March, 2026 Newsletter
April 28th, 2026
Establishment of intellectual property rights for intellectual property objects created with the use of artificial intelligence systems
The Law No. 131/2025/QH15 amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Intellectual Property (“IP”), effective from April 1st, 2026 (“the Amended Law on IP 2025”), amends and supplements several provisions in the context of promoting digital transformation and the development of artificial intelligence (“AI”) systems. Accordingly, in addition to the existing grounds for the creation and establishment of IP rights (including copyright, copyright related rights (related rights), industrial property rights, and rights to plant varieties), the Amended Law on IP 2025 adds provisions on the creation and establishment of the aforementioned IP rights in cases where IP objects are created using AI systems.
Currently, there are no specific guidelines for copyright, related rights, and rights to plant varieties in such cases. As of March 31st, 2026, only Decree No. 100/2026/NĐ-CP provides regulations on rights to industrial property objects created with the use of AI systems, specifically as follows:
- For inventions, industrial designs, and layout designs created by humans using AI systems:
· Industrial property rights shall only be established if humans have made a substantial contribution to the creation of such objects.
A person who makes a substantial contribution to the creation of inventions, industrial designs, or layout designs using AI systems shall be regarded as the author of such inventions, industrial designs, or layout designs.
· A human shall be considered to have made a substantial contribution to the creation of an invention, industrial design, or layout design using an AI system if the human performs all of the following activities:
o Identifying the problem to be solved, which must include the idea of the solution, not merely a general description of the problem;
o Selecting input data, objectives, constraints, and parameters based on the human’s creative ideas, rather than relying solely on available data or automated suggestions from the AI system;
o Evaluating, selecting, refining, testing (if any), and interpreting the results generated by the AI system, in which the refinement must alter the core structure or function of the AI-generated output to create new value;
o Deciding on the final result as the invention, industrial design, or layout design for which protection is sought.
· In cases where the above conditions are not met, the creator shall have the right to use or permit others to use such inventions, industrial designs, or layout designs, provided that such use does not infringe upon the lawful rights and interests of other organizations or individuals.
- For trademarks, trade names, geographical indications, and trade secrets created using AI systems: Industrial property rights shall be protected if they satisfy the conditions prescribed by IP law.
Notable new points of Decree No. 96/2026/ND-CP on investment procedures and special investment incentives and support (effective from March 31st, 2026)
On March 31st, 2026, the Government issued Decree No. 96/2026/ND-CP detailing and guiding the implementation of provisions of the Law on Investment. Accordingly, investors should note the following new points:
1. Regarding investment procedures: Supplementing provisions allowing foreign investors to establish an economic organization prior to carrying out procedures for the issuance, adjustment of the Investment Registration Certificate (“IRC”):
· Within 12 months from the date of establishment, such economic organization must complete procedures to obtain an IRC for implementing an investment project consistent with its registered business lines, and may only amend its enterprise registration to add other business lines after the IRC has been granted.
Such economic organization is only permitted implement the investment project after completing procedures for issuance, adjustment of the IRC.
· The charter capital of an economic organization established by a foreign investor to implement an investment project is not required to be equal to the total investment capital of the project. The economic organization established by the foreign investor shall contribute capital and mobilize other funding sources to implement the investment project according to the schedule specified in the IRC.
2. Regarding special investment incentives and support:
· Eligible subjects for special investment incentives and support include:
a) New investment projects (including expansion of such projects) for the establishment of innovation centers, research and development centers; projects for building large-scale data center infrastructure, cloud computing infrastructure, mobile infrastructure from 5G and above, and other digital infrastructure in strategic technology sectors; projects in strategic technology sectors, manufacturing strategic technology products with a total investment capital of VND 3,000 billion or more, disbursing at least VND 1,000 billion within 03 years from the date of IRC issuance or investment policy approval; the National Innovation Center established under a decision of the Prime Minister;
b) Investment projects for manufacturing key digital technology products; projects for research and development, design, manufacturing, packaging, and testing of semiconductor chips; projects for building artificial intelligence data centers meeting a total investment capital of VND 6,000 billion or more, disbursing at least VND 6,000 billion within 05 years from the date of IRC issuance or investment policy approval;
c) Investment projects (including new and expansion projects) in sectors entitled to special investment incentives with an investment capital scale of VND 30,000 billion or more, disbursing at least VND 10,000 billion within 03 years from the date of IRC issuance or investment policy approval.
· Investors proposing the application of special investment incentives must commit to satisfying the conditions on business lines, total registered investment capital, disbursement amount, disbursement timeline as mentioned above, and other conditions stated in the IRC, the investment policy approval decision, or written agreements with competent state authorities as decided by the Prime Minister.
· Special investment incentives and support shall not apply to the following cases:
o Investment projects that have already been granted an Investment Certificate, IRC, or investment policy approval before the effective date of this Law;
o The following investment projects: mineral mining in accordance with laws on geology and minerals; manufacturing/trading of goods/services subject to excise tax under the Law on Special excise tax, except for automobile, aircraft, and yacht manufacturing projects; construction of commercial housing in accordance with housing laws.
New regulations on exemption from and reduction of land rental effective from March 17th, 2026
On March 17th, 2026, the Minister of Finance issued Circular No. 21/2026/TT-BTC amending Circular No. 80/2021/TT-BTC guiding the Law on Tax Administration and Decree No. 126/2020/ND-CP detailing the Law on Tax Administration. The contents of this Circular were introduced in Official Letter No. 1696/CT-CS dated March 24th, 2026 issued by the Tax Department.
Accordingly, from March 17th, 2026, the new regulations on dossiers for exemption from and reduction of land rental in cases where agricultural production is affected by natural disasters or fire shall apply:
· The dossier requirements for exemption from and reduction of land rental have been revised in the following cases:
o Entities that lease land from the State with annual land rental payments for use for agricultural production, forestry, aquaculture, or salt production and suffer damage due to natural disasters or fire;
o Entities that lease land from the State with annual land rental payments for use for production or business purposes (except for land-use projects for agricultural production, forestry, aquaculture, or salt production) but are required to suspend operations in order to remedy the consequences of natural disasters, fire or force majeure events;
o Organizations or units employing ethnic minority workers who lawfully reside in areas eligible for support policies under the Prime Minister’s Decision on support for organizations and units employing ethnic minority workers in mountainous areas and areas with especially difficult socio-economic conditions;
o Organizations or units employing persons with disabilities that lease land from the State with annual land rental payments for use for production or business purposes.
· Transitional provisions:
o During the period in which local authorities have not yet issued new land procedures, provincial-level People’s Committees may decide whether to apply the dossier requirements for exemption from and reduction of land rental under the previous regulations or to apply them flexibly on a case-by-case basis.
o Guidance is also provided for foreign-invested enterprises that signed capital transfer agreements before December 15th, 2025, on the declaration of corporate income tax in respect of capital transfer activities.
Guidance on the timing for determining assessable revenue for CIT
On March 12th, 2026, the Ministry of Finance issued Circular No. 20/2026/TT-BTC on elaboration of some Articles of the Law on Corporate Income Tax (“CIT”) and the Government’s Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP dated December 15th, 2025 on elaboration and measures for implementation of the Law on CIT. Accordingly, Circular No. 20/2026/TT-BTC provides guidance on the timing for determining assessable revenue for CIT of enterprises established under Vietnamese law as follows:
· For goods sale: the time when the right to ownership and/or right to enjoyment of the goods is transferred to the buyer;
· For service provision: the time when service provision is completed or part of service provision is completed for the buyer;
· For exported goods: the timing for determining assessable revenue for CIT shall be the date of ownership transfer under the export contract. If the date of ownership transfer cannot be determined, the timing for determining assessable revenue for CIT shall be determined according to the basis for determination of exported goods as prescribed by customs laws;
· For air transport: the timing for determining assessable revenue for CIT shall be the time of completion of the transport service for the buyer;
· For construction and installation: the timing for determining assessable revenue for CIT shall be the time of acceptance of the construction work, item, installation, regardless of whether payment has been collected or not;
· For electricity and water supply: the timing for determining assessable revenue for CIT shall be the date of confirmation of meter reading written on the electricity and water supply invoices.
Circular No. 20/2026/TT-BTC enters into force from March 12th, 2026 and shall apply from the tax period of 2025.
VAT, CIT and PIT policies for transactions, transfers and trading of crypto assets
On March 27th, 2026, the Ministry of Finance issued Circular No. 32/2026/TT-BTC guiding the value-added tax (“VAT”), corporate income tax (“CIT”) and personal income tax (“PIT”) on transactions, transfers, and trading of crypto assets. Accordingly:
· VAT policy: The transfer and trading of crypto assets are exempt from VAT.
· CIT policy:
o Investors that are organizations established and operating in accordance with Vietnamese law and have income from the transfers of crypto assets are subject to CIT at a tax rate of 20% (except for cases where (i) the enterprise has total annual revenue not exceeding VND 03 billion shall apply a tax rate of 15% and (ii) the enterprise has total annual revenue from over VND 03 billion to not exceeding VND 50 billion shall apply a tax rate of 17%);
o Businesses that are organizations providing crypto assets services as regulated and have income from providing crypto assets services are subject to CIT at a tax rate of 20% (except for cases where (i) the enterprise has total annual revenue not exceeding VND 03 billion shall apply a tax rate of 15% and (ii) the enterprise has total annual revenue from over VND 03 billion to not exceeding VND 50 billion shall apply a tax rate of 17%);
o Investors that are organizations established under foreign laws and engage in the transfers of crypto assets through crypto assets service providers are subject to CIT at a tax rate of 0.1% on the revenue for each transfer.
· PIT policy: Individual investors (regardless of whether they are residents or non-residents) who transfer crypto assets through a crypto assets service provider are subject to PIT at a tax rate of 0.1% on the transfer price for each transfer.
Guidance on personal income tax applicable to income from salaries and wages from 2025 onward
On March 4th, 2026, the Tax Department issued Official Letter No. 1296/CT-NVT providing guidance on the finalization of personal income tax (“PIT”) in respect of income from salaries and wages. Accordingly, the Tax Department provides the following guidance and notes:
· Family circumstance deductions and tax brackets applicable to income from salaries and wages:
o Tax period 2025:
- The family circumstance deduction shall be determined in accordance with Resolution No. 954/2020/UBTVQH14 dated June 2nd, 2020 of the Standing Committee of the National Assembly.
- Pursuant to the Law on Personal Income Tax No. 04/2007/QH12, income from salaries and wages earned by resident individuals is subject to the progressive tax schedule comprising seven tax brackets.
o Tax period 2026 onward (from January 1st, 2026):
- The family circumstance deduction is adjusted in accordance with Resolution No. 110/2025/UBTVQH15 of the Standing Committee of the National Assembly.
- Pursuant to the Law on Personal Income Tax No. 109/2025/QH15, income from salaries and wages earned by resident individuals is subject to the progressive tax schedule comprising five tax brackets.
· Certain notes on the declaration and finalization of personal income tax for income-paying organizations:
o Issue PIT withholding certificates and transmit data of electronic certificates to the tax authority in accordance with Clause 22, Article 1 of Decree No. 70/2025/ND-CP.
o When withholding, declaring, and paying tax on behalf of individuals, income-paying organizations and individuals should provide complete and timely information on the amount of tax withheld and paid in accordance with Official Letter No. 828/TCT-KK dated February 25th, 2025 of the General Department of Taxation (now the Tax Department) and Official Letter No. 5435/CT-NVT dated November 21st, 2025 of the Tax Department.
o Registration of dependents must be carried out within the prescribed time limit, and the timing for applying family circumstance deductions must be determined in accordance with the law. Where the support obligation arises before the employee starts working for the employer, but all statutory conditions are satisfied, the period of family circumstance deduction for such dependents shall be determined from the time the support obligation arises.
Detailed guidelines on supplementary retirement insurance effective May 10th, 2026
On March 25th, 2026, the Government issued Decree No. 85/2026/ND-CP on supplementary retirement insurance (“SRI”). This Decree, effective from May 10th, 2026, provides a detailed legal framework for SRI - a voluntary insurance type based on market principles to supplement the retirement regime under compulsory social insurance, with a mechanism for creating a fund from contributions by employers or by both employers and employees. Accordingly:
- The eligible participants for SRI: Employees and employers who have participated in the compulsory social insurance in accordance with the Law on Social Insurance.
- Method of participation in SRI:
· The eligible participants for SRI can voluntarily participate in the SRI program implemented by pension fund management companies through employers, based on the following principles:
o Participation in SRI is not a mandatory condition for recruitment, signing, or renewal of labor contracts.
o Employers shall not discriminate against, obstruct the legal rights and interests of the employee through their participation in SRI.
o Employers shall not link SRI participation to reward policies, performance evaluation and other corporate benefits provided to employees.
o Contribution levels for SRI are agreed upon voluntarily between employers and employees.
· The employees participating in SRI are entitled to receive the employer’s contributions and the investment returns generated from those contributions if:
o Meet the specific eligibility conditions set forth in the agreement between the employer and the employee. In cases where a minimum years-of-service condition is applied, it shall not exceed 05 years; or
o Fall under one of the following cases:
+ Death;
+ Suffering from one of the following diseases: cancer, poliomyelitis, decompensated cirrhosis, severe tuberculosis, or AIDS;
+ A working capacity reduction of 81% or more, or being a person with particularly severe disabilities;
+ Being a foreign citizen who no longer resides in Vietnam, or whose work permit, practice certificate, or license has expired and is not renewed.
Suspension of the effect of Decree No. 46/2026/NĐ-CP and Resolution No. 66.13/2026/NQ-CP on food safety
On March 20th, 2026, the Government Office issued Notice No. 141/TB-VPCP regarding the conclusions on handling the difficulties and shortcomings of Decree No. 46/2026/ND-CP dated January 26th, 2026, detailing the implementation of some articles and measures to organize and guide the implementation of the Law on Food Safety (“Decree No. 46”) and Resolution No. 66.13/2026/NQ-CP dated January 27th, 2026, on the announcement and registration of food products (“Resolution No. 66.13”).
Accordingly, the Standing Committee of the Government reached the following conclusions:
1. The Ministry of Health shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant ministries and agencies to urgently study and incorporate opinions in order to consider and promulgate a Government Resolution to extend the period of suspension of the effect of Decree No. 46 and Resolution No. 66.13 in accordance with Resolution No. 09/2026/NQ-CP dated February 4th, 2026 until the amended Law on Food Safety and the Decree guiding the amended Law on Food Safety come into effect.
2. The Ministry of Health shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant ministries and agencies to urgently finalize the draft amended Law on Food Safety, ensuring quality and progress for submission to the National Assembly at the 2nd session of the 16th National Assembly; at the same time, to develop and finalize the draft Decree detailing the amended Law on Food Safety and to thoroughly prepare conditions for simultaneous implementation together with the development and submission of the draft Law.
On April 6th, 2026, the Government issued Resolution No. 15/2026/NQ-CP (“Resolution No. 15”) suspending the effect of Decree No. 46 and Resolution No. 66.13 until the amended Law on Food Safety and the Decree guiding the amended Law on Food Safety come into effect. Accordingly:
· During the period of suspension, Decree No. 15/2018/ND-CP dated February 2nd, 2018 detailing the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Food Safety and its implementing and guiding documents shall continue to remain in effect.
· For dossiers submitted prior to the effective date of Resolution No. 15, it shall continue to be processed in accordance with Decree No. 15/2018/ND-CP and relevant implementing and guiding documents.
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