Regulations on dispatching and receiving a data message in Vietnam from July 1, 2024

Time and place of dispatching a data message in Vietnam

Pursuant to Article 15 of the Law on Electronic Transactions 2023 (taking effect on July 1, 2024), unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties to a transaction, the time and place of dispatching a data message is provided for as follows:

- The time of dispatching a data message is the point of time when such data message is delivered from an information system under the control of the originator or the originator’s representative. If the information system is outside the control of the originator or the originator’s representative, time of dispatching the data message is the point of time when such data message is entered into the information system;

- A data message, even if it is sent from any place, is deemed to be sent from the originator's place of business if the originator is an agency, organization or from the originator’s place of residence if the originator is an individual. Where the originator has more than one place of business, the data message shall be sent from the originator’s principal place of business or from the place of business that has the closest relationship with the transaction.

Regulations on dispatching and receiving a data message in Vietnam from July 1, 2024 (Internet image) 

Receipt of data messages in Vietnam

Pursuant to Article 16 of the Law on Electronic Transactions 2023, regulations on receipt of data messages are as follows:

- An addressee of a data message shall be an agency, organization, individual or its representative designated to receive the data message from an originator of the data message, excluding any intermediary transmitting the data message.

- Where the parties to a transaction do not agree otherwise, the receipt of a data message shall be as follows:

+ The addressee is considered to have had received the data message if the data message is entered into an information system designated by the addressee and it is accessible;

+ The addressee is entitled to regard each data message received as a separate data message, unless the data message is a duplicate of another data message of which the addressee knew or has to know that such data message was a duplicate;

+ On or before sending a data message, if the originator has requested or agreed with the addressee that receipt of the data message is to be acknowledged, the addressee shall abide by this request or agreement;

+ On or before sending a data message, if the originator has declared that such data message was only valuable when there is an acknowledgement, such data message is treated as though it has never been sent until the acknowledgement is received;

+ In case the originator had sent a data message but he/she has not declared that the addressee must resend an acknowledgement and he/she has not received any acknowledgement, except cases prescribed in Point a of this Clause, the originator may give notice to the addressee stating that no acknowledgement has been received and specifying a reasonable time by which the acknowledgement must be received; if the acknowledgement is not received within the specified time, the originator is entitled to consider the data message unsent.

Time and place of receiving a data message

Pursuant to Article 17 of the Law on Electronic Transactions 2023, unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties to a transaction, the time and place of receiving a data message is provided for as follows:

- If an addressee had designated an information system to receive a data message, the time of receipt is the point of time when such data message is entered into the designated information system and the data message is accessible; if the originator had not designated an information system to receive the data message, the time of receipt is the point of time when such data message is entered into any information system of the originator and the data message is accessible;

- A data message, even if it is received from any place, is deemed to be received from the addressee's place of business if the addressee is an agency, organization or from the addressee’s place of residence if the addressee is an individual. Where the addressee has more than one place of business, the data message shall be sent from the addressee’s principal place of business or from the place of business that has the closest relationship with the transaction.

Dispatch and receipt of a data message in Vietnam

Pursuant to Article 18 of the Law on Electronic Transactions 2023, if an originator or an addressee designates one or more information systems to automatically dispatch or receive a data message, the receipt and dispatch of the data message shall comply with the regulations in Articles 14, 15, 16 and 17 of the Law on Electronic Transactions 2023.

Mai Thanh Loi

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