Vietnam to Strictly Penalize Use of Absolute Terms in Advertising
Vietnam's Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism has issued new regulations prohibiting the use of absolute terms like 'first' and 'only' in advertising starting July 5, with violators facing fines of up to 20 million VND, requiring sellers to immediately review their store content.
What are the key facts?
- 1Effective Date: July 5, 2026
- 2Prohibited Terms: Absolute terms like 'first', 'only', 'best', 'top'
- 3Maximum Fine: 20 million VND
What happened?
Vietnam has issued Notification No. 12/2026/TT-BVHTTDL, prohibiting the use of absolute advertising terms indicating superiority or originality, such as 'first', 'only', 'best', 'top', starting July 5.
What does this mean for cross-border sellers?
Sellers operating in the Vietnamese market must immediately audit their store pages, advertising materials, and product descriptions to remove any potentially non-compliant absolute terms to avoid administrative penalties.