Legal News

[Commerce] New points in Decree No. 128/2024/ND-CP on promotional activities

2024/10/31

On October 10, 2024, the government promulgated Decree No. 128/2024/ND-CP (Decree 128), which amended and supplemented certain provisions of Decree No. 81/2018/ND-CP (Decree 81) regarding detailed regulations on commercial promotion activities. The following are the new points that companies should note:

1. Notification Procedures for Promotion Activities

Under the previous Decree 81, notification procedures to government agencies were required prior to conducting promotion activities in the following four forms. However, notification procedures could be omitted if the total prize amount or total value of promotional gifts was less than 100 million VND (approximately 5 million yen) or if the activities were conducted exclusively through e-commerce platforms or online sales sites.

(i) Provision of sample products or trial services (free customer trials)
(ii) Free provision of products or services
(iii) Discounts
(iv) Sale of products or services with coupons, etc.

However, under Decree 128, the obligation to notify government agencies for the above four promotional activities has been abolished. This is an important revision aimed at simplifying administrative procedures.

2. Removal of restrictions on the implementation period of concentrated promotion programs

Under Article 6, Paragraph 4 of Ordinance 81, concentrated promotion activities led by government agencies were only permitted within a specified time frame (hours, days, weeks, months, or sales seasons). However, in practice, many stores and centers sell promotional products such as inventory items, outdated products, or defective products, and this time restriction has reduced the operational efficiency of these stores. Therefore, Ordinance No. 128 has abolished the time limit for conducting activities, enabling operations to be conducted in accordance with actual circumstances.

Overall, Ordinance No. 128 does not significantly revise the content of Ordinance No. 81, but rather focuses on reducing administrative procedures and revising unclear provisions, with the expectation that it will lead to reductions in time and costs for companies’ promotional activities.
Decree 128 will take effect on December 1, 2024, so companies should review the revised content and take appropriate measures.

References:
・Decree No. 81/2018/ND-CP dated May 22, 2018
・Decree No. 128/2024/ND-CP dated October 10, 2024