Compliance with laws and regulations in the business process in Vietnam is a key factor to ensure the sustainable development of the business. One of the important regulations that businesses need to pay special attention to is the requirement of legal capital for certain business lines. This article will provide you with an overview of business lines with legal capital requirements. Hopefully, the information in the article will be a useful resource, helping businesses and investors grasp important information, thereby making wise and effective business decisions.
Table of contents
Legal capital, also known as minimum charter capital, is an important concept in the business sector. This is the minimum capital that an enterprise must meet in accordance with the law to be allowed to operate in certain industries.
Characteristics of legal capital
| STT | Profession | Object | Legal capital | Governing legal documents |
| 1. | Security Services Business | Foreign business establishments investing in capital contribution with Vietnamese security service establishments | At least $1,000,000 | Point c, Clause 4, Article 11 of Decree 96/2016/ND-CP. |
| 2. | Multi-level sales | Enterprises registering multi-level marketing activities | 10 billion VND or more | Point b, Clause 1, Article 7 of Decree 40/2018/ND-CP |
| 3. | Commodity Exchange | Establishment of the Commodity Exchange | 150 billion VND or more | Article 8 of Decree 51/2018/ND-CP |
| Broker member of the Commodity Exchange | 5 billion VND or more | Article 19 of Decree 51/2018/ND-CP | ||
| Business members of the Commodity Exchange | 75 billion VND or more | Article 21 of Decree 51/2018/ND-CP | ||
| 4. | Temporary import, re-export, frozen food goods | Enterprises engaged in the business of temporary import, re-export, frozen food goods | Deposit 10 billion VND | Clause 1, Article 23 of Decree 69/2018/ND-CP |
| 5. | Temporary import and re-export of goods subject to special consumption tax | Enterprises engaged in temporary import and re-export of goods subject to special consumption tax | Deposit 07 billion VND
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Article 24 of Decree 69/2018/ND-CP |
| 6. | Temporary import and re-export of used goods | Enterprises engaged in temporary import and re-export of used goods | Article 25 of Decree 69/2018/ND-CP | |
| 7. | Establishment of public universities, allowing the establishment of private universities | Minimum 1000 billion VND (excluding the value of land for school construction) | Clause 4, Article 87 of Decree 47/2017/ND-CP | |
| 8. | Establishment of public university branches, allowing the establishment of private university branches | Minimum 250 billion VND (excluding the value of land for school construction) | Clause 4, Article 91 of Decree 47/2017/ND-CP | |
| 9. | To establish pedagogical intermediate schools and public pedagogical colleges; permitting the establishment of pedagogical intermediate schools and private pedagogical colleges | – At least 50 billion VND (excluding the value of land for school construction) for pedagogical intermediate schools.
– At least VND 100 billion (excluding the value of land for school construction) for pedagogical colleges |
Clause 4, Article 78 of Decree 47/2017/ND-CP | |
| 10. | FDI enterprises doing business in the field of education | Establishment of preschool education institutions | Minimum 30 million VND/child (excluding land use costs) | – Decree 124/2024/ND-CP amending Decree 86/2018/ND-CP;
– Decree 86/2018/ND-CP |
| Establishment of general education institutions | At least 50 million VND/student (excluding land use costs). The total investment capital is not less than VND 50 billion | |||
| Establishment of short-term training and retraining institutions | Minimum 20 million VND/student (excluding land use costs) | |||
| Establishment of higher education institutions | Minimum 1000 billion VND (excluding land use costs) | |||
| Establishment of branches of higher education institutions | Minimum 500 billion VND (excluding land use costs) | |||
| Foreign-invested educational institutions do not build new facilities, but only lease them or are contributed by the Vietnamese side with existing facilities | At least 70% of the levels specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5a must be reached | |||
| 11. | Air Freight Business | Enterprises operate up to 10 aircraft | 300 billion VND | Decree 89/2019/ND-CP |
| Enterprises operate from 11 to 30 aircraft | 600 billion VND | |||
| Enterprises operating over 30 aircraft | 700 billion VND | |||
| 12. | Airport business | 100 billion VND | ||
| 13. | Business of providing passenger terminal operation services |
30 billion VND |
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| 14. | Business of providing terminal and warehouse operation services | |||
| 15. | Aviation petroleum service provision business | |||
| 16. | International shipping business | There must be a guarantee as prescribed by law with a minimum level of 5 (five) billion VND or purchase insurance to ensure the shipowner’s obligations to seafarers as prescribed | Decree 147/2018/ND-CP | |
| 17. | Labor outsourcing service business | Deposit of 2 billion VND | Decree 145/2020/ND-CP | |
| 18. | Employment service business | Deposit 300,000,000 VND | Decree 23/2021/ND-CP | |
| 19. | Establishment of vocational education institutions | Establishment of vocational education centers | Minimum 05 billion VND | Decree 143/2016/ND-CP |
| Establishment of a secondary school | Minimum 50 billion VND | |||
| Establishment of the College | Minimum 100 billion VND | |||
| 20. | Providing services to send workers to work abroad | Not less than 5 billion VND | Decree 38/2020/ND-CP | |
| 21. | Banking Business | Commercial Banking | 3,000 billion VND | Decree 86/2019/ND-CP |
| Policy Bank | 5,000 billion VND | |||
| Cooperative Bank | 3,000 billion VND | |||
| Foreign bank branches | US$15 million | |||
| Financial companies | 500 billion VND | |||
| Financial leasing company | 150 billion VND | |||
| Microfinance Institutions | 05 billion VND | |||
| People’s credit fund operating in a commune (township) | 0.5 billion VND | |||
| People’s credit fund operating in a ward (commune, inter-ward, inter-commune) | 01 billion VND | |||
| 22. | Business of providing payment intermediary services | E-wallet services, collection and payment support services and e-payment gateway services | 50 billion VND | Decree 52/2024/ND-CP |
| Financial switching services, international financial switching services, electronic clearing services | 300 billion VND | |||
| 23. | Trading in gold bars | 100 billion VND or more | Decree No. 24/2012/ND-CP | |
| 24. | Non-life insurance business | Non-life insurance and health insurance | 400 billion VND | Decree 46/2023/ND-CP guiding the Law on Insurance Business.
Note: Insurance enterprises and reinsurance enterprises established, organized and operating before July 1, 2023 when this Decree takes effect and whose charter capital is lower than the minimum charter capital specified in this Article must complete the full supplementation of charter capital and deposit as prescribed before January 1, 2028. |
| Non-life insurance and aviation insurance or satellite insurance | 450 billion VND | |||
| Non-life insurance, aviation insurance, and satellite insurance | 500 billion VND | |||
| 25. | Life insurance business | Life insurance (except unit-linked insurance, pension insurance) and health insurance | 750 billion VND | |
| Life insurance and unit-linked insurance or pension insurance | 1,000 billion VND | |||
| Life insurance, aviation insurance, and satellite insurance | 1,300 billion VND | |||
| 26. | Health insurance business | 400 billion VND | ||
| 27. | Reinsurance business | Reinsurance, non-life reinsurance franchise, or both types of non-life reinsurance and health reinsurance | 500 billion VND | |
| Reinsurance, life reinsurance transfer, or both types of life reinsurance and health reinsurance | 900 billion VND | |||
| Reinsurance, reinsurance transfer of all 03 types of life reinsurance, non-life reinsurance and health reinsurance | 1,400 billion VND | |||
| 28. | Insurance brokerage business | Original insurance brokerage or reinsurance brokerage business | 05 billion VND | |
| Original insurance brokerage and reinsurance brokerage business | 10 billion VND | |||
| 29. | Cross-border insurance service business | Insurance enterprises and foreign insurance brokerage enterprises are headquartered in countries or territories with which Vietnam and such countries or territories have signed international treaties on trade, including agreements on the provision of cross-border insurance services in Vietnam | – Minimum total assets equivalent to USD 2 billion for foreign insurance enterprises; at least equivalent to USD 100 million for foreign insurance brokerage enterprises in the fiscal year preceding the year of provision of cross-border insurance services in Vietnam
– Deposit at least 100 billion VND at a bank licensed in Vietnam and have a payment guarantee letter from that bank committing to pay in case the liability of insurance contracts provided across borders in Vietnam exceeds the mandatory margin level |
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| 30. | Prize-winning video game business for foreigners | 500 billion VND | Decree 121/2021/ND-CP | |
| 31. | Securities services business | Stockbroking | 25 billion VND | Decree 155/2020/ND-CP |
| Proprietary securities trading | 50 billion VND | |||
| Underwriting the issuance of securities | 165 billion VND | |||
| Securities Investment Consulting | 10 billion VND | |||
| 32. | Branches of foreign securities companies in Vietnam | 10 billion VND | ||
| 33. | Fund Management Company | 25 billion VND | ||
| 34. | Clearing and settlement services for securities transactions for direct clearing members | For commercial banks, foreign bank branches | 1,000 billion VND | Decree 158/2020/ND-CP |
| For securities companies | 250 billion VND | |||
| 35. | Clearing and settlement services for securities transactions for general clearing members | For commercial banks, foreign bank branches | 7,000 billion VND | |
| For securities companies | 900 billion VND | |||
| 36. | Clearing and settlement services for derivative securities transactions for securities companies | For direct clearing members | 900 billion VND | |
| For general clearing members | 1,200 billion VND | |||
| 37. | Clearing and settlement services for derivative securities transactions for commercial banks | 5,000 billion VND | ||
| 38. | Clearing and settlement services for derivative securities transactions for foreign bank branches | 1,000 billion VND | ||
| 39. | Payment Bank | 10,000 billion VND | Securities Law 2019 | |
| 40. | Business of credit rating activities | 15 billion VND | Decree No. 88/2014/ND-CP | |
| 41. | Business in audit services | 05 billion VND | Decree No. 17/2012/ND-CP | |
| 42. | Cross-border audit services (only applicable to FDI companies) | – Equity equivalent to US$500,000 at the end of the fiscal year prior to the year of provision of cross-border audit services in Vietnam
– Deposit 05 billion VND |
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| 43. | Casino service business | US$2 billion | Decree No. 03/2017/ND-CP | |
| 44. | Betting business | Horse Racing Betting | 1,000 billion VND | Decree 06/2017/ND-CP |
| 45. | Betting on greyhound racing | 300 billion VND | ||
| 46. | Pilot international football betting business | 1,000 billion VND | ||
| 47. | Scrap import business | Trading in iron and steel scrap | – Less than 500 tons: Deposit 10% of the total value of the shipment.
– From 500 tons to less than 1,000 tons: Deposit 15% of the total value of the shipment. – From 1000 tons or more: Deposit 20% of the total value of the shipment. |
– Decree 08/2022/ND-CP
– Decree 05/2025/ND-CP |
| Trading in paper and plastic scrap | – Less than 100 tons: Deposit 15% of the total value of the shipment.
– From 100 tons to less than 500 tons: Deposit 18% of the total value of the shipment. – From 500 tons or more: Deposit 20% of the total value of the shipment. |
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| 48. | Telecommunications network setup business | Within a province or centrally-run city | 05 billion VND | Decree 163/2024/ND-CP |
| Within the region (from 02 to 30 provinces and centrally-run cities) | 30 billion VND | |||
| Nationwide (over 30 provinces and centrally-run cities) | 100 billion VND | |||
| 49. | Provision of telecommunications services with network infrastructure, types of terrestrial fixed public telecommunications networks using radio frequency bands | Setting up a network within the region (from 02 to 30 provinces and centrally-run cities) | 100 billion VND | |
| Setting up a nationwide network (over 30 provinces and centrally-run cities) | 300 billion VND | |||
| 50. | Telecommunications network business to establish terrestrial mobile public telecommunications networks | 500 billion VND | ||
| 51. | Providing telecommunications services with network infrastructure, types of terrestrial mobile public telecommunications networks using radio frequency channels | 20 billion VND | ||
| 52. | Providing telecommunications services with network infrastructure, types of terrestrial mobile public telecommunications networks not using radio frequency bands (virtual mobile telecommunications networks) | 300 billion VND | ||
| 53. | Telecommunications network deployment to establish satellite fixed public telecommunications networks and satellite mobile | 30 billion VND | ||
| 54. | Business of “.vn” domain name registration and maintenance services | Minimum deposit is 50 million VND | Decision 671/QD-BTTTT | |
| 55. | Providing public digital signature authentication services | Deposit not less than 5 billion VND | Decree 130/2018/ND-CP | |
| 56. | Establishment of a publishing house | 5 billion VND | Decree No. 195/2013/ND-CP | |
| 57. | Domestic travel business | Deposit 100 million VND | Decree 168/2017/ND-CP | |
| 58. | International Travel Business | International tourists to Vietnam | Deposit 250 million VND | |
| Tourists going abroad | Deposit 500 million VND |
