One can assume that where possible (i.e., not prohibited by international treaties) Vietnamese law will likely provide better treatment to Vietnamese investors over foreign investor. However, in the examples discussed below, foreign investors do get better treatment over Vietnamese investors:

Investor protection - The biggest advantage that many foreign investors have over Vietnamese investors is the ability of the foreign investor to make a claim against Vietnamese Government before international arbitration under various investment treaties that Vietnam has signed with several countries. Vietnamese investors have no ability to do so. The Government of Vietnam has indeed been subject to several investor-State disputes and is well aware of the risk that it can be sued if it mistreats foreign investors.
Less paperwork for foreign lawyers – A foreign lawyer practicing law in Vietnam only needs to obtain a practicing permit from the Ministry of Justice. One the other hand, a Vietnamese lawyer needs to (1) obtain a practicing permit from the Ministry of Justice, (2) obtain a lawyer certificate of the Vietnam Bar Association and (3) be admitted to a provincial bar associate where he/she practices. In addition, to maintain his/her certificate, each year, a Vietnamese lawyer has to pay annual fee to the bar association while a foreign lawyer does not have to pay any maintenance fee.
Ability to second foreign employees – Vietnamese law clearly allows a foreign employee to work in Vietnam through an internal transfer arrangement. In an internal transfer arrangement, a foreign employee employed by a foreign company may be sent to Vietnam to work for a Vietnamese affiliate of the foreign company without an employment contract. On the other hand, Vietnamese law does not provide for a similar arrangement where a Vietnamese employee employed by one company can be sent to work for another affiliate without an employment contract.

This post is written by Nguyen Quang Vu.

Vietnam Business Law