Are foreign-invested enterprises eligible to provide travel services in Vietnam?

1. Foreign-invested enterprises' travel service business regulations

Article 30 of Vietnam's 2017 Law on Tourism stipulates:

Scope of travel services includes:

- Provision of domestic tours for domestic tourists.

- Provision of international tours for inbound tourists and outbound tourists.

- The international travel service provider may provide international and domestic tours, except the case prescribed in Clause 4 of this Article

Clause 4 of this Article stipulates: "Foreign-invested providers shall only provide international tours for inbound tourists, unless otherwise prescribed by the treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a signatory."

Thus, foreign-invested enterprises may only provide international travel services for international tourists to Vietnam (except in the case of an international treaty of which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a member, there will be other regulations)

2. Conditions for travel service business

Foreign-invested enterprises need to meet the conditions specified in Clause 2, Article 31 of the Law on Tourism in order to be granted an international travel service business license, specifically as follows:

- An international travel service provider must satisfy the following conditions:

+ The enterprise is established as prescribed by the law on enterprises;

+ The enterprise has paid a deposit to a bank;

+ The person in charge of provision of travel services holds a college degree or higher in travel; in case he/she holds a college degree or higher in another major, a certificate of training in international tour operation is required.

Fees for the appraisal and grant of international travel service business licenses must be in accordance with the fees and charges law.

The deposit level for international travel service businesses is detailed by the government in Article 14 of Decree 168/2017/ND-CP and Article 1 of Decree 94/2021/ND-CP as follows:

+ Provision of travel services for inbound tourists: VND 50,000,000 (fifty million dong);

+ Provision of travel services for outbound tourists: VND 100,000,000 (one hundred million dong);

+ Provision of travel services for inbound and outbound tourists: VND 100,000,000 (one hundred million dong).

The travel service provider shall pay the deposit in Vietnamese dong to a commercial bank, cooperative bank or branch of a foreign bank established and operating in Vietnam and be entitled to enjoy interest under the agreement between the provider and the depository bank in accordance with regulations of law. The deposit must be maintained during the period over which a provider provides travel services.

3. Application and procedures for the issuance of a license for provision of domestic tours

The Application and procedures for the issuance of a license for provision of domestic tours are specified in Article 32 of the Law on Tourism:

An application for the license for provision of domestic tours includes:

- An application form for issuance of the license for provision of domestic tours according to the form prescribed by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism;

- A certified true copy of the business registration certificate;

- A certificate of deposit payment;

- A certified true copy of the decision on appointment or employment contract between the travel service provider and the person in charge of provision of travel services;

- Certified true copy of qualifications of the person in charge of provision of travel services prescribed in Point c, Clause 1, Article 31 of this Law.

The procedures for issuance of the license for provision of domestic tours:

- The enterprise applying for the license for provision of domestic tours shall submit 01 application to the tourism authority of the province where the enterprise is located;

- Within 10 days from the day on which a valid application is received, the tourism authority of the province shall assess and issue the license for provision of domestic tours to enterprise; in case of refusal, a written response stating reasons thereof must be given.

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Key word: travel in Vietnam | travel service in Vietnam | Foreign-invested providers in Vietnam | foreign-invested enterprises in Vietnam | travel service business license in Vietnam |

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