Vanuatu is not a party to the World Trade organization (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) nor does it have observer status.

Pursuant to Art. 16 of the Vanuatu Foreign Investment Promotion Act No. 25 of 2019, a foreign investor may undertake any investment activity in Vanuatu unless the activity is classified as a prohibited or reserved activity. However, none of the sectors included is relevant for digital trade.

Art. 45.9 of the Foreign Investment Act No. 25 of 2019 stipulates that foreign investors must establish a joint partnership with a citizen of Vanuatu if their business activities are expanded more than three times through variations.

According to Art. 83(5) of the Companies Act, as amended in December 2018, requires companies to ensure that at least one director must be a natural person who ordinarily resides in Vanuatu.

Vietnam has not signed the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts.

Vietnam has adopted national legislation based on or influenced by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Electronic Commerce.

Vietnam has adopted national legislation based on or influenced by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Electronic Signatures.

In 2015, the State Bank of Vietnam issued Circular 39/2014/TT-NHNN to regulate payments via intermediaries, and the Circular was then replaced by Circular 23/2019/TT-NHNN in 2019. E-payments made via intermediaries such as e-wallets are regulated under this Circular. According to the Circular, owners of e-wallets must link the wallet to a bank account created in Vietnam or via branches of foreign banks in Vietnam in order to make payments in Vietnam.

It is reported that the de minimis threshold, that is the minimum value of goods below which customs do not charge duties, is USD 43, below the 200 USD threshold recommended by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

In February 2020, the Vietnamese government issued Decree No. 15/2020/ND-CP to regulate administrative violations in several sectors including the telecommunications sector, IT and electronic transactions. Art. 44.1.(d) of the Decree regulates penalties for electronic newspapers, general websites or web portals, and social networks for not using the Vietnamese national domain name ".vn" and not storing information in the server system with an IP address in Vietnam. In addition, according to Art. 45.3.(d) of the Decree, these companies shall be fined if they do not use primary domain name servers (DNS) using the Vietnamese national domain name ".vn".

Art. 25.3 of the Law on Cybersecurity stipulates that certain foreign enterprises must establish a branch or a representative office in Vietnam. This obligation extends to foreign enterprises that provide services via telecommunications networks, the Internet, and value‑added services in cyberspace within Vietnam, and that collect, utilise, analyse, or process personal data, data concerning user relationships, and data generated by users in Vietnam. A comparable requirement previously appeared in Art. 26.3 of the earlier Law on Cybersecurity.

The Law on Protection of Consumer Rights provides a comprehensive framework for consumer protection that also applies to online transactions.

In July 2012, the Vietnamese Ministry of Information and Communications introduced Circular No.11/2012/TT-BTTTT, which amended the list of prohibited imported IT products, with some exceptions. This was further extended and detailed by Circular 31/2015/TT-BTTTT, effective from December 15, 2015. This extension included additional guidelines for implementing the ban. Subsequently, on October 15, 2018, following Decree 69/2018/ND-CP, the Vietnamese Ministry of Information and Communications issued Circular No. 11/2018/TT-BTTTT, providing a comprehensive list of banned imported IT products. This new circular replaced Annex 1 of Circular 31/2015/TT-BTTTT and prohibited the import of the following items:
- HS8443: Printing machinery used for printing using plates, cylinders, and other printing components, excluding certain machines.
- HS8470: Calculating machines, pocket-size data recording and reproducing machines with calculating functions, and similar machines, excluding specific categories.
- HS8471: Automatic data processing machines, magnetic or optical readers, machines for transcribing data, and machines for processing data.
- HS8517: Telephone sets, wireless communication apparatus, and other transmission or reception devices, excluding specific categories.
- HS8518: Microphones, loudspeakers, headphones, amplifiers, and related devices.
- HS8525: Transmission apparatus for radio and television, as well as radar and radio remote control apparatus.
- HS8526: Radar apparatus, radio navigational aid apparatus, and radio remote control apparatus.
- HS8527: Reception apparatus for radio and broadcasting, with or without sound recording apparatus.
- HS8528: Reception apparatus for television and related devices.
- HS8534: Printed circuits.
- HS8540: Thermionic, cold cathode, or photocathode valves and tubes, including cathode-ray television picture tubes.
- HS8544: Insulated wires, cables, and other electric conductors, including optical fibre cables.

In November 2013, the Government of Vietnam issued Decree No. 187/2013/ND-CP on the implementation of Commercial Law regarding international trade in goods and activities of international agents relating to buying, selling, outsourcing, and transiting of goods. The Decree detailed a list of products to be banned from importation or to be required with an import license. Annex 2 of Decree 187/2013/ND-CP listed goods that require an import license. These include (i) Goods that need import control according to the provisions of international treaties to which Vietnam is a member; (ii) Radio transmitting and receiving equipment with a frequency band from 9 KHz to 400 GHz, with a capacity of 60 mW or more. In May 2018, the Government of Vietnam issued Decree No. 69/2018/ND-CP on Detailed provisions on a number of articles of the Commercial Law. The Decree replaced Decree No. 187. However, the list of import licensing requirements is reallocated to Annex 3 of the Decree 69/2018/ND-CP.

Vietnam's Law on Network Information Security (Law 86/2015/QH13), effective from July 1, 2016, places restrictions and conditions on entities involved in the import, export, and trade of network information security products with encryption capabilities. This law requires importers to navigate a complex process for obtaining import permits involving licenses, certificates of conformity, product specifications, commercial invoices, and contracts.

Decree No.108/2016/ND-CP further outlines the conditions for trading network information security products and services in accordance with Law No. 86/2015/QH13. Art. 4.2 designates the Vietnamese Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) to compile a list of network information security products requiring import licenses. Following the issuance of the decree, MIC introduced Circular No.13/2018/TT-BTTTT, which details the list of network information security products necessitating import licenses and outlines the associated procedures and required documentation. The specific network information security products subject to import licensing include (i) HS847130 (portable digital automatic data processing machines); (ii) HS847141 (automatic data processing machines and units); (iii) HS847149 (digital automatic data processing machines and units)