Amended Advertising Law

On 16 June 2025, the National Assembly of Vietnam passed Law No. 75/2025/QH15 on amendments of and supplements to a number of articles of the 2012 Advertising Law. The new Law will take effect from 1 January 2026.  

Below are some salient features of the new Law. 

1. Online advertising   Under the new Law, online advertising is defined to include advertising on electronic newspapers and electronic information pages and advertising on other electronic venues, including social media, online applications, and digital platforms with internet connection. 

The new requirements for online advertising including identification signs, control features, linked content, etc. 

Organizations and enterprises providing social media services must offer users features to distinguish advertising/ sponsored content from other content.  

The new Law provides for obligations of advertisers, advertising service providers, advertising publishers, and advertising conveyers in relation to online advertising, including among others, to prevent and remove violating advertisements within 24 hours upon receiving requests from authorities. 

2. Management of advertising activities by advertising conveyors  Advertising conveyors are persons who, for profit-making purposes, directly advertise, recommend, or endorse products, goods, or services, either online or in person. 

The advertising conveyors must  take legal liability if the advertisements do not meet the required legal standards.  Advertising conveyors who are influencers are subject to stricter obligations, such as verifying advertisers’ credibility, refraining from promoting products or services they have not personally used or clearly understood, and expressly disclosing advertisements before and during promotional activities.  

3. Advertising content  The new Law provides for contents not being advertising content, which include those that must be publicly disclosed and provided to customers and consumers, those relating to  information, education, and communication regarding prevention and control of harmful effects of goods, documents, information, and images describing products, goods, and services as well as products and goods provided by manufacturers and traders, etc.  

4. Liability for violations    The crime of untruthful advertising was introduced in the 2015 Penal Code of Vietnam. It is expected that the authorities will pursue more serious enforcement actions against violators in the future.  

5. Other issues  In addition to the above amendments, the new Law also provides for advertising of regulated or special products, goods, and services; advertising on print and broadcast media; and outdoor and out-of-home advertising.