The Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung presented a bill amending and supplementing certain articles of the law on representative offices of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam abroad. Presenting the bill amending and supplementing several articles of the law on representative offices of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam abroad, Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung declared that this law aimed to address certain limitations and deficiencies of the 2009 law on representative offices (amended and supplemented in 2017); to modify and supplement a number of provisions to ensure the effective operation of representative offices to meet the new requirements of the country’s socio-economic situation; to unify the management of foreign policy activities; to enhance professionalism in the operation of representative offices; to meet the requirements of the Party and State policy on decentralization and delegation of powers; to ensure the coherence and uniformity of the legal system; to contribute to the construction of modern diplomacy; and to demonstrate the essential and continuous role of foreign policy.
The purpose of this law is to fully institutionalize the Party’s policies and guidelines, as well as the State’s foreign policy, especially the policy of comprehensive, profound, and effective international integration; to innovate in legislative thinking to unleash all productive forces and unlock all resources for development; to improve the efficiency of public investments; to ensure compliance with the 2013 Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (amended and supplemented in 2025) and relevant legal provisions.
The bill is structured into two articles: Article 1: Amendments and additions to several articles of the 2009 law on diplomatic missions (amended and supplemented in 2017), comprising 16 paragraphs; Article 2: Application provisions, comprising two paragraphs: paragraph 1 stipulates the effective date and paragraph 2 stipulates the modification and supplementation of paragraph 11 of Article 8 of Law No. 49/2019/QH14 on exit and entry of Vietnamese citizens (amended and supplemented by Law No. 23/2023/QH15).
The fundamental content of the bill aims to improve the functions, missions, and organizational structure of the representative offices, as well as to enhance their professionalism and modernity. It promotes decentralization and delegation of powers in their management, enhances the regime and policies applicable to members of the representative offices and their families, and addresses other issues that conflict with, overlap, or are incompatible with existing specialized legal regulations, as well as certain issues requiring clearer regulation in the law.
The government will submit the bill to the National Assembly for review and approval at the first session of the 16th National Assembly. The law is expected to come into effect on July 1, 2026. Lieutenant General Le Tan Toi, Chairman of the National Assembly’s National Defense, Security, and Foreign Affairs Committee, presented the verification report during the session. Presenting the review report of the bill amending and supplementing certain articles of the law relating to representative offices of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam abroad, the chairman of the National Defense, Security, and Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Assembly, Lieutenant General Le Tan Toi, emphasized that the Standing Committee fundamentally supports the need to promulgate this law, considering the political, legal, and practical foundations outlined in the government document. The bill will be submitted for review and decision by the National Assembly.
The content of the bill is in line with the Party’s guidelines and policies on proactive and positive international integration in the current context; the rationalization of the organizational structure of the political system for effective operation; and the promotion of decentralization, delegation of powers, innovation, and national digital transformation.
Furthermore, the bill fundamentally ensures its constitutionality, coherence with the legal system, meets the requirements of national defense and security, and is generally consistent with relevant international treaties to which Vietnam is a party.
The Permanent Committee of the National Defense, Security, and Foreign Affairs approves the overall expansion of the scope of action, functions, and missions of diplomatic missions in the bill. However, it suggests clarifying the meaning of the expression “in accordance with the requirements of international integration” in articles 1 and 4, as this expression is qualitative and not precisely defined in terms of legal scope, which could lead to inconsistent interpretations and applications in practice.
Regarding the organizational structure and personnel, the Permanent Committee suggests reviewing and restructuring the areas into groups with similar characteristics, as stipulated in Article 14, paragraph 3, to facilitate management and operations. Additionally, it is suggested to add the term “enterprise” to the responsibilities of the Representation Office in clause 3 of Article 14, as a network of Vietnamese business associations abroad is being created to support Vietnamese enterprises in enhancing their international integration capabilities.
In terms of the criteria for the appointment of extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassadors, the Committee is generally in favor of expanding these criteria in the bill. However, careful evaluation of the impact of such expansion to include “experts” is suggested, ensuring its consistency with the nature and requirements of foreign affairs and practical realities.
The article was sourced from https://baochinhphu.vn/tang-cuong-tinh-chuyen-nghiep-hien-dai-cua-cac-co-quan-dai-dien-viet-nam-o-nuoc-ngoai-102260408165114597.
