Vietnam
Socialist Republic of Viet Nam
- Online casinoProhibited
- Online pokerProhibited
- Online sports bettingProhibited
- Horse race bettingPre-regulation
- Land-based (reference)Regulated
- Regulator
- Ministry of Finance
- Headline tax
- Not yet verified
- Licence required
- Yes
- Last verified
- 5 Aug 2026
Summary
Vietnam permits gambling in narrow, heavily conditioned slices and criminalises the rest. Decree No. 03/2017/ND-CP, effective 15 March 2017, licenses land-based casinos at approved integrated resort projects, historically for foreign passport holders. Decree No. 06/2017/ND-CP, effective 31 March 2017, permits betting on horse races, greyhound races and FIFA-recognised international football, with bettors aged 21 or over, a minimum stake of VND 10,000, a daily cap of VND 1 million, and charter capital of VND 1 trillion for football and horse racing operators. The important gap is that no international football betting licence has been awarded, and the Ministry of Finance is still drafting the decree that would replace the 2017 framework. The other important development is Resolution No. 8/2025/NQ-CP of 26 November 2025, which continues the Phu Quoc pilot for qualifying Vietnamese citizens and opens five-year pilots at Ho Tram and Van Don. There is no online casino or online sportsbook licence, and online-only operation is not permitted.
Key facts
- Regulator
- Ministry of Finance (MOF)
- Regulator type
- Government ministry
- Headline tax
- Not yet verified
- Licence required
- Yes
- Minimum age
- 21+
- Tax base
- No current gambling tax rate is recorded because none was verified at review. The Ministry of Finance draft decree replacing Decree 06/2017 proposes that the international football betting operator contribute at least 10 per cent of net betting revenue to the state budget in addition to ordinary taxes, but that is a proposal, not a rate in force. Casino entry fees under the Vietnamese citizen pilot are VND 1 million for 24 consecutive hours or VND 25 million per month, with a proposal to raise them to VND 2.5 million and VND 50 million.
- Capital
- Hanoi
- Currency
- VND
- Official languages
- Vietnamese
Licensing
- Licence required
- Yes
- Application window
- Not yet verified
- Local establishment required
- Yes
- Local server required
- Not yet verified
- Barriers to entry
- The capital thresholds are the gate: VND 1 trillion of charter capital for football or horse race betting and VND 300 billion for greyhound betting, plus racecourse or betting infrastructure, technology, internal control, anti-money laundering and responsible gaming systems. Beyond that, the international football betting licence contemplated since 2017 had still not been awarded at review, and the replacement decree would cap foreign ownership at 49 per cent. There is no online-only route.
Licence types
Casino business licence (Decree No. 03/2017/ND-CP)
- Scope
- Land-based casino operation at an approved integrated resort project.
Betting business licence (Decree No. 06/2017/ND-CP)
- Scope
- Betting on horse races, greyhound races and international football matches recognised by FIFA. Online-only operation is not permitted.
- Term
- International football betting was framed as a five-year trial
Taxation
- Headline GGR tax
- Not yet verified
- Effective date
- Not yet verified
- Tax base
- No current gambling tax rate is recorded because none was verified at review. The Ministry of Finance draft decree replacing Decree 06/2017 proposes that the international football betting operator contribute at least 10 per cent of net betting revenue to the state budget in addition to ordinary taxes, but that is a proposal, not a rate in force. Casino entry fees under the Vietnamese citizen pilot are VND 1 million for 24 consecutive hours or VND 25 million per month, with a proposal to raise them to VND 2.5 million and VND 50 million.
Compliance
- Minimum age
- 21+
- National self-exclusion
- Not yet verified
- KYC requirements
- Vietnamese citizens admitted under the casino pilot must be at least 21, have full civil capacity and financial capability, buy an entry ticket, and show a monthly income of at least VND 10 million or fall in the third personal income tax bracket or higher. Bettors under Decree 06/2017 must be at least 21.
- Stake limits
- Decree 06/2017/ND-CP sets a minimum bet of VND 10,000 and a maximum of VND 1 million per person per day. The Ministry of Finance draft replacement proposes a daily cap of VND 10 million per player.
Enforcement
- ISP blocking
- Not yet verified
- DNS blocking
- Not yet verified
- Payment blocking
- Not yet verified
- App store takedowns
- Not yet verified
- Operator liability
- Gambling and organising gambling are criminal offences in Vietnam. Specific Penal Code article numbers, stake thresholds and penalty ranges were not verified against a readable official text at review and are therefore not asserted here.
Outlook
Two threads. First, the replacement betting decree: the Ministry of Finance draft would license one international football betting operator for a five-year pilot with foreign ownership capped at 49 per cent and a minimum 10 per cent of net betting revenue to the state. Whether it is adopted, and whether anyone bids, will decide if Vietnam ever has a regulated sports betting market. Second, the citizen pilot: three properties are now inside it and the government is reviewing entry fees, so the direction of travel on domestic access is expansionary but incremental. Neither thread touches online supply.
Frequently asked questions
- Can Vietnamese citizens gamble in Vietnam?
- Only at pilot casinos, and only if they qualify. Resolution No. 8/2025/NQ-CP of 26 November 2025 covers Phu Quoc, Ho Tram and Van Don. Players must be at least 21, have full civil capacity, buy an entry ticket, and show monthly income of at least VND 10 million or the third personal income tax bracket or higher.
- Is online sports betting legal in Vietnam?
- No. Decree 06/2017/ND-CP permits licensed betting on horse racing, greyhound racing and international football, but online-only operation is not permitted and no international football betting licence had been awarded at review.
Sources
- Government permits qualified Vietnamese nationals to gamble at three casinos
Vietnam Government Portal (baochinhphu.vn), Government of Viet Nam
Tier 1Accessed 5 Aug 2026 - New Developments in Vietnam Casino Policies for Local Gamblers
Tilleke & Gibbins
Tier 3Accessed 5 Aug 2026 - Vietnam Horse Race Betting: Navigating the Regulatory Track from Licensing to Implementation
Duane Morris Vietnam
Tier 3Accessed 5 Aug 2026Published 24 Jun 2026 - Vietnam eyes 5-year pilot for international football betting
The Investor (VAFIE)
Tier 4Accessed 5 Aug 2026Published 27 Sept 2025 - Sports betting allowed in Vietnam (Decree 06/2017/ND-CP)
VietnamNet
Contemporaneous reporting of Decree 06/2017/ND-CP, used for the age, stake limits, capital thresholds and effective date. The decree text itself was not read in an official Vietnamese or English version at review; no article number is asserted from this source.
Tier 4Accessed 5 Aug 2026