Short answer: The Consumer Rights Protection Law 19/2023/QH15 (effective 01/7/2024) makes cyberspace transactions a regulated area of their own: information must be transparent before purchase, vulnerable consumers receive reinforced protection, and intermediary platforms are no longer bystanders. Together with the E-Commerce Law 122/2025, these are the two frames every online seller in Vietnam must operate under.
Online returns: conditional rights, not a blanket change-of-mind right
A common misunderstanding is that online purchases always carry a no-questions return window as in some foreign markets. Vietnamese law sets no general unconditional return right for all online transactions; buyer rights attach to specific situations — goods not matching description, failing committed quality, counterfeits — or to the return policy the seller and platform themselves published, which once published becomes a binding commitment. For distance transactions, the law focuses on full pre-contract information duties and seller liability where misleading information drove the purchase decision. Online sellers should therefore write clear per-category return policies and honour exactly what they publish, rather than hiding behind generic terms handled case by case.
Information, fake reviews and dispute routes
Online sellers must present goods information, all-in pricing, transaction conditions and a complaint contact clearly before the consumer orders; intermediary platforms carry duties on information control and complaint support under the E-Commerce Law 122/2025 and Decree 248/2026/ND-CP. Fake reviews and paid seeding that fabricate comments and ratings deceive consumers: they are sanctioned under consumer-protection, advertising and unfair-competition frames, while platforms remove content and penalise offending shops — the risk is not only fines but loss of the selling account. Disputes practically run from complaint to platform and seller, to consumer-protection associations and regulators, then court — or arbitration where the platform terms and contract validly agree it.
Seller checklist
- Publish per-category return policies and perform exactly as published.
- Show full price and fees before checkout — no hidden last-step charges.
- Prohibit purchased reviews and seeding absolutely in shop operations rules.
- Staff a real complaint contact with a published response deadline.
Frequently asked questions
What return rights apply to online purchases?
Vietnamese law gives no unconditional change-of-mind return right for every online deal. Returns and refunds arise where goods mismatch description, fail committed quality, are counterfeit, or under the return policy the seller/platform published — a published policy is a binding commitment. Read the shop’s policy before buying and keep the product description as evidence.
What information must online sellers provide?
Information on the goods or services, all-in price, transaction conditions, payment and delivery methods and a complaint contact — clearly and before the consumer contracts. Misleading or materially incomplete information that confuses the consumer grounds cancellation and compensation claims under Law 19/2023.
How are e-commerce disputes resolved — mediation, arbitration?
The practical ladder: complain through the platform mechanism for intervention and policy-based refunds; negotiate or mediate with consumer-protection organisations or regulators involved; finally court, or arbitration where validly agreed. Keep the full order history, messages and product description — every channel needs them.
How are fake reviews and seeding handled?
Fake reviews and seeding count as consumer-deceiving conduct, sanctioned under consumer-protection, advertising and unfair-competition frames; platforms additionally remove content, demote or suspend offending shops. A business buying seeding carries legal risk plus channel-loss risk far beyond any short-term gain.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council