After more than 20 years of implementing the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services, Vietnam has recorded positive developments in the process of international integration in general and ASEAN integration in particular, thereby promoting the development of the national economy and accumulate valuable experiences for international economic integration.

This article analyzes two issues: (i) How far AEC has gone in the roadmap to achieve the purpose of capital transactions liberalization and (ii) impacts of the commitments within the AEC regarding capital transaction liberalization on Vietnam’s law on foreign exchange management and on investment activities.

Under current Vietnamese legislation, a foreign-invested enterprise (FIE) is understood as an enterprise having a foreign investor as its member or shareholder and is recognized as a Vietnamese one. However, in investment and commercial activities, these entities are subject to different regulations compared to other Vietnamese enterprises. This article brings out these differences in the investment procedures and settlement of disputes involving these FIEs.

Over the past twenty-one years, Vietnam has actively and proactively participated in the ASEAN economic integration and, together with other ASEAN member countries, in laying down important foundations for the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) to be officially founded on December 31, 2015.

The Commercial Law has been implemented for six years during which Vietnam has deeply integrated into the global economy. It has joined the World Trade Organization, acceded to the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services, participated in the ASEAN Investment Area (AIA) and joined ASEM and APEC forums.

On June 26, 2003, the State Bank issued Decision No. 663/2003/QD-NHNN, promulgating the banking sector’s international integration plan and roadmap. Integration strategies were formulated in the context of a banking sector actively negotiating service commitments related to banking in Vietnam’s WTO accession agreements.