Vietnamese law regulates the terms and processes involved in setting up a website is crucial. This article aims to explore the applicable rules and regulations to address these concerns.
Overview of e-commerce website
In terms of the general definition of an e-commerce website, it refers to a website or an online platform where individuals, businesses and organizations conduct commercial activities, such as buying and selling products or services, transferring money, marketing and advertising products, and communicating with customers.
Users can access these platforms through the internet, mobile technology or other. In Vietnam, to operate an e-commerce website, one must comply with the relevant MOIT regulations, which include registration, tax obligations, security measures, and consumer protection laws.
Article 1.7 of Decree 85/2021/ND-CP states that traders, organizations, or individuals can establish a sales e-commerce website to promote commercial activities, sell goods, or provide services. The Vietnamese government allows four categories of e-commerce websites to operate, which include Sales websites, Trading Floors, Online Auctions, and Online Promotions. These websites have unique features and require varying operational requirements, as well as specific customer information. For instance, sales websites necessitate a notification to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) before starting the operations. However, Trading Floors, Online Auctions, and Online Promotions demand more stringent registration procedures with MOIT, which is more involved than merely notifying the ministry.
Regulations in Vietnam for setting up sales e-commerce websites
Traders, organizations, or individuals may establish e-commerce websites for sales if they satisfy the following two conditions as stipulated in Article 52 of Decree 52/2013/ND-CP, which has been amended and supplemented by Article 10.1 and 11 of Decree 08/2018/ND-CP.
(i) Traders, organizations, or individuals who granted personal tax identification numbers are eligible;
(ii) Having notified the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the set-up of sales e-commerce websites.
Announcement regarding E-Commerce Websites operating in Vietnam
Before beginning the notification procedure for their sales website, the website owner in Vietnam must ensure that they fulfill some fundamental requirements. These include being a registered trader or organization that conforms to relevant legislation on information management, or an individual who has a personal tax code and a website with a valid domain name. After meeting these requirements, you only need to complete the online notification process.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) has established an e-commerce management portal for conducting online notifications. This portal includes an announcement tool that businesses can use to complete notifications. To complete a notification, businesses must provide essential information such as the domain name of their e-commerce website, registered name of traders or organizations, or name of the website owner, type of goods and services offered on the website, and the permanent residence of individuals or head office of traders or organizations, among other details.
To begin the process, the applicant must create an account and declare the necessary information. The MOIT will then confirm whether the information provided is complete and accurate, sending the confirmation to the applicant’s registered email address within three days.
After confirmation, the applicant can proceed to complete the notification for their sales website using the available form. The MOIT will require a grace period of three days to acknowledge whether the form is valid, complete, and accurate. If the form is valid, complete, and accurate, no further action will be necessary.
However, if the application contains any inaccuracies or incompleteness, the applicant must fill in the form again.
Vietnam’s E-Commerce Website Registration
Registering three other types of e-commerce websites in Vietnam is a complex process that goes beyond mere notification. Only organizations or traders are allowed to operate such sites; it is not legal for individuals to conduct transactions with these sites.
To register, the relevant business lines must properly license and register the sites, and the sites must have a valid domain name. Additionally, they must have a service provision plan that includes an organizational and operational model for service provision, a list of operating protocols for both promotion and marketing services inside and outside of the online environment, and an explanation of the rights and responsibilities of traders or organizations offering e-commerce services and customers. Once a plan is in place, the final step is registration.
Dossier and procedure
Foreign traders or organizations that provide e-commerce services in Vietnam through a website with a Vietnamese domain name, or display language in Vietnamese, or have over 100,000 transactions from Vietnam annually, are considered traders or organizations operating in Vietnam. To provide e-commerce services in Vietnam, foreign traders and organizations must follow the registration process with the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade. They must also establish representative offices in Vietnam as required by the law. Alternatively, they can appoint an authorized representative in Vietnam.
Moreover, they are responsible for collaborating with state-managed agencies to prevent fraudulent goods and services transactions, safeguard customers’ interests, and submitting a report on product quality to the Ministry of Industry and Trade about their operation in the previous year. Decree 85 regulates foreign traders and organizations conducting e-commerce activities in Vietnam, enhancing the legal framework, establishing equitable competition in the business atmosphere, and ensuring equality among domestic and foreign service providers.
To apply, the applicant must first gather the required documents. Then, they need to register for an account on the online portal. MOIT will confirm the account and send an email notification to the applicant’s registered email, usually within three days. The applicant should then lodge these documents with the MOIT. The MOIT has seven days to review the submissions and determine if the information provided is complete. If anything is missing, the MOIT will notify the applicant, who must make necessary adjustments.
If the dossier is accepted, the MOIT will request hard copies of the documents. The MOIT then has 30 days to review the full application dossier and confirm successful registration.
Conclusion
It’s crucial to understand the type of website you intend to operate when determining the applicable registration procedure in Vietnam. Registering an e-commerce website is considerably more complex than registering for a sales website. However, once this distinction is made, the application process is relatively straightforward. The Vietnamese government executes the paperwork efficiently.
HMLF is always available to offer assistance in understanding the procedures or liaising with authorities.
Harley Miller Law Firm “HMLF”
Head office: 14th floor, HM Town building, 412 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, Ward 05, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City.
Phone number: 0937215585
Website: hmlf.vn
