1. What are the three central/federal government entities that
have conducted the largest procurements by volume in Vietnam in the
last three years? Please, list the three procuring entities in the
order of importance.
In my experience, the three largest procuring entites are Ministry
of Health, Ministry of Industry and Trade, Ministry of
Transport
Procuring Entity Sector – Ministry of Health
1.1 Please identify the most common sector purchased by the
procuring entity
Goods
Procuring Entity Sector – Ministry of Industry and
Trade
1.1 Please identify the most common sector purchased by the
procuring entity
Goods
Procuring Entity Sector – Ministry Transport
1.1 Please identify the most common sector purchased by the
procuring entity
Works
1.2 Is any of the three procuring entities that you have
selected a State-Owned Enterprise or an Independent
Authority?
Yes
1.3 Does any of these SOEs or Independent Authorities have a
specific public procurement regulatory frame work compared to the
other centralized/federal procuring entities?
Yes
2. Please provide a list of laws, regulations, and other binding
materials (including guidelines and manuals) that regulate public
procurement in Vietnam.
- Law No. 43/2013/QH13 on Bidding (Law on Bidding)
- Law No. 49/2014/QH13 on Public Investment
- Law No. 64/2020/QH14 on Investment in the form of Public –
Private Partnership
- Law No. 03/2022/QH15 amending and supplementing some of articles
of Law on Public Investment, Law on Investment in the form of
public-private partnership, Law on Investment, Law on Housing, Law
on Bidding, Law on Electricity, Law on Enterprises, Law on
Consumption Tax Special and the Law on Execution of Civil
Judgments.
- Decree No. 95/2020/ND-CP guiding the procurement under the
Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific
Partnership
- Decree No. 09/2022 ND-CP amending and supplementing some articles
of Decree No. 95/2020/ND-CP guiding the implementation of
procurement under the CPTPP, the EVFTA and the UKVFTA
- Decree No. 63/2014/ND-CP detailing the implementation of several
provisions of the Bidding Law on the selection of contractor
- Decree No. 25/2020/ND-CP detailing the implementation of several
provisions of the Bidding Law on the selection of investors
- Decree No. 21/2022/TT-BKHDT detailing the preparation of bidding
documents for non-consulting services for bidding packages within
the scope of the CPTPP, the EVFTA and the UKVFTA
- Decree No. 20/2022/TT-BKHDT detailing the preparation of bidding
documents for consulting services for bidding packages within the
scope of the CPTPP, the EVFTA and the UKVFTA
- Circular 09/2022/TT-BYT detailing the sample invitation to bid
for procurement of herbal ingredients and traditional medicines at
public health facilities
- Circular 12/2022/TT-BKHDT detailing the preparation of bidding
documents for the procurement of goods for bidding packages within
the scope of the CPTPP, the EVFTA and the UKVFTA
- Circular No. 15/2022/TT-BKHDT detailing the preparation of
bidding documents for construction and installation for bidding
packages within the scope of the CPTPP, the EVFTA and the
UKVFTA
- Circular 08/2022/TT-BKHDT detailing the provision and posting of
information on bidding and contractor selection on the National
Procurement Network System
- Circular No. 09/2022/TT-BGTVT guiding some contents on methods
and criteria for evaluating bids for investor selection under the
public-private partnership method and the form of a
build-operate-transfer contract in the transport sector
- Circular No. 23/2021/TT-BGTVT guiding the formulation, approval
and publication of the list of projects; methods and criteria for
evaluating bids and bidding for selection of investors in
specialized aviation service works at airports and aerodromes
- Circular 22/2021/TT-BGTVT detailing methods and criteria for
evaluating bids to select investors to implement projects on
dredging seaport waters and inland waterways in combination with
product recovery
- Circular No. 06/2020/TT-BKHDT guiding the implementation of
Decree No. 25/2020/ND-CP detailing the implementation of a number
of articles of the Law on Bidding on investor selection
- Circular 15/2020/TT-BYT promulgating the List of drugs for
bidding, the List of drugs for concentrated bidding, and the List
of drugs eligible for price negotiation.
- Circular No. 14/2020/TT-BYT promulgating some contents in bidding
for medical equipment at public medical facilities
- Circular 15/2019/TT-BYT regulating on drug bidding at public
health facilities
- Circular No. 10/2015/TT-BKHDT detailing the contractor selection
plan
- Circular No. 19/2015/TT-BKHDT detailing the preparation of
appraisal report during the contractor selection period
- Circular No. 23/2015/TT-BKHDT detailing the preparation of
evaluation report of bid dossier
- Circular No. 16/2016/TT-BKHDT guiding the preparation of
pre-qualification dossier, bidding dossier for the investor
carrying land use projects
3. Specific instruments applicable to a sector (goods, services
or works):
- Decree No. 21/2022/TT-BKHDT detailing the preparation of bidding
documents for non-consulting services for bidding packages within
the scope of the CPTPP, the EVFTA and the UKVFTA
- Decree No. 20/2022/TT-BKHDT detailing the preparation of bidding
documents for consulting services for bidding packages within the
scope of the CPTPP, the EVFTA and the UKVFTA
- Circular 09/2022/TT-BYT detailing the sample invitation to bid
for procurement of herbal ingredients and traditional medicines at
public health facilities
- Circular 12/2022/TT-BKHDT detailing the preparation of bidding
documents for the procurement of goods for bidding packages within
the scope of the CPTPP, the EVFTA and the UKVFTA
- Circular No. 15/2022/TT-BKHDT detailing the preparation of
bidding documents for construction and installation for bidding
packages within the scope of the CPTPP, the EVFTA and the
UKVFTA
- Circular No. 23/2021/TT-BGTVT guiding the formulation, approval
and publication of the list of projects; methods and criteria for
evaluating bids and bidding for selection of investors in
specialized aviation service works at airports and aerodromes
- Circular 22/2021/TT-BGTVT regulating on methods and criteria for
evaluating bids to select investors to implement projects on
dredging seaport waters and inland waterways in combination with
product recovery
- Circular 15/2020/TT-BYT promulgating the List of drugs for
bidding, the List of drugs for concentrated bidding, and the List
of drugs eligible for price negotiation.
- Circular No. 14/2020/TT-BYT promulgating a Circular stipulating a
number of contents in bidding for medical equipment at public
medical facilities
- Circular 15/2019/TT-BYT regulating on drug bidding at public
health facilities
4. Does the regulatory framework establish value thresholds for
determining procedural or regulatory aspects of the procurement
process?
Yes (Articles 2.2 and 3.2, Law on Bidding)
5. Is there an operational central electronic public procurement
(e-procurement) portal in Vietnam?
Yes (https://muasamcong.mpi.gov.vn)
6. Is the central e-procurement portal used by all the procuring
entities?
Yes
7. Please complete the table below based on the features
available in the central electronic public procurement portal
Yes, fully digitized Yes, but hard copy documents must be submitted
No
Registering as a vendor x
Accessing notices on procurement opportunities x
Accessing bidding documents x
Asking a procuring entity for clarifications x
Submitting tenders x
Submitting bid security with electronic validation x
Bid opening x
Virtual workspace to manage tender procedures (including operative
tools for members of the evaluation committee) x
Notification of decisions (clarifications, awards, contract
signing, etc.) x
Accessing award decisions (including their rationale) x
Submitting performance guarantee with electronic validation x
Contract signing x
Accessing contracts x
Accessing contract amendments x
Submitting invoices to the procuring entity x
Module for framework agreement management x
E-catalogue of approved suppliers x
Green catalogue x
E-reverse auction module x
E-contract management and implementation module x
Receiving payments from the procuring entity x
Applying for vendor eco-certifications/eco-labels x
Access to specifications, standards, or criteria for eco-labels and
environmentally preferable goods and services x
8. Are the features supported by the central e-procurement
portal available for procurements of goods, works, and
services?
Yes
9. For the following types of data, please select if there is a
data portal that provides open access to such information in
machine readable format:
Yes No
Data on tenders (including description, dates, category of
spending, estimated value, contracting authority, and
identification of bidders) x
Data on tenders (including description, dates, category of
spending, estimated value, contracting authority, and
identification of bidders) x
Data on suppliers x
10. Link to the webpage with data
https://muasamcong.mpi.gov.vn/web/guest/contractor-selection?render=index
11. Are there any main procuring entities for which data on
contracts and tenders is not published on the open access data
portal?
No.
12. Are gender-disaggregated data on firms that have
participated in tenders collected by the central e-procurement
portal?
No.
13. Does the regulatory framework require procuring entities to
use standard bidding/tender documents when preparing a
tender?
Yes, but with some exception.
14. Circumstances the use of model bidding/tender documents is
not required.
Based on sector of procurement (Article 4, Circular No.
08/2022/TT-BKHDT)
15. Do these standard bidding documents contain sustainability
clauses?
Yes, in all model documents
16. Does the regulatory framework define minimum content
requirements for procurement plans?
Yes. (Article 35, Law on Bidding)
17. Do the minimum content requirements for procurement plans
include a gender dimension?
No.
18. According to the regulatory framework, which of the
following tools must be used when a procuring entity prepares to
estimate the contract value of the new procurement
opportunity?
Regulations are silent on this matter
19. Is there a legal mandate for the development and
implementation of special programs to engage innovative and
emerging suppliers?
No.
20. Does the regulatory framework establish open procurement as
a default method for tendering a contract?
Yes, but with some exception.
21. Circumstances exceptions to the general rule of using open
procurement are provided in the regulatory framework.
Based on the value of procurement and based on the entity
conducting the procurement (Articles 21, 22, 23, 24, 26, 26, Law on
Bidding)
22. Does the regulatory framework designate specific tendering
procedures for innovation procurement?
No
23. Does the regulatory framework provide incentives for
preparing bids with environmentally-friendly components?
No.
24. Does the regulatory framework impose any participation or
award restrictions on foreign firms?
Yes, in some public tenders
25. If the restrictions apply only in some public tenders,
please identify the parameter in which these restrictions are
applicable:
Sector (Article 15, Law on Bidding).
26. Does the regulatory framework require foreign firms to have
partnerships with domestic firms to be eligible to participate in a
tender?
Yes, in some public tenders (Article 5.1(h), Law on Bidding)
27. Does the regulatory framework require foreign firms to own
(fully or partially) subsidiaries in the domestic economy to be
eligible to participate in a tender?
No. (Article 5.1, Law on Bidding)
28. Does the regulatory framework prohibit splitting contracts
for the purpose of circumventing thresholds for open
tendering?
Yes (Article 89.6(k), Law on Bidding)
29. According to the regulatory framework, which of the
following documents need to be made publicly available?
Yes, for all contracts Yes, except for low value contracts
No
Procurement plans x
Tender notices x
Tender documents (project specific) x
Award decisions Yes x
Contracts x
Contract amendments x
Subcontractors x
30. Please provide the legal basis for all the key materials
listed in the table above:
Article 8, Law on Bidding; Article 9, Law on Investment in the form
of Public – Private Partnership
31. Does the regulatory framework set a minimum timeframe
between advertisement of a tender notice and a submission
deadline?
Yes, for all procurement procedures (Article 12.1(b), Law on
Bidding)
32. According to the regulatory framework, how should clarification requests from potential bidders be communicated?
Required to communicate answers to all bidders (Article 77.1, Law on Bidding; Article 51.4, Decree No. 35/2021/ND-CP; Article 14.2(c), Decree No. 63/2014/ND-CP)
33. In practice, how many days would usually pass between bid
opening, and contract signing (i.e., the time in which all
tenderers, participants and relevant parties are notified of the
award decision and the awardee can start implementing the contract)
for the following scenarios:
Days to complete a procurement of a works contract in an open
procedure valued above the threshold for international procurement:
210
Days to complete the procurement of a services contract in a
restricted procedure with limited competition, valued below the
threshold for international procurement: 210
Days to complete the prequalification of supplier: 0
Days to complete an electronic auction: 45
Days to complete a Framework agreement with a competitive second
stage: 0
34. Does the regulatory framework establish criteria for
identifying abnormally low bids?
Yes, but only in some procurement procedures (Articles 117.6 and
117.9, Decree No. 63/2014/ND-CP)
35. According to the regulatory framework, which award criteria
must be used in bid evaluations for high-value procurement?
Lowest price, Project life cycle cost, Total cost of ownership,
Value for money, Most economically advantageous tender,
Sustainability (Article 12, Decree 63; Articles 39 – 41, Law
on Bidding)
36. Please indicate whether Lowest price must be used for some
or all procurement sectors.
No, applicable to some.
37. Please indicate whether Project life cycle cost must be used
for some or all procurement sectors.
No, applicable to some.
38. Please indicate whether Total cost of ownership must be used
for some or all procurement sectors.
No, applicable to some.
39. Does the regulatory framework explicitly recommend the
preference to use Most Economically Advantageous tender criteria
over lowest price criteria?
Yes, but only in some procurement procedures
.
40. According to the regulatory framework, should the procuring
entity provide a reference price in tender documents?
Yes, but only in some procurement procedures.
41. Does the regulatory framework include gender-specific
provisions that promote gender equality in public
procurement?
Yes (Article 14.3, Law on Bidding)
42. Does the regulatory framework outline a designated procedure
for awarding contracts based on a framework agreement where
contracts are awarded following a competitive two-stage
process?
No, only one stage is competitive (Article 65, Law on Bidding)
43. Which of the small and medium-sized enterprise preferential
treatment approaches are included in the regulatory
framework?
None (Article 6 Decree No. 63/2014/ND-CP, Article 14.2.c Bidding
Law)
44. Does the regulatory framework mandate communication of an
award decision?
Yes, to all bidders (-Articles 42.3, 43.2, 11.8(d), 11.8(dd), Law
on Bidding)
45. Is there a mandatory standstill period between the public
notice of award and contract signing to allow unsuccessful bidders
challenge the decision?
No.
46. Does the regulatory framework establish a timeframe within
which a procuring entity must process a payment once an invoice is
received?
Yes, for all contracts (Articles 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, Decree No.
63/2014/ND-CP)
47. Does the regulatory framework allow firms to claim interest
on late payments (or any similar contractual penalty) if the
government does not pay within the legally established
timeframe?
Yes (Article 94.1, Decree No. 63/2014/ND-CP)
48. How often does the government pay late payment interest (or
any similar contractual penalty) in the event that it fails to meet
the payment deadline?
Government often pays late payment interest.
49. Does the regulatory framework designate a specialized and
independent authority to receive procurement challenges filed by
firms on decisions issued by the procuring entities?
Yes, specialized (Articles 91 and 92, Law on Bidding)
50. Does an aggrieved bidder have the right to appeal decisions
on challenges made by the authority that receives procurement
challenges?
Yes (Articles 92.1(c), 92.2(c), 92.3(c), 92.4(c), Law on
Bidding)
51. Are there any legally binding time limits to resolve a
procurement challenge?
Yes, for all types of challenges (Article 92, Law on Bidding)
52. Is there a legal recourse for an aggrieved bidder
experiencing delays in either challenge or review processes?
Yes, for all types of challenges (Articles 91.1(b) and 91.2, Law on
Bidding)
Disclaimer: This Alert has been prepared and published for informational purposes only and is not offered, nor should be construed, as legal advice. For more information, please see the firm's full disclaimer.