Yes. If you set up your own website to sell your goods or provide your services, Vietnamese law requires you to notify the competent state authority. And here is the key change since 1 July 2026: the authority receiving sales-website notifications is now the provincial People’s Committee — no longer the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The new framework is the E-Commerce Law 122/2025/QH15 and Decree 248/2026/ND-CP.
1. Current legal framework
- E-Commerce Law 122/2025/QH15 (effective 1/7/2026) — Vietnam’s first dedicated e-commerce law;
- Decree 248/2026/ND-CP (effective 1/7/2026) — implementing the E-Commerce Law; replaces Decrees 52/2013/ND-CP and 85/2021/ND-CP;
- Decree 98/2020/ND-CP (amended by Decrees 17/2022 and 24/2025) — administrative penalties in commercial/e-commerce activities.
2. Which websites must be notified?
A sales e-commerce website is one established by a trader, organization, or individual to serve its own sale of goods or provision of services. Indicators:
- It sells only the website owner’s own products/services;
- It has online ordering, cart, and payment functions;
- It does not let other traders open stores on it.
If the website lets multiple other sellers do business — that is an e-commerce trading floor, which must be registered with the MOIT (a heavier procedure).
3. New authority: the provincial People’s Committee
This is the biggest change many businesses still miss. Under Law 122/2025 and Decree 248/2026:
- Sales website → notify the provincial People’s Committee where the trader/organization is headquartered (or where the individual resides/does business);
- E-commerce marketplace → register with the MOIT.
In other words, “notify the MOIT” for a sales website reflects the old framework — it is no longer correct. Filing with the wrong authority means the procedure is incomplete.
4. Notification procedure
Notifying a sales website is a much lighter administrative procedure than marketplace registration, carried out under the detailed rules of Decree 248/2026/ND-CP. For dossier components, forms, and processing timelines — check the original text of Decree 248/2026 before proceeding, as secondary guidance may not yet reflect the new framework.
The transition roadmap for notifications made under the old framework (Decree 52/2013) follows Decree 248/2026 — do not speculate on timelines; check the text.
5. Failure to notify: penalties
Setting up a sales e-commerce website without notifying the competent authority is an administrative violation punishable under Decree 98/2020/ND-CP. An un-notified website may also face difficulties working with payment partners and logistics providers, and when customer disputes arise — because the legal standing of the online business has not been fully established.
FAQ
Q: Where do we notify a sales website — the MOIT or the provincial People’s Committee?
A: The provincial People’s Committee — under E-Commerce Law 122/2025 and Decree 248/2026 (effective 1/7/2026). The MOIT only receives marketplace registrations.
Q: We sell via Facebook and Zalo — must we notify?
A: The notification rule applies to sales e-commerce websites established by the trader itself. Selling via social networks is governed by e-commerce law and related regulations — assess your specific business model.
Q: How does sales-website notification differ from marketplace registration?
A: Notification is a light procedure for websites selling your own goods, handled by the provincial People’s Committee. Registration is stricter, for platforms letting other sellers do business, handled by the MOIT.
Q: Our website was notified under Decree 52/2013 — must we redo it?
A: Follow the transition roadmap in Decree 248/2026 — check the original text rather than speculating.
Sources
- E-Commerce Law 122/2025/QH15 (effective 1/7/2026);
- Decree 248/2026/ND-CP (effective 1/7/2026) — replacing Decrees 52/2013 and 85/2021;
- Decree 98/2020/ND-CP (amended by Decrees 17/2022 and 24/2025) — administrative penalties in commerce/e-commerce.
See also: FLAT Law Firm
Contact us
FLAT Law Firm helps businesses comply with Vietnam’s e-commerce law: notifying sales websites with provincial People’s Committees, registering e-commerce marketplaces, and reviewing online disclosure and consumer-protection obligations. Contact: contact us.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice for your specific situation.
Transparency note: This article was quality-checked (QA) by the editorial team with the support of the AI Legal Council; it has not been reviewed or approved by a licensed attorney.