Business News

[14-01-2015]- Management of the deposit of the international travel enterprise
- Minimum safety limits and ratios for transactions performed by credit institutions and branches of foreign banks
- The entrustment operation and entrustment taking of credit institutions, foreign bank’s branches
- Foreign workers exempt from work permits
- The new laws on Tax, Real estate Trading, Housing, Organization of the People’s Court, Citizen Identification card, Social Insurance

[14-01-2015] In view of the latest situation of Vietnam, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government today (January 13) adjusted the Outbound Travel Alert (OTA) for Vietnam from red to amber. A Government spokesman said, “Hong Kong residents who intend to visit the country or are already there should monitor the situation, exercise caution, attend to personal safety, and avoid protests and large gatherings of people.”

[13-01-2015] Following the relatively good figures in the fourth quarter of 2014, the retail market in Ho Chi Minh City is forecast to become better this year. According to CBRE Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City welcomed five new retail properties in the beginning of 2015, providing more than 100,000 square metres gross floor area (GFA) to the market.

[13-01-2015] International cruise passengers will pay a US$5 visa fee each, instead of a staggering US$45, when they go ashore for a local tour, according to new measures approved last week by the Prime Minister. The new measures come after the fresh immigration regulations, effective from January 1, provide complicated, time-consuming and costly immigration requirements for international tourists traveling to Vietnam by cruise ship who want to join overland tours when their ships call at a local port.

[12-01-2915] Experts at foreign property consulting firms expect the property market in Ha Noi to rebound strongly this year, owing to robust sales of apartments during the last quarter of 2014. The Savills Viet Nam Ltd Company pointed out that six new housing projects, with approximately 2,900 units, have been launched recently. This reflects the highest number since the second quarter of 2013.

[09-01-2015] HCM City's Department of Planning and Investment is expected to implement the use of an electronic ISO system for processing investment certificates before January 15. On January 7, People's Committee Vice Chairman Le Manh Ha asked the municipal department of information and communications, in co-operation with the department of planning and investment, to complete the general design of the foreign investment management system, and implement the electronic ISO application.

[09-01-2015] The housing market in this southern city performed strongly during the fourth quarter of last year, according to a Savills Viet Nam report released on January 8. The total villa/townhouse transactions during the fourth quarter surged sharply by 56 per cent quarter-on-quarter, and the absorption rate for this segment was 37 per cent, up 3 percentage points from the previous quarter.

[08-01-2015] Policies on increasing minimum wage, health insurance payment, personnel cuts, and plant quarantine have come into effect since January 2015. Regional minimum wage increases. The new Decree on monthly minimum wage for employees working for companies, enterprises, cooperatives, cooperative groups, farms, households, individuals and agencies, organizations employing laborers has been applied since January 1, 2015.