The Vietnam Bidding Law of 2023, effective from January 1, 2024, signifies an important step forward in reforming institutional frameworks and managing bidding activities in Vietnam.
1. The Vietnam Bidding Law of 2023, effective from January 1, 2024, signifies an
important step forward in reforming institutional frameworks and managing bidding
activities in Vietnam. This law not only broadens its application scope and refines
regulations on prohibited behaviors in bidding but also introduces several new
elements aimed at enhancing efficiency, transparency, and fairness in bidding
transactions.
Brief summary of 9 notable amendments in the 2023
Vietnam Bidding Law.
1. Expanded Scope of Application in Vietnam Bidding Law: The new law
broadens its scope, including additional subjects and fields to ensure that all bidding
activities occur under a unified and transparent legal framework.
2. Specific Regulations on Prohibited Behaviors: The new Vietnam Bidding Law
updates and details a list of behaviors banned during the bidding process to prevent
fraud, corruption, and enhance fairness and transparency.
Examples include bid rigging:
Arranging, agreeing, coercing one or more parties to prepare or
withdraw bid documents for a party to win the bid;
Arranging agreements to refuse to provide goods or services, not sign
subcontracting contracts, or conduct other forms of agreements to limit
competition for a party to win the bid;
Contractors or investors with capability and experience who participate
in bidding and meet the tender document requirements but intentionally
do not provide documents to prove capability and experience when
requested by the tenderer to clarify the bid documents or when asked to
compare documents, facilitating a party to win the bid.
Example of bid obstruction:
Destroying, deceiving, altering, concealing evidence, or falsely
reporting; threatening or suggesting to any party to prevent the
clarification of acts of giving, receiving, brokering bribes, fraud, or
collusion with competent, authoritative supervision, inspection, audit,
and auditing agencies;
Obstructing the competent person, project owner, tenderer, contractor,
investor in selecting contractors, investors;
Obstructing the competent authority’s supervision, inspection,
auditing, and auditing activities in bidding;
2. Intentionally complaining, denouncing, and proposing falsehoods to
obstruct bidding activities;
Engaging in illegal acts regarding cybersecurity to interfere with or
obstruct online bidding.
3. New Regulations on Bid Cancellation: The law introduces new regulations on
bid cancellation, clarifying cases and necessary procedures to cancel a bid package,
protecting both buyers and sellers’ interests.
4. Direct Bid Appointment: The new law clarifies cases where direct bid
appointment is allowed, reducing the misuse of direct appointment without
competitive bidding.
5. Update on Competitive Bidding Packages: The Vietnam bidding law improves
regulations on competitive bidding packages to enhance transparency and fairness in
contractor selection.
6. Amendments to Bid Pricing Regulations: These amendments aim to enhance
accuracy and fairness in determining bid prices through clear and objective criteria.
7. New Regulations on Selecting Healthcare Service Providers: This new point
facilitates the fair and transparent selection of healthcare service providers, thereby
improving the quality of healthcare services.
8. Strengthened Inspection, Supervision, and Bidding Control: The Vietnam
bidding law strengthens measures for inspecting, supervising, and controlling
bidding activities to ensure legal compliance and prevent fraud.
9. Development and Application of Technology in Bidding: The Vietnam bidding
law encourages the development and application of technology in bidding processes,
from tender advertising, submitting documents, to evaluating and selecting
contractors, to enhance efficiency and transparency.
In summary, the 2023 Vietnam Bidding Law marks a significant turn in improving
Vietnam’s bidding environment through the introduction of new regulations aimed
at increasing fairness, transparency, and efficiency.
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