Issue of May 2026 – Update templates of documents and reports related to investment activities in Vietnam and investment promotion in accordance with Circular No. 55/2026/TT-BTC

Dear Valued Clients,

On May 15, 2026, the Ministry of Finance issued Circular No. 55/2026/TT-BTC (“Circular 55”) regulating standard forms and reports concerning investment activities in Vietnam and investment promotion, replacing Circular No. 03/2021/TT-BKHĐT dated April 09, 2021 of the Minister of Planning and Investment regulating standard forms and reports concerning investment activities in Vietnam, outward investment from Vietnam and investment promotion (“Circular 03”) and relevant amending and supplementing documents, with effect from May 15, 2026.

In this Legal Update, we will summarize and clarify notable amendments and supplements under Circular 55 that investors will need to note in the coming time.

1. Scope of regulation and subjects of application

Compared to Circular 03 and previous updates, Circular 55 will only cover forms and reports for investment activities in Vietnam and investment promotion, based on Articles 1 and 2 of this Circular. Forms and reports for investment from Vietnam to foreign countries will be specified separately in Circular 38/2026/TT-BTC, issued by the Ministry of Finance on March 31, 2026.

2. Regarding standard forms concerning investment activities in Vietnam

Compared to previous forms under Circular 03 and relevant amending and supplementing documents, the forms regulated under Circular 55 have some new points as follows:

• The written request for investment project implementation supplements section “IV. SPECIFIC ASSESSMENT OF THE INVESTOR” enclosed with 4 appendices I, II, III, IV respectively regulating conditions, standards, technical regulations in accordance with the laws on construction, environmental protection, technology transfer, fire prevention and fighting applicable to projects implemented under special investment procedures as regulated (Form No. I.1.1);
• The Investment Project Proposal for cases involving: (i) approval of investment policies for investment projects proposed by investors; and (ii) issuance of Investment Registration Certificates for investment projects not subject to investment policy approval, has been combined into a single form (Form No. I.1.3), instead of being separated into two distinct forms as previously regulated under Circular 03. In addition, Form No. I.1.3 is also utilized for the issuance of Investment Registration Certificates for projects implemented under special investment procedures. At the same time, Form No. I.1.3 adds a new requirement where investors must evaluate the project’s economic efficiency by (i) Making a spreadsheet to calculate the project’s cash inflows and outflows, including expected project-related costs, expected revenues, and profits; (ii) Calculating and analyzing economic indicators to ensure the project’s feasibility, such as IRR, NPV, and the payback period;
• Circular 55 supplements the written form for reflecting difficulties and recommendations (Form No. I.1.22). This is to implement the mechanism for resolving investors’ issues and preventing disputes between the State and investors, as regulated in Article 9.6 of Decree No. 96/2026/ND-CP guiding the Law on Investment (“Decree 96“). Accordingly, during their investment and business operations, investors have the right to report difficulties and recommendations regarding the application and enforcement of laws to competent state agencies. These agencies are responsible for reviewing and resolving the investors’ issues and recommendations in accordance with the law;
• Circular 55 supplements the form for the Report prior to investment project implementation (For investment projects not subject to the issuance of Investment Registration Certificates) (Form No. I.3.3). Based on the regulations in Article 47.5 of the 2025 Law on Investment, before starting a project, investors must submit a report to the investment registration agency. Accordingly, the economic organization implementing the investment project will send online reports through the National Investment Information System, as regulated in Article 96.1(a) of Decree 96.

3. Regarding standard forms and reports concerning investment promotion activities

The forms and reports related to investment promotion activities issued with Circular 55 are basically kept the same, with no significant changes or updates compared to the current forms being used under Circular 03 and its related updates. Accordingly, the content and structure of these forms are generally similar to the previous ones.

4. Effect

Circular 55 takes effect from May 15, 2026. However, valid dossiers that were prepared using the forms from Circular 03 and its related updates received by the competent authorities before Circular 55 takes effect, but have not yet received results, will continue to be processed and resolved[1].

After the effective date of Circular 55, competent authorities will handle and resolve dossiers using the correct standard forms issued enclosed with this Circular.

As always, we hope you find this update useful and look forward to continuing to work with you in the near future.

Best regards,

ENT Law LLC

[1] Article 5.2 of Circular 55.