On 11/12/2025, the National Assembly adopted the Investment Law 2025 (No. 143/2025/QH15), effective from 01/3/2026, replacing the Investment Law 2020. For the first time, a Vietnamese investment law names three strategic sector groups directly in the list of incentivized investment sectors: the semiconductor industry, the green economy and digital transformation (Points a and b, Clause 1, Article 15). At the same time, a series of instruments issued in 2024–2025 — from Resolution 193/2025/QH15 and the Digital Technology Industry Law 71/2025/QH15 to Resolution 57-NQ/TW — build a complete non-tax investment incentive framework on three pillars: land, streamlined procedures and direct financial support.
One boundary must be stated upfront so readers do not confuse the 2026 investment incentive policy: this article covers only NON-TAX investment incentives — land, procedures and direct support. Corporate income tax incentives (preferential rates, tax holidays and reductions) fall within the scope of the in-depth analysis on 2026 CIT incentives and are not detailed here — investors interested in the tax angle may also consult tax advisory for FDI enterprises.
Table of contents
- 1. Three sector groups named for the first time in the Investment Law
- 2. Special investment incentives and support: a "golden ticket" for large projects
- 3. The Investment Support Fund: from decree to statute, real cash support
- 4. Land incentives: the largest non-tax lever
- 5. Special investment procedures: cutting the whole "forest" of sub-licenses
- 6. Green transition and digital transformation support: new in the law
- 7. Three 2026 sector policy packages investors must put on the table
- 8. Comparison table: before and after 01/3/2026
- 9. Impact on FDI investors
- 10. Action checklist
- 11. Points not yet certain
- 12. Frequently asked questions
- Conclusion
1. Three sector groups named for the first time in the Investment Law
Article 15 of the Investment Law 2025 identifies incentivized investment sectors by development objective, with three new sector groups named expressly:
- Semiconductors – digital technology: "development of science, technology, innovation, digital transformation, the digital technology industry and the semiconductor industry" (Point a, Clause 1, Article 15).
- Green economy: "development of the green economy, circular economy, sharing economy, digital economy, and development of new economic models" (Point b, Clause 1, Article 15).
- Clean energy and the environment: "development of renewable energy, new energy, clean energy; ensuring national energy security" (Point d) together with "environmental protection, natural resources, and the marine economy" (Point dd).
Compared with the Investment Law 2020 — where these sectors were scattered across the "high technology", "environmental protection" and "renewable energy" lists — the 2025 Law elevates them to law-level priority objectives. The practical meaning is concrete: projects in these three groups automatically pass the "gate" to all investment incentive and support forms of the law without needing an expansive interpretation of sector scope.
On location, Point b, Clause 2, Article 15 adds three new location types to the list of areas eligible for investment incentives: concentrated digital technology parks, free trade zones and international financial centers — alongside industrial parks, industrial clusters, export processing zones, high-tech parks and economic zones. A data center project in a concentrated digital technology park therefore simultaneously satisfies both the sector and location criteria; Clause 9, Article 14 allows the highest incentive level to apply where a project meets the conditions of several different incentive levels.
2. Special investment incentives and support: a "golden ticket" for large projects
Article 17 of the Investment Law 2025 reserves a special investment incentive and support mechanism to encourage projects with major socio-economic impact. Three beneficiary groups are listed:
a) Projects establishing new innovation centers and research and development centers; projects building large data center infrastructure, cloud computing infrastructure, mobile infrastructure of 5G and above and other digital infrastructure in strategic technology sectors as decided by the Prime Minister; projects in strategic technology sectors and manufacturing strategic technology products; the National Innovation Center;
b) Projects manufacturing key digital technology products; projects researching, developing, designing, manufacturing, packaging and testing semiconductor chips; projects building artificial intelligence data centers under digital technology industry law;
c) Other investment projects in specially incentivized investment sectors.
All three groups are tied to investment capital scale conditions and capital disbursement deadlines set by the Government. Three points investors must remember:
- Special incentive levels and durations "are implemented under the Law on Corporate Income Tax and land law" (Clause 3, Article 17) — the investment law opens the framework; the tax law and land law set the specific quantities.
- The special mechanism does NOT apply to projects already granted an Investment Certificate, Investment Registration Certificate or investment policy approval decision before the law's effective date, nor to projects excluded at Clause 7, Article 14 (mineral exploitation; goods and services subject to special consumption tax except automobiles, aircraft and yachts; commercial housing).
- Clause 6, Article 17 empowers the Prime Minister to decide other investment incentives where needed to encourage a particularly important project — a flexible "door" for landmark projects the general framework does not fully cover.
The overview of incentive forms for foreign investors is presented in: Investment incentives for foreign projects in Vietnam (link wiring pending at publish).
3. The Investment Support Fund: from decree to statute, real cash support
Article 16 of the Investment Law 2025 codifies the Investment Support Fund — previously established under Decree 182/2024/ND-CP dated 31/12/2024 — with the objective of stabilizing the investment environment, encouraging and attracting strategic investors and multinational groups, and supporting domestic enterprises in selected sectors needing investment encouragement.
Unlike tax incentives (which reduce obligations payable), the Fund supports enterprises with CASH for actual costs. Under Decree 182, two main support groups:
- Annual cost support: human resource training and development costs; research and development costs (progressive rate of 10%–30% of R&D costs spent in the fiscal year, depending on tier and beneficiary group); fixed-asset investment costs; high-tech product manufacturing costs; social infrastructure investment costs serving workers such as worker housing, schools and medical facilities (up to 25% of actual costs).
- Initial investment cost support: up to 50% for research and development center projects in semiconductors and artificial intelligence.
The participation thresholds reflect the "selective, focused" spirit: minimum capital of VND 12,000 billion and annual revenue of VND 20,000 billion for the general group; for chip, semiconductor integrated circuit and AI data center projects only VND 6,000 billion in capital and VND 10,000 billion in annual revenue — thresholds "softer" by half, showing the policy priority order. R&D center projects need minimum capital of VND 3,000 billion and disbursement of at least VND 1,000 billion within 3 years from the investment decision date.
4. Land incentives: the largest non-tax lever
Point c, Clause 2, Article 14 of the Investment Law 2025 lists "exemption from and reduction of land use fees, land rents and land use tax" as a standalone investment incentive form. The detailing instruments:
- Land Law 2024 (Article 157, amended by the 2025 Law on Science, Technology and Innovation, effective from 01/10/2025): exemption from and reduction of land use fees and land rents when land is used for production and business purposes in incentivized investment sectors or incentivized investment areas (except commercial housing and commercial/service land).
- Decree 103/2024/ND-CP (effective 01/8/2024): in economic zones, projects are exempted from land rent after the basic construction period for 11 to 19 years depending on the sector list and location; projects in SPECIALLY incentivized investment sectors are exempted from land rent for the ENTIRE lease term. In high-tech parks: 15 years, 19 years or the entire term, respectively.
- Resolution 193/2025/QH15: the Vietnamese enterprise selected to build the first semiconductor chip factory is allocated land in the form of land allocation WITHOUT auction of land use rights and without bidding for investor selection for land-using projects.
- Digital Technology Industry Law (Clause 4, Article 4): affirms the land incentive mechanism in research, testing, development, manufacturing and application of digital technology products and services.
For semiconductor and data center projects — land- and infrastructure-hungry projects — land incentives often carry greater financial value than tax incentives in the early years when the project has no taxable profit yet.
5. Special investment procedures: cutting the whole "forest" of sub-licenses
Article 28 of the Investment Law 2025 creates special investment procedures — arguably the largest PROCEDURAL incentive ever. Investors may choose to register investment under this Article for projects in industrial parks, export processing zones, high-tech parks, concentrated digital technology parks, free trade zones, international financial centers and functional areas in economic zones — except projects subject to investment policy approval under Government regulations.
Projects under these procedures are NOT required to carry out: investment policy approval, technology appraisal, preparation of an environmental impact assessment report, preparation of detailed planning, issuance of a construction permit, and approval/acceptance/licensing procedures in construction and fire prevention and fighting. In return, the investor must have a written commitment to satisfy the conditions, standards and technical regulations on construction, environmental protection and fire prevention and fighting; the investment project proposal must include content identifying and forecasting environmental impacts and measures to mitigate adverse impacts in place of the preliminary environmental impact assessment.
In parallel, Clause 2, Article 19 allows foreign investors to establish an economic organization to implement an investment project BEFORE carrying out the Investment Registration Certificate (IRC) issuance and adjustment procedures (provided market-access conditions at Article 8 are met) — reversing the traditional "IRC first, then company" sequence and helping investors proactively prepare the legal entity, bank accounts and personnel earlier.
6. Green transition and digital transformation support: new in the law
Clause 3, Article 14 lists 9 investment support forms, of which Point h — "support for green transition, emission reduction, climate change adaptation and digital transformation" — is entirely new, absent from the Investment Law 2020. The remaining forms also directly serve the three sector groups: support for developing technical and social infrastructure inside and outside the project fence; support for human resource training and development; support for access to production and business premises; support for science, technology, technology transfer and research and development.
The Government is tasked with detailing these support forms for high-tech enterprises, science and technology enterprises, science and technology organizations, enterprises investing in agriculture and rural areas and other subjects (Clause 4, Article 14).
7. Three 2026 sector policy packages investors must put on the table
Semiconductors. The Strategy for development of the semiconductor industry (Decision 1018/QD-TTg, 21/9/2024) sets phase 1 (2024–2030) targets: selective FDI attraction, forming at least 100 design enterprises, 01 small-scale semiconductor chip manufacturing plant, 10 semiconductor product packaging and testing plants; annual revenue scale above USD 25 billion with 10–15% value added in Vietnam; training over 50,000 engineers and bachelors. The Digital Technology Industry Law devotes Chapter III (Articles 36–39) to semiconductors: manufacturing raw materials, materials, equipment, machinery and tools for the semiconductor industry on the encouraged list is a specially incentivized investment sector; enterprises implementing chip design projects are supported with funding for human resource training, research and development, pilot production, and procurement of machinery and equipment from the local budget. Resolution 193/2025/QH15 supports 30% of total investment (up to VND 10,000 billion) from the central budget for the first chip factory if it is completed and put into production before 31/12/2030.
Digital transformation. Resolution 57-NQ/TW (22/12/2024) sets targets to 2030: R&D spending at 2% of GDP (of which social capital accounts for over 60%), allocating at least 3% of total annual state budget expenditure to science, technology, innovation and national digital transformation; the digital economy reaching at least 30% of GDP. The Digital Technology Industry Law 71/2025/QH15 (effective 01/01/2026; Articles 11, 28 and 29 effective early from 01/7/2025) provides: manufacturing digital technology products and providing digital technology services are incentivized investment sectors (Clause 1, Article 28); manufacturing key digital technology products, software production, artificial intelligence system development, semiconductor chip research and development, design, manufacturing, packaging and testing, and investment in building AI data centers are SPECIALLY incentivized investment sectors (Clause 2, Article 28); projects are directly supported for investment costs of factory construction, technical infrastructure and machinery and equipment from the local budget and enjoy priority treatment under customs law (Clauses 4 and 5, Article 28). Investment in building digital technology industry infrastructure is also a specially incentivized investment sector (Clause 1, Article 21).
Green economy. The National Strategy on Green Growth (Decision 1658/QD-TTg, 01/10/2021) targets a green, carbon-neutral economy: by 2030, greenhouse gas emission intensity per GDP reduced by at least 15% compared with 2014 (at least 30% by 2050); renewable energy accounting for 15–20% of total primary energy supply. The 2020 Law on Environmental Protection (Article 141) provides that the State implements incentives and support on land and capital; exemption from and reduction of taxes and fees for environmental protection activities — including waste collection, treatment and recycling projects; clean and renewable energy production; energy-saving technologies — with the principle of applying the highest incentive and support level where multiple instruments grant incentives.
8. Comparison table: before and after 01/3/2026
| Content | Investment Law 2020 | Investment Law 2025 (from 01/3/2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Incentivized sectors | High technology, renewable energy, environmental protection scattered across lists | Direct naming: semiconductor industry, green economy, circular economy, digital transformation, digital technology industry (Article 15) |
| Special incentives | Existed, but did not name semiconductors, AI, data centers | Specifically named: semiconductor chips, AI data centers, 5G+ infrastructure, strategic technologies (Article 17) |
| Investment Support Fund | Not in the law (only Decree 182/2024) | Codified at Article 16 |
| Green transition and digital transformation support | Not present | Point h, Clause 3, Article 14 |
| New incentivized locations | — | Concentrated digital technology parks, free trade zones, international financial centers (Clause 2, Article 15) |
| Special investment procedures | Not present | Article 28: no investment policy approval, technology appraisal, EIA, detailed planning, construction permit, fire prevention |
| Company establishment – IRC sequence | Practice: IRC first, then company | Foreign investors may establish the economic organization before IRC procedures (Clause 2, Article 19) |
9. Impact on FDI investors
First, semiconductor, artificial intelligence and data center projects enter their "widest open door" phase: simultaneously in specially incentivized investment sectors, with the Investment Support Fund compensating costs in real cash, and with streamlined procedures if located in an industrial park, high-tech park or concentrated digital technology park.
Second, renewable energy, waste treatment and circular economy projects enjoy double benefits from the Investment Law and the Law on Environmental Protection, with the principle of applying the highest incentive level where several levels are met.
Third, incentives are tied to performance results (Clause 8, Article 14): investors must satisfy the incentive conditions throughout the incentive period — the "apply once, enjoy forever" mindset no longer fits.
Fourth, the special incentives under Article 17 do not apply to projects licensed before the law's effective date (Clause 5, Article 17). However, under Article 52 on transitional provisions, investors licensed before 01/3/2026 may continue implementing their projects under the issued documents; where a project adjustment falls within investment policy approval under the new law, procedures follow the Investment Law 2025.
10. Action checklist
- Identify the project's incentive "gate": compare the sector with Article 15 (ordinary incentives), Article 17 of the Investment Law 2025 and Article 28 of the Digital Technology Industry Law (special incentives) — each gate has a different set of conditions and support levels.
- Choose a strategic location: industrial parks, high-tech parks, concentrated digital technology parks and free trade zones not only give location-based incentives but also open the right to apply special investment procedures under Article 28.
- Calculate land incentives from the start: work with the land authority on land rent exemption/reduction under Article 157 of the Land Law 2024 and Decree 103/2024/ND-CP — for projects in specially incentivized sectors, exemption from land rent for the entire lease term is a real possibility.
- Assess access to the Investment Support Fund: compare the capital and revenue thresholds (VND 12,000 billion / 20,000 billion; chips and AI VND 6,000 billion / 10,000 billion; R&D centers VND 3,000 billion) and prepare dossiers evidencing actual costs spent.
- Set up an incentive maintenance mechanism: track satisfaction of incentive conditions throughout the incentive period (Clause 8, Article 14) to avoid revocation for no longer meeting conditions.
- Track the guiding instruments: the list of specially incentivized investment sectors and the capital scale and disbursement deadlines for special incentives are set by the Government — not yet complete at this time and need updating before the investment decision.
11. Points not yet certain
Some content in this article is deliberately open because it depends on guiding instruments or case-by-case decisions. First, the investment capital scale and disbursement deadlines for special investment incentives and support under Article 17 are set by the Government — detailed guidance has not been fully issued, so the quantitative thresholds should be re-checked when implementing the project. Second, the specific land incentive levels for special incentives "implemented under land law" depend on the Land Law guidance at the time of application. Third, the scope of "projects subject to investment policy approval under Government regulations" excluded from the special investment procedures awaits detailed regulation. Fourth, the selection criteria for enterprises and specific support levels for the first semiconductor chip factory under Resolution 193 are decided by the Prime Minister on a case-by-case basis. In all cases, investors should work in advance with the park management board and the land authority where the project is located rather than applying by default.
12. Frequently asked questions
The most common questions about the 2026 investment incentive policy for the green economy, semiconductors and digital transformation — each answer gives a direct conclusion, the legal basis and practical notes.
When does the Investment Law 2025 take effect, and what is the biggest change in investment incentives?
The Investment Law 2025 (No. 143/2025/QH15) was adopted by the National Assembly on 11/12/2025 and takes effect from 01/3/2026 under Article 51 (Article 7 and Appendix IV on conditional business lines take effect from 01/7/2026). The biggest change is that the law names three strategic sector groups directly in the list of incentivized investment sectors at Article 15: the semiconductor industry, the green economy (circular economy, digital economy) and digital transformation (the digital technology industry). It is accompanied by the special investment incentive and support mechanism at Article 17 for semiconductor chips, artificial intelligence and strategic digital infrastructure; the Investment Support Fund codified at Article 16; and the special investment procedures at Article 28 allowing a range of procedures to be skipped such as investment policy approval, environmental impact assessment and construction permits.
What non-tax investment incentives can a foreign investor's semiconductor project receive?
A semiconductor project of a foreign investor can access several layers of non-tax incentives at once. First, land incentives: exemption or reduction of land use fees and land rents under Point c, Clause 2, Article 14 of the Investment Law 2025, detailed at Article 157 of the Land Law 2024 and Decree 103/2024/ND-CP — in a high-tech park, a project in a specially incentivized investment sector may be exempted from land rent for the entire lease term. Second, special investment procedures under Article 28 of the Investment Law 2025 if the project is located in an industrial park, high-tech park or concentrated digital technology park: no investment policy approval, technology appraisal, environmental impact assessment report, detailed planning, construction permit or fire-prevention procedures. Third, direct financial support from the Investment Support Fund under Decree 182/2024/ND-CP with dedicated thresholds for semiconductor chips: minimum capital of VND 6,000 billion and annual revenue of VND 10,000 billion per year. Fourth, support from the local budget under Articles 28 and 39 of the Digital Technology Industry Law 71/2025/QH15 for factory construction, technical infrastructure, equipment and human resource training costs.
What does the Investment Support Fund support, and what are the participation conditions?
The Investment Support Fund is codified at Article 16 of the Investment Law 2025 (previously established under Decree 182/2024/ND-CP dated 31/12/2024) to stabilize the investment environment and attract strategic investors and multinational groups. Unlike tax incentives, the Fund supports enterprises with CASH for actual costs, in two groups: annual cost support (human resource training, research and development at a progressive rate of 10%–30% of R&D costs spent, fixed-asset investment, high-tech product manufacturing, social infrastructure for workers at up to 25%) and initial investment cost support (up to 50% for research and development center projects in semiconductors and artificial intelligence). Eligible beneficiaries are high-tech enterprises, enterprises with high-tech product manufacturing projects, high-tech application projects and R&D center investment projects. Participation thresholds: minimum capital of VND 12,000 billion and annual revenue of VND 20,000 billion per year for the general group; for chip, semiconductor integrated circuit and AI data center projects only VND 6,000 billion in capital and VND 10,000 billion in annual revenue per year; R&D center projects need minimum capital of VND 3,000 billion and disbursement of at least VND 1,000 billion within 3 years.
Which procedures do the special investment procedures allow enterprises to skip?
Under Article 28 of the Investment Law 2025, a project registered under the special investment procedures is not required to carry out: investment policy approval, technology appraisal, preparation of an environmental impact assessment report, preparation of detailed planning, issuance of a construction permit, and approval/acceptance/licensing procedures in construction and fire prevention and fighting. In return, the investor must provide a written commitment to satisfy the conditions, standards and technical regulations on construction, environmental protection and fire prevention and fighting; the investment project proposal must include content identifying and forecasting environmental impacts and measures to mitigate adverse impacts in place of the preliminary environmental impact assessment. These procedures apply to projects in industrial parks, export processing zones, high-tech parks, concentrated digital technology parks, free trade zones, international financial centers and functional areas in economic zones — except projects subject to investment policy approval under Government regulations.
Can projects licensed before 01/3/2026 enjoy the special incentives under Article 17?
No. Clause 5, Article 17 of the Investment Law 2025 provides that special investment incentives and support do not apply to projects already granted an Investment Certificate, Investment Registration Certificate or investment policy approval decision before the law's effective date. However, under Article 52 on transitional provisions, investors licensed before 01/3/2026 may continue implementing their projects under the issued documents without re-doing investment policy approval procedures. Where a project adjustment falls within investment policy approval under the new law, procedures must follow the Investment Law 2025. Investors with operating projects wishing to expand into semiconductors, the green economy or digital transformation should review carefully whether the expansion portion can access the new incentive framework.
Conclusion
The Investment Law 2025 and the 2024–2025 instruments have built a complete non-tax investment incentive framework for the three strategic sector groups — arguably the fullest version of the 2026 investment incentive policy from the non-tax angle: land with the possibility of land rent exemption for the entire lease term, special investment procedures skipping a range of sub-licenses, and the Investment Support Fund compensating costs in real cash. For FDI investors in semiconductors, artificial intelligence, data centers, renewable energy and the circular economy, 2026 is the year the policy "door" opens widest in many years — but incentives are always tied to conditions of maintenance and project performance results.
Some quantitative thresholds and detailed application scopes still await Government guidance. For an overview of FLAT's support services for foreign investors, see: Foreign investment advisory in Vietnam (link wiring pending at publish). To review incentive eligibility conditions, design the project structure and choose the optimal location for each specific case, contact FLAT Law Firm — hotline 0988424851.
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