Every week, FDI enterprises in Vietnam make a stream of outbound payments: goods payments to suppliers, service fees to the parent, technology royalties. The core compliance question is what licences these flows need and how they must be reported under foreign-exchange law.
Legal basis
- Foreign Exchange Ordinance 28/2005/PL-UBTVQH11 (amended 2013) and Decree 70/2014/ND-CP: the principle of international payment through authorised credit institutions and management of current and capital transactions.
- Circular 38/2026/TT-NHNN (replacing Circular 06/2019/TT-NHNN): the investment capital account (ICA, formerly DICA) and reporting regime for foreign investor capital flows in Vietnam.
What SBV licence do cross-border supply-chain payments need?
For trade transactions (import goods payments, service fees, royalties in current transactions), an FDI enterprise needs no separate State Bank licence per transaction: Vietnamese foreign-exchange management works on the principle that international payments run through banks authorised for foreign-exchange operations, and the bank verifies transaction legitimacy through the document set (contract, invoice, customs declaration for goods). Licences and approvals arise only in special structures: medium and long-term foreign loans of enterprises must be registered with the State Bank; investment capital and profit transfers run through the investment capital account under Circular 38/2026; and capital transactions under separate condition regimes. Distinguishing these two layers correctly keeps enterprises from over-licensing daily trade payments while never missing registration for loans and capital flows — where the real compliance consequences sit.
What are the reporting duties, and is there a payment limit to foreign suppliers?
Foreign-exchange reporting of an FDI enterprise runs mainly through its servicing bank: every outbound payment passes the account at an authorised bank and is aggregated by the bank into the State Bank reporting system; additionally, the enterprise performs periodic reporting on foreign borrowing and repayment (where registered loans exist) and reporting related to the investment capital account under Circular 38/2026. On limits: the law sets no value cap for international trade payments — the practical limit is the genuineness and documents of the underlying transaction: payments exceeding contract value, payments without corresponding goods or services, or payments to unrelated third parties are signs the bank will refuse to execute and may report as suspicious under anti-money laundering law. For supply chains where the parent is the central supplier, the enterprise should standardise the linked payment file set (framework contract, transfer pricing policy) so every bank payment matches documents at first pass.
What is the penalty for not reporting?
Breaches of the reporting and foreign-exchange management regime draw administrative fines in the monetary and banking sector under Decree 88/2019/ND-CP per conduct: performing foreign-exchange transactions outside authorised institutions, failing to register registrable foreign loans, or failing or improperly performing reporting duties. Practical consequences usually arrive before fines: the servicing bank refuses or suspends under-documented transactions, unregistered loans are not recognised for repayment through the banking system, and capital flows through the wrong channel (not via the ICA investment capital account) create risk when later transferring profits and capital abroad. Foreign-exchange discipline is therefore document and account-channel discipline, built once for the whole supply chain rather than handled transaction by transaction.
Frequently asked questions
What SBV licence do cross-border payments for FDI supply chains need?
Trade payments (goods, service fees, royalties) need no separate SBV licence per transaction — they run through authorised banks on valid document sets. Licensing and registration arise only for medium and long-term foreign loans (loan registration) and investment capital flows via the ICA account under Circular 38/2026/TT-NHNN.
What are the reporting obligations?
Mainly through the servicing bank: account payments are aggregated by the bank into State Bank reporting; the enterprise periodically reports registered foreign borrowing and repayment and the ICA investment capital account position under Circular 38/2026/TT-NHNN replacing Circular 06/2019.
Is there a limit on payments to foreign suppliers?
No value limit applies to trade payments. The limit is a genuine, documented underlying transaction (contract, invoice, customs declaration); payments mismatching contract value or lacking corresponding goods or services will be refused by the bank and may be reported as suspicious.
What is the fine for not reporting?
Administrative fines under Decree 88/2019/ND-CP for the foreign-exchange management and reporting breach; practical consequences include bank suspension or refusal of transactions, unregistered loans being unpayable through banks, and risk when moving capital and profits through the wrong account channel.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council