Circular No. 89/2008/TT-BVHTTDL guiding the implementation of Decree No. 92/2007/NĐ-CP dated June 1, 2007 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Tourism Law on travel business operations, branches, representative offices of foreign tourism enterprises in Vietnam, tour guiding, and tourism promotion.

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for implementing Decree No. 92/2007/NĐ-CP dated June 1, 2007 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Tourism Law on travel business operations, branches, and representative offices of foreign tourism enterprises in Vietnam, guiding tourism and promoting tourism.

guiding tourism and promoting tourism

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Pursuant to the Tourism Law No. 44/2005/QH11 dated June 14, 2005; Decree No. 92/2007/NĐ-CP dated June 1, 2007 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Tourism Law;

Article 1. Other types of artistic performances

Pursuant to Decision No. 63/2008/QĐ-TTg dated May 19, 2008 of the Prime Minister stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the National Administration of Tourism;

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism issues guidelines for implementing Decree No. 92/2007/NĐ-CP dated June 1, 2007 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Tourism Law on travel business operations, branches, and representative offices of foreign tourism enterprises in Vietnam, guiding tourism and promoting tourism as follows:

I. TRAVEL BUSINESS OPERATIONS

1. Documents and procedures for issuing international travel agency licenses shall be carried out in accordance with Article 48 of the Tourism Law. The application form for issuance, replacement, and reissuance of international travel agency licenses is specified in Appendix 1; the business plan for international travel agency operations is specified in Appendix 2; the international travel agency license format is specified in Appendix 3.

2. Reissuing international travel agency licenses

a) In cases where international travel agency licenses are lost, burned, or destroyed, enterprises must report to the police authority at the location of their main office and the National Administration of Tourism within seven days from the date of discovery of the loss, burning, or destruction of the documents.

Within thirty days from the date of reporting, enterprises must submit an application to the National Administration of Tourism for reissuance of the license accompanied by confirmation from the police authority regarding the report, except in cases where the license is lost but subsequently found before the deadline for submitting the reissuance application.

b) In cases where international travel agency licenses are torn or damaged, enterprises must submit an application for reissuance of the license accompanied by the original torn or damaged license to the National Administration of Tourism.

c) Within ten working days from the date of receipt of the reissuance application as specified in points a and b of this clause, the National Administration of Tourism will examine and reissue the license to the enterprise.

3. The person managing travel business operations as stipulated in Article 12 of Decree No. 92/2007/NĐ-CP dated June 1, 2007 is the general manager, deputy general manager of the travel enterprise, or the head of a unit under the travel enterprise specializing in travel business operations. The format of the declaration of work experience in the travel sector for the person managing travel business operations is specified in Appendix 4.

4. Domestic travel enterprises must notify the time of commencement of operations to the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism at the location of their main office within fifteen days from the start of business operations.

5. Reporting on the activities of travel enterprises

a) Prepare group customer files in accordance with Appendix 5.

b) Submit periodic six-monthly and annual reports on the results of travel business operations to the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism at the location of the main office and the National Administration of Tourism for international travel enterprises as specified in Appendix 6.

6. Travel enterprises with foreign investment

a) Travel enterprises with foreign investment may be established in the form of joint ventures between foreign service providers and Vietnamese partners, without restrictions on the proportion of foreign capital contribution.

b) Travel enterprises with foreign investment may provide services for bringing international tourists to Vietnam for tourism purposes and can only employ tour guides who are Vietnamese citizens with permanent residence in Vietnam.

c) Within fifteen days from the start of business operations, travel enterprises with foreign investment must notify the National Administration of Tourism along with the following documents:

- A certified copy of the investment certificate;

- Business plans for travel operations and programs for international tourists visiting Vietnam;

- Proof of the management personnel's work experience in travel business operations;

- Certified copies of international tour guide certificates and employment contracts for three tour guides;

- A certified copy of the deposit certificate for international travel business operations.

II. BRANCHES AND REPRESENTATIVE OFFICES OF FOREIGN TOURISM ENTERPRISES IN VIETNAM NUMBER: 16/2025/TT-BVHTTDL

1. Authorities responsible for issuing, reissuing, amending, supplementing, extending, and revoking licenses for establishing branches and representative offices of foreign tourism enterprises in Vietnam (hereinafter referred to as the licensing authorities):

a) The National Administration of Tourism is the authority responsible for issuing licenses for establishing branches of foreign tourism enterprises in Vietnam (hereinafter referred to as branches).

b) Departments of Culture, Sports and Tourism of provinces and centrally-administered cities are the authorities responsible for issuing licenses for establishing representative offices of foreign tourism enterprises in Vietnam (hereinafter referred to as representative offices) within their jurisdiction.

2. Responsibilities of the licensing authorities

a) Issuing, reissuing, amending, supplementing, extending, and revoking licenses for establishing branches and representative offices of foreign tourism enterprises in Vietnam in accordance with Decree No. 92/2007/NĐ-CP.

b) Examining the termination of operations of branches and representative offices in accordance with Decree No. 92/2007/NĐ-CP and the guidelines set forth in this Circular.

c) Collecting, managing, and using fees for issuing, reissuing, amending, supplementing, and extending licenses for establishing branches and representative offices in accordance with the guidance of the Ministry of Finance.

d) Fully implementing record-keeping systems for issuing, reissuing, amending, supplementing, extending, and revoking licenses for establishing branches and representative offices in compliance with legal regulations on record-keeping.

d) Chair and coordinate with competent state agencies to conduct inspections and supervision of the organizational and operational processes of branches and representative offices; identify and handle violations of branches and representative offices within their authority or propose competent authorities to handle such violations according to the law.

e) The Tourism Administration shall publicly disclose information about branches and representative offices on its website; implement the development of software for managing branches and representative offices and guide the use of management software, updating information about branches and representative offices to the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

g) The Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism shall update information on the issuance, reissuance, amendment, supplementation, extension, and revocation of licenses for establishing representative offices of foreign travel enterprises at the local level once a month according to the information management software prescribed in point e, Clause 2, Section II of this Circular and report to the Tourism Administration.

h) Other responsibilities as prescribed by law.

3. General conditions regarding the dossier for issuing, reissuing, amending, supplementing, and extending licenses for establishing branches and representative offices.

a) Documents issued or confirmed by foreign competent authorities for the branch and representative office dossier as stipulated in Decree No. 92/2007/ND-CP and guided in this Circular must be legalized according to Vietnamese law and translated into Vietnamese; translations and copies must be notarized according to Vietnamese law.

b) Copies of documents issued or confirmed by Vietnamese competent authorities for the branch and representative office dossier as stipulated in Decree No. 92/2007/ND-CP and guided in this Circular must be notarized according to Vietnamese law.

4. Dossier for requesting issuance, reissuance, amendment, supplementation, and extension of licenses for establishing branches and representative offices.

a) Application form for issuing a license to establish a branch or representative office according to the model prescribed in Appendix No. 7.

b) In cases where a foreign travel enterprise requests an extension, amendment, or supplementation of a license to establish a branch or representative office in Vietnam, it shall submit an application form according to the model prescribed in Appendix No. 8.

c) Other documents having equivalent legal value as prescribed in Clause 3, Article 22 of Decree No. 92/2007/ND-CP, including: confirmation documents on tax or financial obligations fulfilled in the most recent fiscal year issued by the competent authority where the foreign travel enterprise was established, or other documents certified by independent organizations with authority confirming the existence and operation of the foreign travel enterprise in the most recent fiscal year.

5. Sample and number of licenses for establishing branches and representative offices.

a) Sample of the license for establishing a branch or representative office as prescribed in Appendices No. 9a and 9b.

b) The number of the license for establishing a branch consists of the letters "CN" and the sequential code of the branch, which has four digits, from 0001 to 9999;

c) The number of the license for establishing a representative office consists of the letters "VP", the province code, and the sequential code of the representative office. The groups of numbers are separated by hyphens, wherein:

- The province code consists of two digits according to the regulations of the General Statistics Office in Appendix No. 10;

- The sequential code of the representative office consists of four digits, from 0001 to 9999;

d) The number of the license recorded on the license for establishing a branch or representative office remains unchanged when reissued, amended, supplemented, or extended.

6. Issuance of licenses for establishing branches and representative offices.

a) The license for establishing a branch or representative office shall be sent by the licensing authority to the head of the branch or representative office or the legally authorized representative of the foreign travel enterprise.

b) The licensing authority shall collect fees for issuing, reissuing, amending, supplementing, and extending licenses before issuing the license to the travel enterprise according to the guidance of the Ministry of Finance.

7. Cases where licenses for establishing branches and representative offices will not be issued.

The licensing authority for establishing branches and representative offices will not issue licenses for establishing branches and representative offices to foreign travel enterprises in the following cases:

a) The foreign travel enterprise does not meet the conditions prescribed in Clauses 1 and 2 of Article 21 of Decree No. 92/2007/ND-CP.

b) Submitting an invalid dossier and failing to supplement the dossier adequately according to the requirements of the competent licensing authority.

c) Other cases as prescribed by law.

8. A foreign travel enterprise whose license for establishing a branch or representative office has been revoked according to Clause 1 of Article 29 of Decree No. 92/2007/ND-CP may request reissuance of the license for establishing a branch or representative office two years after the date of the revocation decision.

9. Sample notification of the commencement of operations, changes in headquarters, changes in the heads of branches and representative offices as prescribed in Appendix No. 11; sample periodic activity reports of branches and representative offices of foreign travel enterprises in Vietnam as prescribed in Appendices No. 12 and 13; sample notification of termination (expected termination) as prescribed in Appendix No. 14.

10. Activities of branches.

Branches may represent the enterprise to carry out activities listed in the establishment license and consistent with Clause 1 of Article 27 of Decree No. 92/2007/ND-CP.

11. Activities of representative offices.

a) Perform liaison office functions.

b) Promote the construction of cooperation projects of foreign travel enterprises in Vietnam.

c) Study the market to promote opportunities for buying, supplying, and consuming tourism services of the enterprise they represent.

d) Monitor and urge the implementation of contracts signed with Vietnamese partners or related to the Vietnamese market of the foreign enterprise they represent.

đ) Other activities as prescribed by law.

III. TOUR GUIDING SERVICES

1. Conditions regarding the professional qualifications of tour guides.

a) For domestic tour guides specified in points b and c of Clause 3 of Article 32 of Decree No. 92/2007/ND-CP, the specific requirements are as follows:

- Persons holding a bachelor's degree or higher in tourism but not in the guiding specialization must have a one-month tour guiding vocational certificate issued by a competent training institution.

- Persons holding a high school or college degree in tourism but not specifically in tour guiding, or a bachelor's degree or higher in economics, social sciences, and humanities must have a two-month tour guiding vocational certificate issued by an authorized training institution;

- Persons holding a high school or college degree in another major, or a bachelor's degree or higher in natural sciences, engineering technology must have a three-month tour guiding vocational certificate issued by an authorized training institution;

b) For international tour guides as specified in point c, Clause 2, Article 33 of Decree No. 92/2007/NĐ-CP, it is detailed as follows:

- Persons holding a bachelor's degree or higher in tourism but not in the guiding specialization must have a one-month tour guiding vocational certificate issued by a competent training institution.

- Persons holding a bachelor's degree or higher in economics, social sciences must have a two-month tour guiding vocational certificate issued by an authorized training institution;

- Persons holding a bachelor's degree or higher in natural sciences, engineering technology must have a three-month tour guiding vocational certificate issued by an authorized training institution;

c) Those who have experience and knowledge in tour guiding but do not have the opportunity to attend the vocational training courses specified in points a and b of this clause will be issued a tour guiding vocational certificate after participating in an examination and meeting the requirements for tour guiding vocational skills organized by an authorized training institution;

d) The tour guiding vocational training program

The detailed tour guiding vocational training program is developed based on the framework tour guiding vocational training program issued by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, in accordance with the training time and target groups as prescribed;

đ) Training organization for tour guiding vocational training

- Training institutions that offer specialized travel agency and tour guiding programs must register with the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism to organize tour guiding vocational training courses, conduct examinations, and issue tour guiding vocational certificates. The registration dossier includes: a copy of the training permit issued by the competent authority in accordance with the law; the detailed tour guiding vocational training program; a list of lecturers involved in teaching tour guiding vocational skills; a letter registering for tour guiding vocational training;

- The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism will inspect the process of tour guiding vocational training, certification issuance of training institutions;

- After each training course, examination, and certification issuance, the training institutions are responsible for submitting reports on the results of training, examination, and certification issuance to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism;

e) The tour guiding vocational certificate is valid for two years from the date of issuance;

2. Foreign language proficiency requirements for international tour guides

a) Proof of meeting the foreign language proficiency level as stipulated in point c, Clause 3, Article 33 of Decree No. 92/2007/NĐ-CP includes the following types:

- TOEFL score of 500 or IELTS score of 5.5 or TOEIC score of 650 or higher, or equivalent certificates for other foreign languages;

- A certificate of passing the foreign language proficiency test issued by an authorized training institution;

b) Organization of foreign language proficiency testing and certification

- Higher education language training institutions must register with the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism to organize foreign language proficiency tests and issue certificates of achieving the required foreign language proficiency levels for international tour guides. The registration dossier includes: a copy of the training permit issued by the competent authority in accordance with the law; a test bank that meets the foreign language proficiency requirements for international tour guides issued by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism; a letter registering for organizing foreign language proficiency tests for international tour guides;

- Language training institutions qualified to organize foreign language proficiency tests and issue certificates of achieving the required foreign language proficiency levels for international tour guides are responsible for submitting reports on the results of these tests and certification issuance to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism within fifteen days from the date of issuing the certificate;

3. For tour guides in certain special markets, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will provide specific guidelines;

4. Periodic knowledge enhancement for tour guides

a) The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism develops the program and content for periodic knowledge enhancement for tour guides to update information on national and local policies for economic and social development, tourism products;

b) Provincial Departments of Culture, Sports and Tourism cooperate with training institutions specified in point đ, Clause 1, Section III of this Circular to organize periodic knowledge enhancement classes and issue certificates to tour guides;

c) The certificate of having attended a periodic knowledge enhancement class is valid for one year from the date of issuance;

d) The cost of organizing periodic knowledge enhancement classes is borne by the participants according to the guidance of the Ministry of Finance;

5. Issuance, renewal, and reissuance of tour guide cards

a) The application form for the issuance, renewal, and reissuance of tour guide cards is specified in Appendix 15;

b) Upon receiving a complete application for the issuance, renewal, or reissuance of a tour guide card, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism will review the application, enter data about the tour guide into the system according to the guidance on the website of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism;

- In cases where the conditions for issuance, renewal, or reissuance of the card are met, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism will issue a decision for issuance, renewal, or reissuance and report through the network to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism;

- In cases where the conditions for issuance, renewal, or reissuance of the card are not met, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism will respond in writing, clearly stating the reasons to the applicant;

c) The collection and payment of fees for the issuance, renewal, and reissuance of tour guide cards shall be carried out according to the guidance of the Ministry of Finance;

d) Each tour guide is assigned one card number. The tour guide card number consists of nine digits including the international tour guide code (1) or domestic tour guide code (2), followed by two digits representing the province code, and six remaining digits representing the sequence of the tour guide card. The card number is managed by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism and does not change in case of renewal or reissuance.

d) The international tour guide card model prescribed in Appendix No. 16; the domestic tour guide card model prescribed in Appendix No. 17.

6. Tour Guide

a) Tour guides must wear the tour guide certification paper while on duty.

b) Conditions for issuing the tour guide certification paper:

- Having Vietnamese nationality, residing in the locality or working at tourist areas, tourist sites;

- Having full capacity to act under civil law;

- Being in good health when practicing as a tour guide;

- Having attended training courses on tourism operations;

- Committing to strictly comply with regulations of tourist areas, tourist sites, and the tourism industry.

c) Training in tourism operations and issuing the tour guide certification paper

- The Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism shall cooperate with management agencies of tourist areas, tourist sites to organize training in tourism operations and issue tour guide certification papers for tour guides;

- The Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism shall be responsible for reporting to the National Administration of Tourism every six months on the situation regarding the issuance of tour guide certification papers.

IV. PROMOTION OF TOURISM

1. National Tourism Database

a) The national tourism database includes information and materials on tourism regulatory legal documents; lists of tourism resources, tourist areas, tourist sites; lists and addresses of tourism enterprises, accommodation facilities; schedules and locations of tourism events, festivals; lists of tourism investment projects; systems of tourism training institutions; market research results, statistical data on tourism, and related information.

b) The National Administration of Tourism shall organize the construction, updating, management, and regulation of the national tourism database that can be accessed and used free of charge and the national tourism database that can be accessed and used subject to conditions.

c) The Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism shall build the local tourism database; update and provide local tourism data to the National Administration of Tourism every six months.

2. Tourism Promotion Programs

a) Tourism promotion programs include tourism promotion activities developed for five-year and annual periods, consistent with the tourism development strategy and planning, aimed at promoting publicity, promotion, and introduction of Vietnam's country and people, enhancing awareness of tourism, promoting tourism development, and attracting both domestic and foreign tourists.

b) The national tourism promotion program shall be drafted by the National Administration of Tourism and submitted to the competent authority for approval.

c) Local tourism promotion programs shall be drafted by the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism and submitted to the provincial People's Committee for approval.

d) The National Administration of Tourism shall organize the selection of outstanding local and regional tourism events suitable for the tourism product development plan to include them in the national tourism promotion program.

3. Tourism Information Organization at International Border Gates

a) Tourism information at international border gates shall be organized in the form of information counters, electronic information boards, and bookstands placed in convenient locations to provide necessary information to tourists.

b) The National Administration of Tourism shall coordinate with relevant state agencies to organize appropriate forms of tourism information at international land, waterway, and air border gates; provide guidance and necessary information, publications to promote and publicize the image of national tourism.

4. Tourism Promotion and Advertising Products

a) Tourism promotion and advertising products include paintings, photographs, billboards, books, leaflets, brochures, maps, video discs, audio tapes, banners, flags, and souvenirs produced and distributed to promote and advertise Vietnamese tourism.

The content of tourism promotion and advertising products must be consistent with the published national tourism database and comply with the provisions of specialized laws on advertising and publications.

b) Tourism promotion and advertising products must use the common title and logo prescribed by the National Administration of Tourism.

5. National Tourism Year

a) The National Tourism Year is a comprehensive tourism-cultural event comprising tourism activities organized in many localities nationwide, aiming to promote and introduce new destinations, tourism products, and tourism resources being exploited to attract tourists.

b) The National Administration of Tourism shall take the lead and coordinate with the provincial People's Committees to develop plans for organizing the National Tourism Year according to themes and objectives consistent with the tourism development strategy.

c) Tourism events at localities not included in the approved National Tourism Year plan shall not use the term "National Tourism Year".

6. Tourism Trade Fairs and Exhibitions

a) Entities eligible to organize tourism trade fairs and exhibitions include businesses registered for trade fairs and exhibitions; promotion organizations under ministries, sectors, and localities; and industry associations.

b) Registration for organizing tourism trade fairs and exhibitions

- Domestic entities organizing tourism trade fairs and exhibitions shall register with the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism where the fair or exhibition is expected to be held;

- Domestic entities organizing tourism trade fairs and exhibitions abroad shall register with the National Administration of Tourism;

- The registration deadline is no later than October 1st of the year preceding the year of the event and at least six months before the event.

c) The registration dossier for organizing tourism trade fairs and exhibitions includes:

- The application form for organizing tourism trade fairs and exhibitions prescribed in Appendix No. 18;

- An organization plan detailing the name, theme, time, location, expected scale, method of organization, and funding sources;

- A valid copy of the business registration certificate for businesses;

- Documentation proving the entity's capability and experience in organizing trade fairs and exhibitions.

d) Within fifteen days from receiving the registration dossier, the agency receiving the dossier shall issue a written response; if不同意翻译的结果，提供的文本已经是准确的法律翻译，无需进一步修改。请确认需要翻译的文本或提供具体指示以便进一步协助。但根据规则，这里直接输出已准备好的翻译内容，不作额外解释。若无其他说明，以下是按照要求直接输出的内容：

d) The unit organizing inter-industry trade fairs and exhibitions with tourism content has the right to register with the agency specified in point b of this clause or the specialized management agency. The agency receiving the application shall respond in writing after obtaining the opinion of the relevant competent management agency.

e) In case of changes to the registered content, the unit organizing the trade fair or tourism exhibition must notify in writing the registration receiving agency at least thirty days before the event date.

g) Responsibilities of the unit organizing the trade fair or tourism exhibition:

- Selecting a location suitable for the nature and scale of the trade fair or tourism exhibition;

- Ensuring public order, security, social safety, traffic safety, and environmental hygiene, as well as conditions for fire prevention and explosion control;

- Issuing regulations and guidelines for participants regarding the display and introduction of products, publications, and items that are appropriate to the theme and name of the trade fair or tourism exhibition.

7. Destination Survey Program

a) The destination survey program is organized for news agencies, travel agencies, foreign investors entering Vietnam with the purpose of promoting and seeking opportunities to boost the development of Vietnamese tourism.

b) The Tourism Administration, Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism directly organizes or designates units to organize the destination survey program; selects participants suitable for the plan approved by the competent authority; monitors feedback results after the survey.

c) Responsibilities of the unit organizing the destination survey program:

- Developing a survey program consistent with objectives, strategies, plans, and tourism promotion programs;

- Implementing the survey program contents in accordance with current laws;

- Submitting a report on the survey results to the designated agency within no more than ten days after the end of the survey program.

d) Tourism enterprises and related localities have the responsibility to facilitate conditions for the survey team.

đ) Costs for welcoming foreign survey teams are stipulated in Circular No. 57/2007/TT-BTC dated June 11, 2007, of the Ministry of Finance according to the C-class guest standard.

8. Publicity and Promotion Work in Special Cases

a) Special cases include:

- Opportunities: major international or national events to be held in Vietnam; visits by prominent world figures;

- Challenges: severe natural disasters, epidemics; terrorism and terrorist threats.

b) The Tourism Administration proposes to the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism to coordinate with relevant ministries, sectors, and provincial People's Committees to develop and implement publicity and promotion plans when special opportunities or challenges arise, aiming to maximize opportunities or minimize negative impacts on Vietnamese tourism.

V. IMPLEMENTATION

1. Effective date

This Circular takes effect fifteen days after its publication in the Official Gazette. Previous provisions contrary to this Circular are abolished.

2. Transitional Provisions

a) For businesses that had registered domestic tour operations, obtained international tour operation licenses, and established branches or representative offices of foreign tourism enterprises in Vietnam before the effective date of this Circular shall continue to operate but must supplement business conditions, branch establishment, representative office establishment procedures, and apply for license renewal within six months from the effective date of this Circular.

b) For individuals holding valid tour guide certificates before the effective date of this Circular shall continue to operate but must apply for certificate renewal within twelve months from the effective date of this Circular.

c) Individuals holding temporary tour guide certificates before the effective date of this Circular must apply for new tour guide certificates within three months from the effective date of this Circular.

d) Three months after the effective date of this Circular, training institutions previously authorized by the Tourism Administration to provide language training and issue tourism language certificates will cease to offer such training and certification; existing certificates issued by these institutions within twelve months will still be valid for obtaining international tour guide certificates.

3. The Tourism Administration guides and supervises the implementation of this Circular.

4. During implementation, if there are difficulties, units should promptly report to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism for guidance and amendment research./.