The draft would let strategic projects operate for up to 70 years, with corporate income tax exemptions for up to four years and subsequent reductions of up to 50% for no more than nine years. A parliamentary committee says the incentives are very high and their benefits have not been assessed.
Vietnam’s government submitted a draft tourism resolution to the National Assembly on 7 November, proposing tax breaks, land-rent relief and other support for qualifying projects. The measures need parliamentary approval; they are not current investor entitlements. VnExpress International said the draft also covers business support, night-time activities, worker training and infrastructure.
Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Lam Thi Phuong Thanh said the proposals aim to remove obstacles, attract investment and make tourism a key sector supporting the country’s double-digit growth target. Vietnam’s standard corporate income tax rate is 20%.
The proposed incentives would be concentrated in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang, as well as tourism centers, national tourism areas and areas with national tourism potential. Projects would qualify by investment, jobs and type.
| Tier | Total investment | Tourism components | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| High-quality | VND3 trillion | VND1.5 trillion | 1,000 |
| Catalyst | VND10 trillion | VND5 trillion | 1,500 |
| Strategic | VND30 trillion | VND15 trillion | 2,000 |
High-quality projects could receive infrastructure support inside and outside their sites and priority in promotion. Domestic investors in that tier could also rent unused state-owned houses and land.
For catalyst projects, a five-year pilot would offer a corporate income tax rate as low as 10% and land-rent exemptions or reductions set by the government. Strategic projects would receive the operating terms and corporate income tax relief described above.
Thanh said the incentives would apply only to tourism activities. Casino, prize-winning electronic gaming, betting and real-estate components would be excluded from all three tiers.
A separate pilot would cut land rent by up to 30% for landscaped areas, green space, water surfaces and shared spaces not directly used for business at resort hotels rated four stars or above. To qualify, resorts would have to be in tourism centers or national tourism areas and have gross building density below 25%.
Some large performing arts complexes, concert halls, festival streets, integrated entertainment zones and night-time activities could operate around the clock under a pilot lasting up to five years. They could use shortened procedures and obtain a one-time license for large international arts programs and events held regularly, instead of reapplying for each edition.
The draft also proposes support for new tourism air routes and for travel firms and accommodation providers that sign long-term contracts to buy local specialties certified under the One Commune One Product program. State funding would support training for high-quality tourism workers in management, foreign languages, vocational skills, digital transformation, digital content creation and innovation, as well as local workers in community tourism areas. Budget funding would prioritize essential infrastructure and multimodal transport links from international gateways to growth poles, key tourism centers and national tourism areas. The state would also support national tourism promotion and help localities develop distinctive products and community tourism in ethnic minority, mountainous, border, island and disadvantaged areas.
Nguyen Dac Vinh, chairman of the National Assembly’s Committee for Culture and Society, said the committee supported targeted policies for projects that can spread tourism growth. But it considered the proposed incentives for strategic catalyst projects very high without an assessment of their benefits and asked for careful evaluation. It also sought an explanation of the capital thresholds, the tourism share and whether the classification criteria were workable.
The committee called for the exclusions to remain in place, support to be tied to project results to prevent the policy being used to develop businesses outside priority sectors, and domestic tourism businesses to receive priority. For community tourism, it sought clear conditions for residents to participate in management and services and share benefits, with support linked to livelihoods, cultural preservation, indigenous knowledge and environmental protection.
The National Assembly is expected to vote on the resolution on 21 November.
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