Since 1 July 2025, Vietnam's local government has had two tiers instead of three: 34 provinces and centrally run cities at the top, and communes, wards and special zones underneath, with the district level abolished. Tasks that districts used to handle were moved either down to communes or up to provincial departments. Documents issued under the old structure generally stay valid, but many offices, names and addresses changed at once.
For foreigners and foreign companies, the reform shows up in everyday ways: a new address format on contracts and invoices, a different office receiving a file, a court with a new name, a province you knew by one name now part of a larger one. This article explains the new layout, how responsibilities were redistributed in general terms, and how to deal with paperwork that still refers to the old structure. Residence and immigration procedures are outside its scope.
From three tiers to two
Until mid-2025 Vietnam had sixty-three provincial-level units, several hundred districts, towns and provincial cities, and around ten thousand communes, wards and townships. Each tier had its own People's Council and People's Committee. The reform merged provinces into 34 units, comprising 28 provinces and six centrally run cities, abolished the district tier, and consolidated communes into a much smaller number of larger units.
The six centrally run cities are Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hai Phong, Da Nang, Can Tho and Hue. Many former provinces were combined with neighbours; for example, Ho Chi Minh City absorbed Binh Duong and Ba Ria - Vung Tau, which means an industrial park address that used to be in Binh Duong is now in Ho Chi Minh City. A number of island districts became special zones, a commune-level unit with arrangements suited to their location.
The stated goals were to streamline the state, cut administrative layers and bring services closer to residents. For outsiders, the most important principle is that the legal relationships created before the change continue: companies did not need to re-register simply because their province merged, and licences did not lapse because the issuing office was renamed. What changed is who you deal with next time.
Who does what now, in broad terms
The allocation of tasks is set by laws, decrees and decisions issued around the reform, and some details continued to be adjusted afterwards. The table gives the general pattern; confirm the competent office for any specific procedure.
| Tier | Bodies | Typical responsibilities |
|---|---|---|
| Province or centrally run city | People's Council, People's Committee, specialised departments | Business registration, investment matters, land administration at the higher level, labour and many licensing tasks, inspections |
| Commune, ward or special zone | People's Council, People's Committee, public administrative service point | Residence-related certifications, civil status records, many land and construction tasks formerly at district level, grassroots mediation |
| Former district | No longer exists as a tier of government | Tasks moved up to provincial departments or down to communes and wards |
Courts and procuracies were reorganised in parallel. District courts were replaced by regional courts, whose areas are defined separately from commune boundaries. Tax administration and other vertically organised agencies also restructured their local offices, so the office handling your tax file may have changed even if your address did not.
What it means for your address and records
Every Vietnamese address previously had four parts: house number and street, commune or ward, district, and province. Now it has three: street address, commune or ward, and province or city. Ward names and boundaries also changed in many places, so an address may have a new ward name as well as a new province.
In general, documents issued before the reform with old addresses remain legally valid. Companies are not required to rush to amend their registration solely because the address format changed, although many update their records at the next convenient opportunity, and some authorities have provided simplified procedures for updating. Individuals' identity records were updated through the national population database, and citizens did not have to apply for new cards just because of the change.
Practical friction comes from mismatches. A bank may hold one address, an invoice another and a contract a third. Where it matters, for example in a dispute, a tender or an enforcement request, it helps to keep a short note or official confirmation linking the old address to the new one. Local authorities can usually provide confirmation of the administrative unit's new name.
Contracts and dispute clauses after the reform
Party descriptions still identify the parties. A contract describing a company by its old address remains binding. The company's identity is fixed by its registration number, not by the address format.
Venue clauses may need interpretation. A clause choosing the court of a particular district now points to a court that no longer exists. Courts determine the competent court under current rules; to avoid argument, consider amending template contracts to refer to the competent court of Vietnam or to arbitration.
Notices clauses deserve attention. If a contract requires notices to be sent to a specific address, an outdated address can create disputes about whether notice was validly given. Send a written update of your address to counterparties, and ask them to do the same.
Property descriptions are not invalidated. Land use right certificates and leases describing land by former district names remain valid. When transferring or mortgaging, the authority will reconcile the description with the current administrative unit.
Licences carry over. Business and sector licences issued by a former district office remain valid until their stated expiry, and amendments go to the office now competent.
Dealing with the new offices
Communes and wards now handle a wider range of tasks, often through public administrative service points where files are received and results returned. Provincial departments took over more technical and higher-value matters. In the first months after the change, staff and procedures were still settling, and many residents reported that the same procedure was processed differently from one ward to another.
The best approach is to confirm before you go. Look up the procedure on the national public service portal or the province's portal, which list the competent office, required documents and processing channel, and where possible submit online. If you must attend in person, bring originals and copies, and ask for a written receipt of submission listing the documents handed over. Where an office says it no longer handles a matter, ask politely which office does and note the name of the person you spoke with.
Patience pays. A reorganisation of this scale takes time to absorb, and officials themselves were applying new allocations of authority. Polite persistence, written requests and complete files work far better than frustration at the counter.
Local rules in merged provinces
When two or three provinces merge, each brings its own set of local documents: land price tables, decisions on local fees and charges within national frameworks, planning documents, and administrative procedures adopted by its People's Committee. The new province cannot rewrite all of them on day one. In the transitional period, documents of a former province generally continue to apply within its former territory until the merged province issues replacements.
That has practical consequences. Two factories in the same new province may, for a time, be subject to different local fee decisions because they sit in what used to be different provinces. A land valuation in one part of a merged province may follow a different table from another part. Investment incentives granted under one former province's arrangements continue under their terms, but new applications may be handled under harmonised rules once they are issued.
If your business depends on local documents, ask the provincial department which version applies to your site, and watch for the merged province's new decisions, which will gradually replace the inherited ones. Keep copies of the documents you relied on, with dates, in case a later change raises a question about the period before harmonisation.
Questions to ask when an office seems unsure
If you run into confusion about who is competent after the reform, these questions usually clarify things quickly.
- Which document now assigns this procedure, and to which tier?
- Is the procedure handled at the commune or ward point, at a provincial department, or by a public service centre on its behalf?
- Can the file be submitted online, and if so, which portal is correct for this province?
- Will papers issued by the former district office be accepted as they are, or do they need confirmation?
- Is there a transitional rule for files that were submitted before 1 July 2025 and are still pending?
- If the matter involves land or a building, has the area's land price table or planning document been reissued by the merged province?
Write the answers down with the date. If a later office gives a different answer, a note of earlier guidance helps you resolve the discrepancy without starting again.
It is also worth checking whether your matter was caught mid-way by the change. Files submitted to a district office before 1 July 2025 were transferred to the office that inherited the task, and some were delayed in the handover. If you have been waiting on a file since before the reform, ask the new office whether it has received the transferred papers and what reference it uses for them, rather than assuming the old submission is still moving.
When you need a Vietnamese lawyer
Most address and office changes can be handled without a lawyer. Bring one in when the reorganisation touches something with legal consequences: a dispute in which the competent court is unclear, a land transaction where the property description does not match current records, a licence amendment where two offices each say the other is responsible, or a contract notice that may have been sent to an address that no longer exists.
A licensed lawyer familiar with the province can tell you which transitional rules apply and how local offices are interpreting them, which often differs from what the national texts suggest at first sight. If you would like an initial view before engaging anyone, you can ask a lawyer on AI Co Van to outline the issues, then check the current rules with the competent authority or a licensed lawyer.
Before the meeting, gather the documents that show the old and new position: your registration certificate, the relevant contract or certificate, any receipt from the office you visited, and the written answers you were given. A lawyer can usually resolve a jurisdiction knot much faster with that file in hand than from a verbal description.
Frequently asked questions
How many provinces does Vietnam have now?
Since 1 July 2025 Vietnam has 34 provincial-level units: 28 provinces and six centrally run cities, namely Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hai Phong, Da Nang, Can Tho and Hue. Many former provinces were merged with neighbours to reach this number.
Does Vietnam still have districts?
No. The district level of local government was abolished from 1 July 2025. Local government now has two tiers: provinces and centrally run cities, and communes, wards and special zones. Tasks formerly handled by districts moved to one of those two tiers.
Are documents with old addresses still valid in Vietnam?
Generally yes. Licences, certificates and contracts issued before the reform remain valid despite old address formats. Companies and individuals may update records at a convenient time, and some authorities offer simplified procedures, but there is usually no need to reissue documents solely because of the change.
Do companies need to change their registration after a province merger?
A merger of provinces does not by itself require a company to re-register. Many companies update their registered address at the next amendment, and authorities have provided guidance on updating. Check the current procedure with the provincial business registration office.
Which office handles a procedure that the district used to do?
It depends on the procedure. Some tasks moved down to communes and wards, others up to provincial departments. Check the national or provincial public service portal for the competent office, and ask for written confirmation if staff are unsure.
What happened to district courts after the reform?
District courts were replaced by regional People's Courts, whose areas are defined separately from commune boundaries. Appeals now generally go to the provincial-level court. Contracts naming a district court should be read as pointing to the court now competent.