Sale promotional notification service in Vietnam

When conducting some forms of promotion, traders may not need to register with state management agencies but only need to notify this program before conducting business. In this article, Viet An Law will introduce the promotional activity notification service to support you in the process of implementing promotions following regulations and content as prescribed.

Overview of promotional activities notification service

Obligation of sale promotion notification in Vietnam

According to the provisions of Article 17 of Decree 81/2018/ND-CP, traders implementing one of the following methods must carry out notification procedures with competent state management agencies according to regulations:

• Organizing customers to participate in cultural, artistic, and entertainment programs and other events for promotional purposes (Article 8, Article 92 of the Commercial Law);
• Giving samples of goods or providing samples of services to customers for trial use free of charge (Article 8 of Decree No. 81/2018/ND-CP);
• Gifting goods as gifts or providing free-of-charge services to customers (Article 9 of Decree No. 81/2018/ND-CP);
• Selling goods or providing services at prices lower than goods sale prices or service provision charge rates previously applied during the period of sales promotion already registered or announced. In case of goods or services subject to the State management over their prices, the sales promotion in this form shall comply with regulations of the Government (promotion in the form of discounts) (Article 10 of Decree No. 81/ 2018/ND-CP);
• Selling goods or providing services together with coupons that allow customers to enjoy one or several benefits (Article 11 of Decree No. 81/2018/ND-CP);
• Selling goods or providing services together with prize-contest entrance tickets to customers, to select prize winners according to the rules and prizes already announced (Article 12 of Decree No. 81/2018/ND-CP);
• Organizing programs for frequent customers whereby gifts are presented to customers based on the quantities or values of goods purchased or services used by such customers and expressed in the forms of customers’ cards, coupons acknowledging the purchase of goods or services, or other forms (Article 14 of Decree No. 81/2018/ND-CP).

Cases where promotion notification is not required

Cases where administrative procedures for notification of promotion implementation are not required when the promotion follows the forms specified in Clause 8, Article 92 of the Commercial Law and Articles 8, Article 9, Article 10, Article 11, Article 12, Article 14 of Decree No. 81/2018/ND-CP:

• Traders implementing promotional programs with a total value of prizes and gifts under 100 million VND;
• Traders only conduct sales and promotions through e-commerce trading floors and online promotion websites.

Competence to handle notices of promotional activities

The Department of Industry and Trade where the promotion is organized (in the area where the promotion is carried out) handles the application for notification of promotional activities.

Dossier of sale promotion notification

The promotional activity notification dossier includes the following dossier items and quantities that need to be prepared:

Notes of sale promotion activities notification

• Time to notify promotional activities: at least 03 working days before implementing the promotion, the trader must submit a notification of promotional activities from the state management agency (based on the date of receipt recorded on postal application or forms of equivalent value in case of sending by post, based on the date recorded on the application receipt in case of direct submission, based on the time recorded on the mail system electronically, or based on the date recorded on the system in case of submission via the online public service system).
• In addition, in case many merchants cooperate to implement a promotion program, based on Clause 5, Article 17 of Decree No. 81/2018/ND-CP, the notification must clearly state the names of the merchants implementing simultaneously, specific participation content, and specific responsibilities of each trader participating in implementing the promotion program based on written agreement/contract between traders.

Pay attention when conducting promotional activities for merchants

Goods and services are allowed for promotion

The goods and services that businesses are allowed to promote must be those that are not prohibited from trading and do not fall into the category of non-promotional goods and services, including:

• Alcohol, lottery, tobacco;
• Breast milk substitutes;
• Medicines for human use, including medicines licensed for circulation according to regulations of the Ministry of Health (except for promotions for drug traders);
• Medical examination and treatment services of public medical facilities;
• Educational services of public establishments and public vocational education establishments.

Promotional limit

• With the forms of giving samples, giving away goods, discounts, and vouchers, merchants conducting promotions should note: that the total value of goods and services used for promotion must not exceed 50% of the total value of promoted goods and services, that is:
  • Goods and services given as promotional gifts must not exceed 50% of the value of the promoted goods or services.
  • The discount does not exceed 50% of the price of the goods or services immediately before the promotional period.
  • Offer cannot exceed 50%.
• This limit does not apply to centralized promotional programs organized by state agencies or promotions on holidays according to the provisions of labor law.
• The maximum discount limit does not apply when implementing discounts for:
  • Goods and services when implementing the State’s price stabilization policy;
  • Fresh food products;
  • Goods and services in case the enterprise goes bankrupt, dissolves, or changes location, production, or business lines.

Promotion period

• Applicable only to promotions with discounts, promotion time is limited.
• The total implementation time for a type of goods or service brand must not exceed 120 days in a year, excluding implementation time within the framework of centralized promotional programs and other programs and trade promotion is decided by the Prime Minister.

Sale promotional notification service in Vietnam of Viet An Law

• Specific and detailed advice on procedures for notification of promotional activities following current legal regulations;
• Provide quick and timely promotional activities notification service;
• Accompany customers in the process of implementing promotions;
• Support and limit risks for customers in cases related to promotional programs.

If there is any unclear content or need specific advice related to the sale promotional notification service in Vietnam, please contact Viet An Law Firm for answers and the fastest support.

Disclaimer: This article was last updated in April 2024. Laws may have changed since then. Please contact Viet An Law to confirm the information in this article is current and for any legal assistance.