What is an anti-competitive agreement in Vietnam? What anti-competitive agreements are prohibited?
What is an anti-competitive agreement in Vietnam?
In Clause 4, Article 3 of the 2018 Competition Law of Vietnam, “anti-competitive agreement” means arrangements made by parties in any form, which causes or may cause anti-competitive effects.
In Article 11 of the 2018 Competition Law of Vietnam, anti-competitive agreements include the following agreements:
Anti-competitive agreements
1. Agreements on directly or indirectly fixing goods or service prices.
2. Agreements on distributing customers, consumption market, sources of supply of goods, provision of services.
3. Agreements on limiting or controlling the quantity, volume of produced, purchased, sold goods or provided services.
4. Agreements for one of more parties to the agreements to win tenders when participating in tenders for supply of goods or services.
5. Agreements on preventing, restraining, disallowing other enterprises from entering the market or develop business.
6. Agreements on abolishing from the market enterprises other than the parties to the agreements.
7. Agreements on restricting technical or technological development and investments.
8. Agreement on imposing on other enterprises conditions for signing of goods or services purchase or sale contracts or forcing other enterprises to accept obligations which have no direct connection with the subject of such contracts.
9. Agreements on not trading with enterprises other than the parties to the agreements.
10. Agreements on restricting consumption market, sources of supply of goods and services from enterprises other than the parties to the agreements.
11. Other agreements that cause or may cause anti-competitive effects.
Thus, anti-competitive agreements include:
- Agreements on directly or indirectly fixing goods or service prices.
- Agreements on distributing customers, consumption market, sources of supply of goods, provision of services.
- Agreements on limiting or controlling the quantity, volume of produced, purchased, sold goods or provided services.
- Agreements for one of more parties to the agreements to win tenders when participating in tenders for supply of goods or services.
- Agreements on preventing, restraining, disallowing other enterprises from entering the market or develop business.
- Agreements on abolishing from the market enterprises other than the parties to the agreements.
- Agreements on restricting technical or technological development and investments.
- Agreement on imposing on other enterprises conditions for signing of goods or services purchase or sale contracts or forcing other enterprises to accept obligations which have no direct connection with the subject of such contracts.
- Agreements on not trading with enterprises other than the parties to the agreements.
- Agreements on restricting consumption market, sources of supply of goods and services from enterprises other than the parties to the agreements.
- Other agreements that cause or may cause anti-competitive effects.
What is an anti-competitive agreement in Vietnam? What anti-competitive agreements are prohibited? (Image from the Internet)
What anti-competitive agreements are prohibited?
In Article 12 of the 2018 Competition Law of Vietnam, prohibited anti-competitive agreements include:
- Enterprises on the same relevant market are prohibited from entering anti-competitive agreements prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, and 3 Article 11 of the 2018 Competition Law of Vietnam.
- Enterprises are prohibited from entering anti-competitive agreements prescribed in Clauses 4, 5 and 6 Article 11 of the 2018 Competition Law of Vietnam.
- Enterprises on the same relevant market are prohibited from entering anti-competitive agreements prescribed in Clauses 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 Article 11 of the 2018 Competition Law of Vietnam if such agreements cause or may cause substantial anti-competitive effects on the market.
- Enterprises doing business in different steps of the same production, distribution, supply chain for specific kinds of goods, services are prohibited from entering anti-competitive agreements prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 Article 11 of the 2018 Competition Law of Vietnam if such agreements cause or may cause substantial anti-competitive effects on the market.
What are the regulations on exemption from prohibition on anti-competitive agreements in Vietnam?
In Article 14 of the 2018 Competition Law of Vietnam, there are provisions on exemption from prohibition on anti-competitive agreements as follows:
- Anti-competitive agreements prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 Article 11 which are prohibited in Article 12 of the 2018 Competition Law of Vietnam shall be granted exemption for a definite term if they meet one of the following conditions and benefit consumers:
+ Promoting technical and technological advances, raising the quality of goods, services;
+ Increasing the competitiveness of Vietnamese enterprises on international market;
+ Promoting the single application of quality standards and technical norms of product categories;
+ Agreeing on conditions for contract performance, goods delivery and payment, which are not related to prices and price elements.
- In cases where labor agreements, cooperation agreements in specific sectors or domains have been prescribed by other relevant laws, they shall be exempted in accordance with the provisions of this Law.
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