Advertising is the use of means to introduce to the public products, goods, and services for profit purposes; products and services with no profit-making purposes; organizations and individuals trading in introduced products, goods, and services, except for current news; social policies; personal information. Therefore, commercial advertising to attract customers and promote business operation is an indispensable activity, and needs to be carried out periodically and continue to achieve the best effect. However, conducting commercial advertising needs to comply with the provisions of the law and is not prohibited. Regarding this issue, Hong Bang Law would like to consult as follows:

Legal basis

• Law on Advertising 2012;
• Commercial Law 2005;

Prohibited Commercial advertising 

Advertising is of great significance in bringing commercial opportunities to traders. This can lead to the risk of reducing or losing another trader’s trade opportunities. To ensure commercial order in trade promotion, to ensure the interests of the state, consumers, and traders, the law prohibits some commercial advertising activities.

Products, goods, and services banned from advertising

• Goods and services are banned from trading following the law.
• Cigarettes.
• Wine with an alcohol content of 15 degrees or more.
• Milk substitutes for breast milk for children under 24 months old, nutritional supplements for children under 6 months old; feeding bottles, and artificial nipples.
• Prescription drugs; over-the-counter drugs but recommended by the competent state agency to limit their use or use under the supervision of a physician.
• Types of products and goods of a sexual nature.
• Hunting guns and shotgun ammunition, sporting weapons and products and goods of a nature that incites violence.
• Other products, goods, and services banned from advertising shall be regulated by the Government when they arise in reality.

Prohibited commercial advertising activities

• Advertising goods and services that the state prohibits from doing business or from advertising such as alcohol with an alcohol content of 15 degrees or more, shotguns, weapons, …)
• Advertisements that reveal state secrets, prejudice national independence, sovereignty, security, and national defense.
• Advertising lacks aesthetics, contrary to the historical tradition, culture, morality, fine customs, and traditions of Vietnam.
• Advertising affects urban beauty, traffic order and safety, and social safety.
• Advertising adversely affects the sanctity of the National Flag, National Emblem, National Anthem, Party Flag, National Heroes, Cultural Celebrities, Party and State leaders.
• Ads that are ethnically discriminatory, racist, infringing on freedom of belief or religion, prejudice against gender, or people with disabilities.
• Ads that offend the prestige, honor, and dignity of organizations and individuals.
• Advertisements that use images, words, or letters of an individual without the individual’s consent, unless otherwise permitted by law.
• Incorrect or misleading advertisement about the business ability, the ability to provide products, goods, and services of organizations and individuals trading in products, goods and services; on quantity, quality, price, utility, design, packaging, trademark, origin, type, service method, the warranty period of registered or registered products, goods, and services to be announced.
• Advertise by using the method of direct comparison of prices, quality, and efficiency in using their products, goods, and services with prices, quality, and efficiency in using products and goods. services of the same type of other organizations or individuals.
• Ads that use the words “unique”, “unique”, “best”, “number one” or words with similar meanings without legal documents proving it according to regulations of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
• Ads with unfair competition content following the law on competition.
• Advertisements violate intellectual property laws.
• Advertising for children with thoughts, words, and actions contrary to morality, fine customs, and traditions; adversely affects the health, safety, or normal development of children.
• Forcing agencies, organizations, or individuals to advertise or receive advertisements against their will.
• Hang, place, paste, draw advertising products on electric poles, poles, traffic signal poles, and trees in public places.

Conditions for performing advertising activities

1. Advertisements about goods and service business activities must have a business registration certificate.
2. Advertisements for all kinds of products, goods, and services must have documents proving the standard and regulation conformity of products, goods, and services as prescribed by law.
3. An advertisement for a property that is required by law to have a certificate of ownership or right to use must have a certificate of ownership or right to use the property.
4. Advertising for special products, goods, and services must satisfy the following conditions:

• Advertisement of drugs permitted to advertise following the law on health; must have a valid circulation permit in Vietnam and a user manual approved by the Ministry of Health;
• Cosmetic advertising must have a cosmetic product announcement slip following the law on health;
• Advertisements for insecticidal and germicidal chemicals and preparations for household and medical use must have a certificate of circulation registration issued by the Ministry of Health;
• Advertising of milk and nutritional products for young children that are not part of breast milk substitutes is prohibited. The advertisement above must have a certificate of standards, a certificate of food hygiene, and safety for nutritional products. Domestic production; for imported nutritional products, there must be a certificate of product quality issued by a competent agency of the producing country and a circulation permit;
• Advertisements for food and food additives must have a certificate of registration of food quality and safety for food, food additives on the list of which must be registered for food quality, hygiene, and safety, or a receipt for the application. proclamation of standards by competent state agencies for foods and food additives on the list of which standards must be announced;
• Advertisements for medical examination and treatment services must have a certificate of eligibility for practice issued by the health sector following the law;
• Advertising medical equipment requires a circulation permit for domestically produced medical equipment or an import license for imported medical equipment;
• Advertisements for pesticides, plant protection drug ingredients, and plant protection supplies must have a certificate of registration of pesticides. Advertisements for beneficial organisms used in plant protection must have a phytosanitary license issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;
• Advertisements for veterinary drugs and veterinary supplies must have a product circulation permit and a summary of the product’s characteristics;
• Advertisements for fertilizers, biological products for cultivation, animal feeds, and biological products for livestock production must have a certificate of product quality or a written self-declaration of product quality.

5. The Government shall prescribe advertising conditions for other special products, goods, and services when they arise in reality.

Thus, it can be seen that the regulations on the conditions for commercial advertising activities of enterprises are very strict as well as restricting commercial activities in some fields as well as products, goods, and services. Conducting different commercial advertising will require different licensing procedures.

If you need more detailed advice and answers as well as how to access this service, please contact directly the Deputy Director of Sales: Lawyer Nhat Nam via hotline: 0912.35.65.75, 0912.35.53.53 or call the toll free legal consultation hotline 1900.6575 or send a service request via email: lienheluathongbang@gmail.com

Wishing you and your family good health, peace, and success!

Best regards!