The signboard is the smallest item in a company presence file, but it is the first thing an inspection team sees — and the cheapest physical evidence that the company truly sits at its registered address. Two rule layers overlap: the Enterprise Law compels affixing the company name at the head office, and the Advertising Law prescribes signboard content, size and language with its own penalty system.
The duty to affix the name, and mandatory signboard content
Under clause 4, Article 37 of the Enterprise Law 59/2020/QH14, the company name must be affixed at the head office, branches, representative offices and business locations. On content, clause 1, Article 34 of the Advertising Law 16/2012/QH12 (consolidated text VBHN 88/VBHN-VPQH of 2025, incorporating the Law 75/2025/QH15 amendments) requires a signboard to carry: the name of the direct managing agency (if any); the name of the production or business establishment exactly as on the business registration certificate; and the address and telephone number. Missing any element — most commonly the phone number, or a name differing from the ERC — makes the signboard substandard however beautiful it looks.
On size and placement: a horizontal signboard may be at most 2 metres high, with length not exceeding the building frontage width; a vertical signboard at most 1 metre wide and 4 metres high, but not exceeding the height of the floor where it is mounted; signboards must not block escape and firefighting space, nor encroach on pavements or roadways affecting public traffic. An ordinary head-office signboard needs no advertising permit like a large billboard; but an oversized sign or a structure attached to the building can cross into the outdoor-advertising notification or licensing regime — check that boundary when planning a large facade sign.
Foreign language on signboards, and the penalty system
A signboard carrying foreign words must follow the script rules in Article 18 of the Advertising Law: Vietnamese content is the standard, and foreign script (proper names, abbreviations, international transaction names) must sit below the Vietnamese text with letter size not exceeding three quarters of the Vietnamese letters. A signboard in only English or Chinese, or with foreign letters larger than the Vietnamese, is an independently fined violation apart from content faults.
On fines: Decree 87/2026/ND-CP on administrative penalties in culture and advertising (effective 15 May 2026, replacing Decree 38/2021/ND-CP in this field) fines VND 5 to 10 million for failing to display full mandatory content on a signboard (the individual rate; violating organisations bear double under the Decree general rule), with separate fines for size, script and placement faults plus forced removal of violating signs. The business-registration side is far heavier: not affixing the company name at the head office, branch, representative office or business location is fined VND 30 to 50 million under Article 52 of Decree 122/2021/ND-CP on business-registration penalties — beside the tax consequences analysed in the virtual-office topic when an address is verified to host no operating company.
Practice: hang a compliant sign from day one
The practical sequence: match the sign name against the ERC company name character by character (including company type and abbreviation); include all four content fields — managing agency if any, company name, address, and a genuinely used phone number; pick a size inside the statutory caps and a position that does not block escape routes; where the building has a management board, get its position confirmation under building rules before installation. For branches and business locations, each location needs its own compliant sign — the head-office sign does not cover other locations.
Foreign-invested companies need one more check layer: the international transaction name on the sign must match the registered foreign-language name (where a foreign-language company name is registered in the enterprise file), and every bilingual text in the building — from signboard to visitor rules — should keep the principle of Vietnamese above, foreign script below and smaller, to avoid faults in inter-agency advertising inspections.
A compliant signboard costs less than any fine and is a company first presence evidence at its head office. Hanging the right content, size and language from opening day is the cheapest way to erase an entire family of inspection risks. This draft is pending review by the QA Council.
Frequently asked questions
Is a company signboard at the head office mandatory?
Yes, in two overlapping layers: clause 4, Article 37 of the Enterprise Law 59/2020/QH14 requires the company name to be affixed at the head office, branches, representative offices and business locations; Article 34 of the Advertising Law 16/2012 prescribes mandatory signboard content. Not affixing the name at the head office is fined VND 30-50 million under Article 52 of Decree 122/2021/ND-CP, and is a sign triggering tax verification that the company does not operate at its registered address.
What content must a signboard carry?
Under clause 1, Article 34 of the Advertising Law 16/2012: the direct managing agency name (if any); the production or business establishment name exactly as on the business registration certificate; and address and telephone. Sizes: a horizontal sign at most 2 metres high and no longer than the frontage; a vertical sign at most 1 metre wide and 4 metres high but not beyond the height of the mounting floor; signs must not block escape or firefighting space nor encroach on pavements or roadways.
What is the fine for not hanging a signboard?
Two distinct fine families: not affixing the company name at the head office is fined VND 30-50 million under Article 52 of Decree 122/2021/ND-CP on business-registration penalties. A hung sign missing mandatory content (no phone number, name differing from the ERC) is fined VND 5-10 million under Decree 87/2026/ND-CP on culture and advertising penalties (individual rate; organisations double), effective 15 May 2026 and replacing Decree 38/2021 in this field; placement and size faults can add forced removal.
May a signboard carry foreign language?
Yes, under the script rules of Article 18 of the Advertising Law: foreign script (proper names, abbreviations, international transaction names) must be placed below the Vietnamese content and letter size must not exceed three quarters of the Vietnamese letters. A foreign-language-only sign, or foreign letters placed above and larger than the Vietnamese, is an independent violation fined under the advertising penalty decree. FDI companies should keep the Vietnamese name exactly as on the ERC as the main sign line.
Do branches and business locations need their own signs?
Yes. The name-affixing duty in clause 4, Article 37 of the Enterprise Law 59/2020/QH14 applies to each location: head office, branches, representative offices and business locations — each place must carry a content-compliant signboard under Article 34 of the Advertising Law at that very location. A missing sign at any location is independently fined and weakens that location presence file at tax or inspection verification.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council
