08-09-26 MTParners
The list of conditional investment and business sectors shrinks from 198 to 137, while the amended law bans, for the first time, the trading of N2O gas for recreational “laughing gas” use — businesses and investors should act now to avoid being caught off guard when the new rules take effect.
Vietnam’s National Assembly passed the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Investment (No. 24/2026/QH16) at an extraordinary session on 24 August 2026, cutting 62 conditional investment and business sectors and trimming the list from 198 down to 137. The amended law also formally bans the trading of N2O gas for use as “laughing gas,” while simplifying hundreds of business conditions and administrative procedures. The law takes effect from 1 March 2027, except for the N2O ban, which applies from 1 January 2027 — businesses and investors should begin reviewing their compliance position now.
The core content of the 2026 Investment Law Amendment (No. 24/2026/QH16) is the revision of Article 6 and the full replacement of Appendix IV — the List of Conditional Investment and Business Sectors — of the 2025 Investment Law (No. 143/2025/QH15). The number of conditional business sectors falls from 198 to just 137, representing 62 sectors removed and 14 sectors amended or supplemented. Alongside this, approximately 786 business conditions are expected to be cut and 232 administrative procedures simplified.
Sectors removed from the list include several areas that had long created friction for businesses: accounting services, duty-free goods trading, gas trading, alcohol trading, mineral trading, asset auction practice, bailiff practice, insolvency asset management and liquidation practice, oil and gas activities, and occupational safety and hygiene training services, among others. Conversely, the law adds one new conditional sector: visa-support services provided by authorized business establishments.
Another notable change is that the law adds “trading N2O gas for human inhalation” (except for medical, food-technology, testing, and scientific-research purposes) to the list of prohibited business activities — in effect an outright ban on trading N2O gas for recreational use disguised as “laughing gas” (bóng cười). This provision takes effect earlier than the rest of the law, from 1 January 2027.
The law also sets out transitional arrangements: existing N2O trading contracts for the now-prohibited purpose will terminate as of 1 January 2027, and the parties have a maximum of 45 days to wind up such contracts under civil law.
The amended law also narrows the range of titles required to hold a construction practising certificate, limiting the requirement to: urban and rural planning chief/lead; construction survey chief; design and design-appraisal chief/lead; and construction supervision — removing the certificate requirement for those in charge of determining, appraising and managing construction investment costs, as well as those in charge of construction quality inspection. At the same time, the provision on training traffic-safety appraisers under the 2024 Road Law is abolished.
For sectors removed from the conditional list, the law provides that: organizations and individuals may operate in these sectors without needing to satisfy the former business conditions; licenses, certificates, or other permits already issued remain valid for continued use until their expiry, with no need to reapply or extend them; and applications for issuance, adjustment, or extension of such licenses that are pending before the law’s effective date will be returned unprocessed by the competent state authority.
Cutting nearly one-third of the conditional business sectors is regarded as a large-scale reform of Vietnam’s investment institutional framework, expected to significantly reduce compliance costs and shorten market-entry timelines for sectors such as accounting, duty-free distribution, gas, alcohol, and minerals trading. However, removing a business condition does not mean businesses are fully exempt from sector-specific legal obligations — safety, quality, tax, environmental, and other requirements — which remain governed by other specialized laws.
Businesses currently operating in, or planning to invest in, the sectors above should: review all existing licenses and certificates of eligibility to determine which remain valid for continued use and which are no longer required; update internal legal records and related contracts before 1 March 2027; and, in particular, entities currently trading N2O gas should review all relevant contracts to proactively wind them up within the 45-day period from 1 January 2027, to avoid disputes and penalties.
MT & Partners Law Firm, with a team of experienced lawyers in investment and corporate law, is ready to assist clients in reviewing business conditions, updating legal records, and advising on compliance with the new regulations. Contact hotline 0987140772 or email info@mtpartners.vn for consultation.
(*) This article is for reference only and does not replace specific legal advice.
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