Updated: Making Sense of Vietnam’s Latest Data Protection and Governance Regime: The Law on Protection of Personal Data and the Law on Data

The Data Law is Vietnam’s first comprehensive framework for the governance of digital data (both personal and non-personal), and applies to all Vietnamese agencies, organizations and individuals, as well as foreign agencies, organizations and individuals either in Vietnam or directly participating or are related to digital data activities in Vietnam. The data law became effective in July 2025. Together, these two laws mark a significant legislative shift in how Vietnam approaches data regulation, addressing overlapping domains of data protection, data governance, and emerging technologies. This Updated Issue Brief analyzes the two laws, which together define a new, comprehensive regime, for data protection and data governance in Vietnam.