New Policies Effective from September 2025

Six categories of assets allowed in start-up investment funds

Decree 210/2025, effective September 15, stipulates details on investment for small and medium-sized innovative start-ups. A start-up investment fund will have no legal entity status, can be founded by 2 to 30 investors, and cannot invest in another start-up investment fund.

Six types of assets can be contributed: Vietnam Dong (VND), land-use rights, intellectual property rights, technologies, technical know-how, and other assets convertible into VND.

The fund’s investment scope includes:

• Direct investment in innovative start-ups (maximum 50% of the charter capital after investment).

• Investment in convertible instruments.

• Purchase rights to shares in start-ups (not transferable to third parties).

Incentives for supporting industries

Decree 205/2025, effective September 1, introduces new incentives for enterprises in supporting industries—sectors producing materials, components, and spare parts for complete products.

Key points:

• Up to 50% state support for investment in machinery, prototypes, designs, software, training, consultancy, inventions, and intellectual property rights related to prioritized supporting industries.

• Up to 70% support for activities aimed at developing experts and consultancy services in technology transfer.

• Financial support for training students, lecturers, researchers, and skilled workers both domestically and abroad.

• Projects building R&D facilities for supporting industries receive land rent exemptions/reductions and equipment investment support.

Regulations on social media accounts in the Ministry of National Defense

Circular 81/2025/TT-BQP, effective September 15, prohibits organizations and individuals from creating social media accounts using names identical or confusingly similar to agencies of the Ministry of National Defense, press agencies, or other state bodies.

Personnel under the Ministry’s management must:

• Follow platform rules before registration.

• Not use unit-related information for personal accounts.

• Share only official and reliable sources.

• Avoid posting state secrets.

New wastewater standards

Circulars 04, 05, and 06/2025 from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, effective September 1, update standards for domestic, urban, industrial, and livestock wastewater.

• Businesses generating wastewater in hospitality, dining, hotels, serviced apartments, hostels, and boarding houses will be managed under domestic wastewater regulations.

• Circular 06/2025 defines permissible pollutant limits for industrial wastewater discharge.

• Circular 04/2025 requires livestock wastewater connected to urban or residential wastewater systems to comply with system operators’ or local authorities’ regulations.

Higher foreign language standards for teachers

Decree 222/2025, effective September 25, sets stricter language competency requirements:

• Primary and lower-secondary school language teachers: at least Level 4 (Vietnam’s 6-level framework).

• Upper-secondary teachers: at least Level 5.

• Adult education teachers (middle school subjects): at least Level 4.

• University lecturers: minimum Level 4 or as required by their programs.

Regarding tuition fees:

• Public schools offering foreign-language teaching must calculate fees on a cost-recovery basis with student consent.

• Public universities set tuition based on financial autonomy and students’ ability to pay, with transparency required before admissions.

Stricter control over civil cryptography

Decree 211/2025, effective September 9, strengthens civil cryptography (CC) management, adding administrative penalties.

Examples:

• Warning for reports to the Government Cipher Committee submitted less than one month late.

• Fines of VND 20–30 million for failing to maintain and secure client information.

• Fines of VND 40–50 million for using unlicensed CC products/services without declaring to authorities.

Civil cryptography is defined in the Law on Cybersecurity 2015 as cryptographic techniques and products used for securing or authenticating non-state-secret information.