Vietnam's foreign ownership rules are not a single national cap — they are set sector by sector, referenced against a CPC (Central Product Classification) code for the specific service or activity. Manufacturing, most professional services, and IT are generally unconditional. Distribution, logistics, education, and media carry conditions ranging from a joint-venture requirement to a hard ownership ceiling.
A foreign investor can enter through a wholly foreign-owned entity, a joint venture with a Vietnamese partner, a representative office (non-trading), or increasingly, acquisition of an existing Vietnamese company. Each path carries a different capital commitment and a different approval timeline — see market entry strategy for how we compare them for a specific business plan.
Conditional-sector projects typically route through an in-principle investment policy approval before the IRC stage; unconditional-sector projects go directly to IRC. Both then proceed to ERC issuance, followed by any sub-licenses the specific business line requires — covered in business licensing.
Governing law: Law on Investment 2020, Law on Enterprises 2020, WTO Schedule of Commitments
Typical IRC timeline: 20-25 working days (unconditional sectors)
Typical ERC timeline: 5-7 working days after IRC issuance
Minimum capital: No general statutory minimum; assessed by project scale
We map your business lines to CPC codes and the applicable ownership rule before you commit capital.
Request an assessmentIn most services and manufacturing sectors, yes — Vietnam allows 100% foreign ownership under its WTO commitments. A shortlist of sectors (media, certain logistics segments, some agriculture) carries caps or requires a local joint-venture partner, so the answer depends on the specific business line, identified by its CPC code, not the entity type.
The Investment Registration Certificate (IRC) approves the investment project itself — capital, scope, location. The Enterprise Registration Certificate (ERC) then registers the company as a legal entity. A foreign-invested company generally needs both, obtained in that order, before it can operate.
Only in sectors where Vietnam's WTO schedule caps foreign ownership below 100%. Outside those sectors, a wholly foreign-owned LLC or joint-stock company is the norm, and no local shareholder is legally required.
A straightforward IRC application in an unconditional sector typically takes around 20-25 working days, followed by ERC issuance in about 5-7 working days. Conditional sectors, capital contribution reviews, or incomplete documentation can extend this meaningfully — we build the realistic timeline into the entry assessment before filing.