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| Building, conversion, and repair of seagoing ships is one of conditional business investment sectors and trades VCCI proposes to abolish__Photo: VNA |
The Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) has recently submitted an official document to the Ministry of Finance, proposing the removal of 16 sectors and trades and the narrowing of five others from the list of those subject to conditional business investment.
Earlier, the Ministry of Finance had requested VCCI to review and assess the implementation of regulations on business investment conditions and the List sectors and trades subject to these conditions specified in the Investment Law, and to propose amendments and supplements, if necessary.
According to VCCI, the list of sectors and trades subject to conditional business investment under the 2020 Law on Investment has expanded as numerous specialized laws have introduced new requirements. However, no comprehensive review has been conducted since 2020 to assess the appropriateness of the list in light of the current need to improve the business investment environment.
Pursuant to Clause 1, Article 7 of the 2020 Law on Investment, VCCI recommended that business investment conditions should apply only to sectors and trades that affect public interests such as national defense, security, social order and safety, ethics, and public health. This approach, it stressed, would ensure consistency and avoid overlaps among sectors and trades in the list as well as with those under other special regulatory mechanisms.
On this basis, VCCI carried out a preliminary review and proposed criteria for revising the list. Specifically, it recommended: (i) removing sectors and trades that do not significantly impact public interests as defined in Clause 1, Article 7 of the 2020 Law on Investment; (ii) eliminating sectors and trades already governed by alternative regulatory measures that effectively control impacts on public interests; and (iii) redefining the scope of certain sectors and trades to clearly identify which business activities should be subject to conditional requirements.
VCCI emphasized that the establishment of business investment conditions must be consistent and free from overlaps between sectors and trades in the list and with other special regulatory frameworks. Only truly essential sectors and trades, it argued, should remain subject to conditional business investment requirements.
The chamber also underscored that reviewing and revising the list of sectors and trades subject to conditional business investment is a necessary step in advancing economic institutional reform and improving the legal framework for enterprises. The proposed changes are expected to help remove legal obstacles, reduce compliance costs for businesses, and enhance the effectiveness of state management in the context of deeper international integration and competition.
| 16 conditional business investment sectors and trades VCCI proposes to abolish: • Provision of accounting services • Provision of customs clearance services • Rice export • Temporary import and re-export of frozen foodstuffs • Purchase and sale of goods and other activities directly related to the purchase and sale of goods by foreign service suppliers in Vietnam • Provision of employment services • Provision of labor subleasing services • Provision of automobile warranty and maintenance services • Building, conversion, repair, and restoration of inland waterway vessels • Building, conversion, and repair of seagoing ships • Construction activities of foreign contractors • Provision of management and operation services for cremation facilities • Provision of overseas study consultancy services • Film dissemination services • Organization of artistic performances, fashion shows, beauty contests, and modeling contests • Banknote printing and coin minting Five conditional business investment sectors and trades proposed for narrowing: • Research, manufacture, testing, repair, and maintenance of unmanned aircraft, other aerial vehicles, aircraft engines, propellers, and equipment of unmanned aircraft or other aerial vehicles • Fertilizer trading • Trading in aquatic breeds • Provision of water resources exploitation services • Gold trading |
(VLLF)
