Conditions and Procedures for Licensing Electronic Information Portals Providing Social Network Services under Decree No. 147/2024/ND-CP

1. Definition and Classification of Social Networks under Decree 147/2024/ND-CP 

1.1 Definition of Social Networks: 

Article 3.25 of Decree 147/2024/ND-CP provides that a social network is an information system established on an online platform or application, providing services and tools that allow users to post, exchange, interact, and share information with one another. 

See more: Regulations on social media under decree 147/2024/ND-CP

1.2 Classification of Social Networks: 

1.2.1 Foreign Social Networks provided by foreign organizations, enterprises, or individuals operating across borders into Vietnam. The management of foreign social networks follows the provisions of Article 23 of Decree 147/2024/ND-CP regarding cross-border information provision; 

1.2.2 Domestic Social Networks provided by agencies, organizations, or businesses that have legal entities in Vietnam, including: 

a. Social Networks with High User Traffic are social networks with a total number of visits exceeding 10,000 per month (based on the average statistics over six consecutive months) or with more than 1,000 active users per month;  

b. Social Networks with Low User Traffic are social networks with a total number of visits below 10,000 per month or fewer than 1,000 active users per month, based on the same statistical criteria. 

2. Conditions for managing, providing, and using Information on Online Information Platforms providing Social Network Services  

The management, provision, and use of information on domestic Online Information Platforms providing social network services must comply with the provisions of Decree 147/2024/ND-CP and related regulations on journalism. Organizations, agencies, and enterprises operating in Vietnam are permitted to establish such services only upon obtaining one of the following licenses: 

• A Social Network Service License is applicable to Social Networks with High User Traffic; or  

• A Notification Confirmation for Social Network Service is applicable to Social Networks with Low User Traffic. 

2.1 Conditions for providing Domestic Social Network Services and obtaining the Social Network Service License

2.1.1 Conditions for providing Domestic Social Network Services: 

a. The applicant must be an organization, agency, or enterprise established under Vietnamese law, with their business activities registered on the National Business Registration Portal, aligning with the provided social network services; 

b. The applicant must register a domain name for providing the social network service and comply with the following: 

• For agencies, organizations, or enterprises that are not press agencies, the domain name and page name must not be identical to or similar to the name of a press agency, or contain terms (in Vietnamese or equivalent foreign languages) that may cause confusion with a press agency or journalistic activities, such as: newspaper, radio, magazine, news, broadcasting, television, media, press, news agency; 

• The electronic information portal or social network must use the “.vn” domain as the primary domain and store user data on a server system with an IP address located in Vietnam; 

• The “.vn” domain must be registered by the agency, organization, or enterprise requesting the license, with a remaining validity of at least 6 months at the time of the license application, and must comply with regulations on the management and use of Internet resources. For international domains, a confirmation of legal use of the domain must be provided for the agency, organization, or enterprise requesting the license. 

c. The applicant must satisfy organizational, personnel, and technical conditions as follows: 

i. Organizational and Personnel Requirements: 

• There must be a content and information management department and a technical management department. Personnel responsible for managing content and information must be Vietnamese nationals;

• There must be a main office with a defined address and contact phone number that is reachable. 

ii. Technical conditions – Establishing a technical system capable of meeting the following requirements: 

• Storing, for at least two years, user account information, login/logout times, user IP addresses, and logs of published content; deleting user data after the legally prescribed retention period;

• Receiving and handling reports regarding information violations from users; 

• Detecting, warning, and preventing unauthorized access, as well as cyber-attacks in the online environment, and complying with the technical standards and cybersecurity regulations as prescribed by law;

• Having a backup plan to ensure safe and continuous operation, and to recover in the event of an incident, except in cases of force majeure as prescribed by law; 

• Ensuring the presence of at least one Server System located in Vietnam, capable of meeting Inspection, Examination, Storage, and Information Provision Requirements at any given time for all websites and social networks owned by agencies, organizations, or enterprises. 

iii. In addition to ensuring Technical Conditions, the Technical System for the establishment of Social Networks must be capable of meeting the following requirements: 

• Storing information of service users from Vietnam when registering a social network account, including: full name, date of birth, mobile phone number in Vietnam (or personal identification number). In cases where the service user is a child (under 16 years old), the child’s parents or legal guardians must register the account using the information of the parents or legal guardians and are responsible for supervising and managing the content the child accesses, uploads, and shares on the social network; 

• Authenticating social network service user accounts using a mobile phone number in Vietnam. Only in cases where the user confirms the absence of a mobile phone number in Vietnam, the organization or enterprise providing social network services shall authenticate the account using a personal identification number in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Identification and Electronic Authentication. 

• In cases where service users utilize livestream features for commercial purposes, the organization or enterprise providing social network services must authenticate the account using a personal identification number in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Identification and Electronic Authentication; 

• Ensuring that only authenticated accounts are permitted to post information (write posts, comment, livestream) and share information on social network; 

• Preventing or removing information that violates the provisions of Article 8 of the Cybersecurity Law or infringes intellectual property rights upon request from the Ministry of Information and Communications, the Ministry of Public Security, or other competent authorities in accordance with specialized laws;

• Establishing a warning mechanism and implementing information filtering tools when users post content that violates Article 8 of the Cybersecurity Law.

d. Implementing measures to manage content and information in accordance with Article 28 of Decree No. 147/2024/ND-CP, as detailed below: 

• There must be an agreement on the provision and use of social network services that fully complies with the requirements outlined under Article 29.2.d of Decree No. 147/2024/ND-CP. This agreement must be published on the social network’s homepage, and service users must explicitly consent to it through electronic means before accessing or utilizing any services and features of the social network;

• There must be personnel available 24/7 to receive, process, and respond to requests from competent authorities in compliance with Vietnamese law, as well as to address and resolve complaints from service users in Vietnam; 

• There must be solutions in place for content moderation on the social network;

• There must be measures in place to protect the information of service users; 

• Ensuring the right of users to decide whether to allow the collection of their information or to provide it to authorities, organizations, enterprises, or other individuals;

• Do not organize user-generated content into fixed categories; do not upload or allow users (including personnel of the organization, entity, or enterprise providing the social network service) to produce content in the form of reports, investigations, or journalistic interviews to be posted on the social network. For media organizations posting content on social networks, they must comply with Article 24.6.g of Decree No. 147/2024/ND-CP; 

• Classifying and displaying warnings for content that is not suitable for children; implement ingsolutions to protect children in the online environment in accordance with the Laws on Child Protection. 

2.1.2 Conditions for obtaining a Social Network Service License:  

• The Social Network Service License is primarily required for Social Networks with High User Traffic. In cases where the social network has a low number of regular users but requires a license to provide livestream features or activities that generate revenue, it will still be considered for licensing;

• The Applicant must fully meet the conditions for providing domestic social network services as mentioned in Section 2.1.1 of this Article.

3. Dossier for applying for the Social Network Service License 

The dossier includes the following documents: 

• Application for a license to provide social network services in accordance with Form No. 17 in the Appendix attached to Decree No. 147/2024/ND-CP; 

• A valid copy (including a copy issued from the original registry, a notarized copy, an electronically notarized copy, or a copy compared with the original) of one of the following documents: enterprise registration certificate, investment registration certificate, establishment decision (or a valid copy of a certificate or equivalent license issued before the effective date of the Investment Law No. 67/2014/QH13 and the Enterprise Law No. 59/2020/QH14); Operational Charter (applicable to Associations and Organizations); 

The Establishment Decision or Operational Charter must specify functions and duties that align with the scope and areas in which users can exchange information on the social network; 

• An operational plan confirmed by the legal representative of the enterprise or the head of the agency, organization, or enterprise requesting the license, including the following main contents: a detailed description of services (both paid and free services), the homepage and service page interface, scope; areas of information exchange; plans for organizing personnel, technical systems, content management, and information to ensure the social network operates in compliance with Article 25.4 of Decree No. 147/2024/ND-CP; information on the location of the server system in Vietnam;

• The agreement for providing and using social network services, confirmed by the agency, organization, or enterprise requesting the license, must include at least the following contents: prohibited content for exchange and sharing on the social network; the responsibilities of service users, clearly stating that users are prohibited from using the social network for unauthorized journalistic activities; the responsibilities of the agency, organization, or enterprise providing the social network service; the mechanism for handling violations of the social network service agreement by users; warning users about the risks of storing, exchanging, and sharing information on the network; the mechanism for resolving complaints and disputes between users of the social network service and the agency, organization, or enterprise providing the service, or with other organizations or individuals; the mechanism for handling complaints from users regarding information that affects the legitimate rights and interests of organizations or individuals due to content posted by the user on the social network; public disclosure of whether or not user information is collected and processed in the agreement for providing and using social network services; description of measures to ensure the user’s right to decide whether to allow the collection of their information or provide it to authorities, organizations, enterprises, or other individuals; and the policy for protecting the information of social network service users; 

• A printed/color scan (submitted directly or via postal service) or a photo (submitted through online public services) of the homepage and category pages of the social network; the homepage must contain all required information as specified in Article 24.9 of Decree No. 147/2024/ND-CP. 

4. Licensing Authority

• The Ministry of Information and Communication shall be responsible for the issuance of the Social Network Service License for social networks with high user traffic;

• The Ministry of Information and Communications (Radio, Television, and Electronic Information Department) shall be responsible for the issuance of a Notification Confirmation for social networks with low user traffic; 

5. Procudures for issuing Social Network Service License and Notification Confirmation for Providing Social Network Services 

5.1 Procedures for obtaining a Social Network Service License: 

• Step 1: The Ministry of Information and Communications (Radio, Television, and Electronic Information Department) will send a written notice to social networks with high user traffic (via postal service or electronic means) regarding the submission of a licensing application as prescribed. 

• Step 2: Within 60 days from the date of receiving the notification, the agency, organization, or enterprise may continue providing its existing social network services but must submit one set of application documents for the license to provide social network services. The submission can be made directly, via postal service to the Ministry of Information and Communications (Radio, Television, and Electronic Information Department), or through the Ministry’s online public service system. 

In case of submission through the online public service system of the Ministry of Information and Communications, a digital signature must be used as prescribed by the Law on Electronic Transactions.  

• Step 3: Within 25 days from the date of receiving a valid application from the agency, organization, or enterprise, the Ministry of Information and Communications will review and issue the license in accordance with Form No. 19 in the Appendix issued with this Decree. The Ministry will also send a code (representing the licensed social network symbol) to the email address of the licensed agency, organization, or enterprise. 

In case of rejection, the Ministry of Information and Communications (Radio, Television, and Electronic Information Department) will issue a written response clearly stating the reasons for the refusal. 

• Step 4: The agency, organization, or enterprise must embed the issued code into the service description content on the app store (if applicable) and on the social network. The code must be linked to the licensing data section on the Ministry of Information and Communications’ electronic portal (Radio, Television, and Electronic Information Department).

5.2 Procedure for obtaining the Notification Confirmation for Social Network Services:  

• Step 1: Prior to providing social network services, agencies, organizations, or enterprises must submit a notification of the provision of social network services in accordance with Form No. 20, as prescribed in the Appendix issued with this Decree, along with a valid copy (including a copy issued from the original register, a certified copy, an electronically certified copy, or a copy verified against the original) of one of the following documents: Certificate of Business Registration, Certificate of Investment Registration, Decision on Establishment (or a valid copy of an equivalent certificate or license issued prior to the effective date of the Investment Law No. 67/2014/QH13 and the Enterprise Law No. 59/2020/QH14); or the Operational Charter (for associations and organizations). These documents must be submitted to the Ministry of Information and Communications (Department of Broadcasting, Television, and Electronic Information) either directly, via postal services, or through the Ministry’s online public service system. 

In case of submission via the online public service system of the Ministry of Information and Communications, a digital signature compliant with the provisions of the Law on Electronic Transactions is required. 

• Step 2: Within 05 working days from the date of receiving a valid notification, the Ministry of Information and Communications (Department of Broadcasting, Television, and Electronic Information) will issue a Notification Confirmation for social network services according to Form No. 21 in the Appendix attached to this Decree. The Ministry will send a code (representing the icon of the notified social network) to the agency, organization, or enterprise that receives the confirmation via the email address of the respective agency, organization, or enterprise. 

In case of refusal, the Ministry of Information and Communications (Department of Broadcasting, Television, and Electronic Information) will send a written response specifying the reasons for the refusal. 

• Step 3: The agency, organization, or enterprise will attach the issued code into the service description on the app store (if applicable) and on the social network. The code will be linked to the licensing data section on the Ministry of Information and Communications’ (Department of Broadcasting, Television, and Electronic Information) Electronic Portal. 

6. Effectiveness of the License and Notification Confirmation

• Social Network Service License is granted for a period as requested by the authority, organization, or enterprise, but shall not exceed 5 years;

• Social Network Service License and Notification Confirmation for Social Network Service becomes invalid when the authority, organization, or enterprise is dissolved, bankrupt, or the general electronic information portal or social media platform has been transferred to another authority, organization, or enterprise, or in any case where the License/Confirmation is revoked; 

• In the event that the License for establishing a general electronic information portal or the Social Network Service License and Notification Confirmation for Social Network Service becomes invalid or is revoked, the reissuance of the license shall follow the procedures for new issuance as prescribed in Articles 29, 30, and 31 of Decree 147/2024/ND-CP. 

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