1. Law on Forensic Examination 2025 No. 105/2025/QH15 dated 05 December 2025 (“Law on Forensic Examination 2025”)
The Law on Forensic Examination 2025, effective from 01 May 2026, is regarded as a turning point of a comprehensive reform, particularly by strengthening the promotion of socialization – while still observing the prescribed timeline and ensuring strict quality control over forensic activities. Specifics are as follows:
The Law expands the list of acts prohibited in forensic examination activities, such as using the referral or request for forensic examination to create difficulties or obstruct procedural activities, or to replace investigative work or the burden of proof of the procedural authorities.[1] It can be seen that this provision is one of the clearest reflections of actual practice in the course of proceedings.
The Law on Forensic Examination 2025 adds a mechanism to suspend conducting the examination when a forensic conclusion is not needed to resolve the case.[2] The Law also clearly specifies situations in which an examination may be refused or not carried out,[3] to avoid wasting resources and to promote close coordination among the authorities.
One important milestone is shortening the deadlines for forensic examinations, specifically: (i) For criminal proceedings, priority will be given to complying with the timeframes set by criminal procedure laws to limit conflicts between examination deadlines and other time limits — for example, where waiting for the forensic report takes longer than a pretrial detention period, causing difficulties for procedural authorities and affecting the accused’s rights; (ii) For other cases: a maximum of 02 (two) months from the date of receipt of a complete and valid dossier;[4] where matters are complex or the workload is large the maximum is 03 (three) months; where matters are exceptionally complex or the workload is exceptionally large the maximum is 04 (four) months.[5]
The Law on Forensic Examination 2025 establishes mechanisms to exclude, exempt, and reduce liability for forensic examiners in the course of their work; this provision aims to encourage experts to undertake examinations without undue fear of legal risk. The Law also allows forensic examiners to establish and work under employment contracts at forensic offices, or to work under employment contracts at agencies, units, and organizations.[6]
In addition, the Law on Forensic Examination 2025 adds new activity areas for forensic offices such as: criminalistics, forensic medicine (DNA), finance, banking, construction, etc.;[7] and expands the authority and capacity of public forensic organizations to ensure the independence and specialization of the forensic workforce within the justice system while still making the most of social resources.
2. Decree 102/2026/ND-CP dated 31 March 2026 amending Decree 75/2019/ND-CP (“Decree No. 75) prescribing penalties for administrative violations in the field of competition (“Decree No. 102”)
Decree No. 102, effective from 20 May 2026, amends certain provisions of Decree No. 75/2019/ND-CP on sanctioning administrative violations in the field of competition, with several notable points, particularly regarding economic concentration. Specifics are as follows:
First, tightening regulations and increasing monetary fines. Accordingly, Decree No. 102 adjusts the regulations to raise fines in cases where the total revenue of the enterprise engaged in the violation on the relevant market in the financial year immediately preceding the year of the violation is zero; at the same time, it expands the scope for handling violations of economic concentration regulations to include cases of concentration between enterprises that are not competitors, do not participate in different stages of the same production, distribution, or supply chain, and do not have input or complementary relationships with each other.[8] This provision, in part, reflects the State’s policy to tighten the legal framework governing the competitive market in the current period.
The Decree clarifies the principle for determining total revenue on the relevant market for enterprises operating at multiple stages in the production and business chain, according to which total revenue is calculated across all markets related to the violating conduct.[9] This rule not only ensures transparency in the competitive market but also limits the practice of splitting operations to divide revenue in order to evade penalties under the previous regulations.
Notably, Decree No. 102 pays particular attention to adjusting rules on economic concentration. For violations related to economic concentration, instead of setting fines based on a percentage of revenue, Decree No. 102 switches to fixed penalty amounts depending on the scale involved.[10] Moreover, Decree No. 102 adds remedial measures such as requiring full fulfillment of conditions committed in decisions on conditionally approved concentrations; requiring the division or separation of merged or consolidated enterprises; requiring the resale of part or all of contributed capital or assets acquired by the enterprise; etc..[11] Thus, beyond amending numerical figures, Decree No. 102 clearly reflects a management approach that favors greater transparency and more appropriate sanctions for conduct that could distort the market. For businesses, providing specific amounts helps them assess legal risks for mergers and joint ventures and make appropriate commercial decisions.
Decree No. 102 also tightens obligations to provide information during investigations and case handling to increase information-provision responsibility. In addition, the Decree adds more convenient payment methods for fines, such as paying cash directly at the State Treasury or paying cash or transferring funds into the State Treasury’s account.[12]
The new provisions in Decree No. 102 are not merely formal improvements to the legal framework; they also help strengthen the development of a transparent, healthy business environment going forward.
3. Resolution No. 66.16/2026/NQ-CP dated 07 April 2026 on reducing and simplifying administrative procedures and regulations related to production and business activities (“Resolution 66.16”)
Resolution 66.16, effective from 15 April 2026 to 28 February 2027, contains numerous provisions to simplify administrative procedures and regulations related to production and business activities.
Resolution 66.16 approves the plan to reduce and simplify administrative procedures and regulations related to production and business activities under the management of 13 Ministries and the State Bank.[13]
Notable measures include shortening the time required to issue permits for Vietnamese workers to work abroad; Easing conditions for enterprises sending workers abroad for vocational training; Removing the requirement for fire safety acceptance for certain rooftop solar projects; and Removing the business registration certificate from the dossier required to obtain a Food Safety Certificate, etc.
One particular highlight is that Resolution 66.16 allows the use of VNeID to register to the National Single Window System and adds tax registration documents when using the personal identification number.
It can be seen that these provisions are highly integration-focus, promote greater harmonization of the application process and significantly reduce time, fees, and charges for individuals and businesses completing procedures.
[1] Article 9 of the Law on Forensic Examination 2025.
[2] Article 36 of the Law on Forensic Examination 2025.
[3] Article 38 of the Law on Forensic Examination 2025.
[4] Paragraph 3 Article 30 of the Law on Forensic Examination 2025, Paragraph 16 Article 1 of the Law amending, supplementing certain provisions of the Law on Forensic Examination No. 56/2020/QH14.
[5] Paragraph 2 Article 30 of the Law on Forensic Examination 2025.
[6] Article 12 of the Law on Forensic Examination 2025.
[7] Paragraph 2 Article 20 of the Law on Forensic Examination 2025.
[8] Paragraph 1 Article 2 of Decree No. 102.
[9] Paragraph 2 Article 2 of Decree No. 102 .
[10] Article 5, Paragraph 1 Article 6 of Decree No. 102.
[11] Paragraph 3 Article 6 of Decree No. 102.
[12] Article 15 of Decree No. 102; Point a, Point b Paragraph 1 Article 20 Decree No. 118/2021/ND-CP
[13] Chapter II Resolution 66.16
