Incentives are project-specific
Vietnam does not grant a general tax holiday simply because an investor is foreign-owned, a company is newly formed or a project is located in a named zone. The relevant conditions must be checked against the investment project, activity and location.
Current corporate-income-tax framework
Law No. 67/2025/QH15 on Corporate Income Tax took effect on 1 October 2025. Articles 13 and 14 set the statutory incentive framework. The law includes a 10 percent preferential rate for 15 years for qualifying new projects in specified sectors or locations, and a 17 percent preferential rate for 10 years for other qualifying new projects. The corresponding exemption and reduction periods are also conditional.
Those figures are not a menu for every project. The legal tests include the nature of the project, the eligible sector or location and other statutory requirements. A business should not market a site as “tax free” without a project-specific analysis.
Investment approval and tax are connected but distinct
Law No. 143/2025/QH15 and Decree No. 96/2026/NĐ-CP govern the investment side. Corporate income tax is governed by Law No. 67/2025/QH15. An IRC, enterprise-registration certificate or location in an economic zone does not by itself prove the tax treatment. Keep the project description, investment record, accounting and tax position aligned.
A verification checklist
- Identify the exact activity and the legal entity earning the income.
- Check whether the project is new and falls within the statutory sector or location category.
- Confirm the applicable rate and exemption/reduction conditions against Articles 13 and 14.
- Record the analysis before using an incentive in forecasts, contracts or public materials.
This is general information, not a tax ruling or tax advice.
Primary sources
- Law No. 67/2025/QH15, especially Articles 13 and 14.
- Law No. 143/2025/QH15.
- Decree No. 96/2026/NĐ-CP.