Continuing the legal transformations in 2025—a significant milestone as numerous new regulations officially take effect, marking a major step forward in improving the legal system and addressing key areas. DNP Vietnam Law Firm will now highlight the following noteworthy changes:
1.Highlighted new regulations effective from 2025
1.1 Introducing social pension allowances for individuals without pensions
Article 21 of the 2024 Social Insurance Law designates social pension allowances for citizens aged 75 and above who do not receive a pension or monthly allowance and have submitted a formal request.Additionally, individuals aged 70 to under 75, belonging to poor or near-poor households, are also eligible for this allowance. The National Assembly Standing Committee may adjust the qualifying age based on socio-economic conditions.
1.2 All Cases of Abortion Are Entitled to Maternity Benefits
Based on Article 52 of the new Social Insurance Law, the regulation specifies the duration of leave entitled to maternity benefits in cases of miscarriage, abortion, stillbirth, or medical termination of pregnancy. This means that employers must provide maternity benefits to employees who undergo medical procedures to terminate a pregnancy (commonly referred to as abortion), regardless of whether the abortion is due to medical reasons or unplanned circumstances.
Currently, social insurance agencies only grant maternity benefits to employees in cases of miscarriage, curettage, suction abortion, stillbirth, or medically necessary abortion.
1.3 Driver’s Licenses Allocated 12 Points, Violations Lead to Deductions
Article 58 of the 2024 Road Traffic Safety and Order Law allocates 12 points to each driver’s license. Authorities deduct points based on the severity of the driver’s violations. If the driver loses all points, they cannot participate in traffic activities but can regain points after six months by passing a legal knowledge test on traffic laws. Drivers restore a full 12 points if they avoid any point deductions within 12 months. When drivers renew, reissue, or upgrade their license, they retain their previous points.
1.4 Changes to Driver’s License Classification
Effective from January 1, 2025, the classification system for driver’s licenses will be revised to align with the development of modern vehicles. Key adjustments include:
- Class A1: Issued for drivers of two-wheeled motorcycles with an engine capacity of up to 125 cc or an electric motor power of up to 11 kW. This is a shift from the previous rule, where Class A1 covered motorcycles with engine capacities from 50 cc to below 175 cc.
- Class A2: Applies to drivers of motorcycles with an engine capacity above 125 cc or electric motor power exceeding 11 kW, as well as vehicles under Class A1. Previously, Class A2 only applied to motorcycles with engine capacities of 175 cc or more.
(Refer to Article 57 of the Road Traffic Safety and Order Law for more details.)
1.5 Contract Vehicles Must Store Passenger Data for at Least 3 Years
This regulation is outlined in Decree 41/2024/ND-CP, which amends and supplements Decree 10/2020/ND-CP. Accordingly, passenger transport businesses operating under contracts must retain transportation agreements along with passenger lists for a minimum of three years.
1.6 Contract Vehicles with Fewer Than 9 Seats Can Share Rides
The 2024 Road Law allows contract vehicles with fewer than 9 seats (excluding the driver’s seat) to carry individual passengers on the same trip. Specifically, vehicles with up to 8 seats can operate transport services upon passenger request, with fares calculated via meters, electronic software, or mutual agreement. For vehicles with 9 seats or more, transport operators must sign a contract with the person renting the vehicle for the entire trip, including the driver. This is a significant update from the 2008 Road Traffic Law, which did not address this matter.
(Refer to Article 56 of the 2024 Road Law.)
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2. Policies for Officials and Civil Servants in Hanoi
2.1 Additional Income
According to Article 15 of the 2024 Capital Law, officials, civil servants, and public employees working in state agencies, the Vietnam Fatherland Front, political organizations, socio-political organizations, and public non-business units managed by Hanoi will receive additional income. This supplementary income is capped at 0.8 times their basic salary fund.
2.2 Business Management
Article 23 of the 2024 Capital Law allows public employees working in public higher education institutions, vocational education institutions, and public scientific and technological organizations in Hanoi to contribute capital, manage, and run businesses. These businesses must be established by the institution to commercialize scientific research outcomes and develop technology that falls under the institution’s intellectual property rights. Approval from the head of the institution is required.
3. Online Auction Procedures Introduced
A key highlight of the 2024 amendment to the Auction Law is the inclusion of online auction procedures, as specified in Clause 28, Article 1 of the amended law. The process includes:
- Step 1: Public notification of the auction.
- Step 2: Participants register, submit their documents, join the auction, pay deposits, and inspect the auctioned asset.
- Step 3: Assign an auctioneer to oversee the process.
- Step 4: Publicly post auction results on the designated website and email participants the outcome.
4. Additional Cases of Unsuccessful Auctions
The 2024 amendment also adds new instances of unsuccessful auctions to the list under the 2016 Auction Law. These include situations where all registered participants fail to attend, or only one participant attends and submits a valid bid, even if there are multiple registrants.
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