Scenario: your advertising company owns 15 large roadside billboards leased to 8 brands under contracts worth tens of billions of dong. The outdoor advertising license is revoked over planning and licensing breaches. Regulators order demolition within 30 days. Lessee brands demand compensation for aborted campaigns. Demolish or not — and who pays?
1. License lost: billboards become unpermitted structures
Outdoor advertising (large billboards, LED screens) is governed by the Advertising Law (consolidated text 04/VBHN-VPQH 2025, in force as of 20/10/2026): before erection, companies must notify the advertising product to the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and large billboards additionally need a construction permit for the advertising structure. Upon revocation, standing billboards lose their legal basis — effectively unpermitted structures. Revocation decisions typically order demolition and site restoration within a deadline; non-compliance brings forced demolition at your cost.
2. Demolition: who pays and how
- Demolition costs: the billboard owner (your company) pays — the duty flows from the structure’s lost legal standing. Dismantling large outdoor billboards is expensive (labor, cranes, transport); budget immediately.
- Sequence: notify local authorities of the demolition plan; execute safely (large billboards are hazardous to dismantle — traffic-safety plans required); hand back the site restored.
- Billboard assets: steel frames and LED screens remain company property after dismantling — reusable when a new compliant location is licensed.
3. Leases with brands: compensation is hard to avoid
Lessee brands suffer direct harm: aborted campaigns, maquette production costs, wrecked media plans. Your company — as lessor — breaches the duty to guarantee billboard use for the contract term, grounding customer damages claims under the Civil Code 2015 (in force). Review each contract: force-majeure clauses (license loss through the lessor’s fault is hard to frame as force majeure), penalty clauses, liability caps. Strategy: proactively offer substitutes (other licensed billboards or different channels) plus good-faith compensation — keeping clients for next time beats a lawsuit.
4. Re-licensing: what does it take?
Check the locality’s outdoor advertising plan (permitted locations), complete procedures (product notification, structure construction permit), remediate past breaches, then reapply. The lesson: never erect before fully licensed — erect-then-demolish costs many times proper first-time compliance.
Frequently asked questions
1. Must standing billboards come down?
Yes. Without a license they are unpermitted structures; revocation typically orders demolition within a deadline. Non-compliance brings forced demolition at your cost.
2. Who pays demolition?
The billboard owner pays all dismantling, transport, and site-restoration costs.
3. How do we handle brand leases?
The lessor breaches the use-guarantee duty — customers may claim damages under the Civil Code 2015. Proactively offer substitute billboards and good-faith compensation.
4. What does re-licensing require?
A new location consistent with the local advertising plan, completed notification/construction-permit procedures, and remediated past breaches.
5. Can we get more demolition time?
You may request in writing with justified reasons (large volume, safety planning), but the decision rests with the ordering authority — never unilaterally extend.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council