Consolidated Document No. 10/VBHN-BXD: Decree on Conditional Business Lines in Civil Aviation (Consolidated)
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Based on:10/VBHN-BXD - Government Official Gazette
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Consolidated Document No. 10/VBHN-BXD merges base Decree No. 92/2016/ND-CP with five rounds of amendments (most recently Decree No. 14/2026/ND-CP, effective January 15, 2026) into a single text setting business conditions for six aviation business lines: air transport, airports, airport aviation services, aircraft design/manufacturing/maintenance, air navigation services, and aviation personnel training. Key requirements include very high minimum capital thresholds (VND 30-700 billion depending on the business type), foreign ownership caps (34% for airlines, 30% for airports), minimum fleet sizes, and a multi-tier licensing process running through the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam, the Ministry of Construction, and the Prime Minister. The text also details age limits for imported aircraft, grounds for license revocation, and reporting obligations for licensed businesses. This is a sector-specific decree aimed at large aviation investors and operators (airlines, airport operators, ground-service providers) rather than general SMEs, and it contains no tax, accounting, e-invoice, or general labor content. The most notable change in this consolidation is Decree No. 14/2026/ND-CP, which trims certain paperwork requirements and allows results to be delivered electronically.
Scope and Application
This decree sets out the business conditions for six groups of conditional business lines in Vietnam's civil aviation sector:
- Air transport business (commercial air carriage and general aviation)
- Airport and airfield business
- Aviation services at airports and airfields
- Aircraft design, manufacturing, maintenance, or testing services (aircraft, engines, propellers, and equipment)
- Air navigation service provision
- Aviation personnel training services
The decree does not apply to dedicated-use (non-public) airfields.
Conditions for Air Transport Business
- Minimum capital: VND 300 billion (fleet up to 10 aircraft), VND 600 billion (11-30 aircraft), VND 700 billion (over 30 aircraft) for commercial air carriage; VND 100 billion for general aviation.
- Minimum fleet size: 3 aircraft for commercial air carriage; 1 aircraft for general aviation.
- Foreign investors may hold no more than 34% of charter capital; a Vietnamese individual or entity must hold the largest ownership stake.
- The business must have a management structure covering safety, security, aircraft operations, and maintenance; managers in these roles need at least 3 consecutive years of relevant experience.
- Wet-leased aircraft (leased with crew) may not exceed 30% of the fleet or 10 aircraft.
Licensing Procedure
Applications are submitted to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV). The review runs through three tiers: CAAV appraises the file, the Ministry of Construction reviews and submits it, and the Prime Minister decides whether to authorize issuance.
A license can be revoked for: failing to maintain minimum capital for 3 consecutive years, falsifying application information, halting operations for 36 consecutive months, failing to obtain (or having revoked for over 36 months) an Air Operator Certificate, serious violations of aviation security or safety rules, or no longer meeting licensing conditions. Licensed businesses must notify the authority in writing within 30 days of changes to their charter, management structure, or any shareholder holding 5% or more of charter capital.
Airport and Aviation Service Conditions
- Minimum capital for an airport business: VND 100 billion; foreign ownership is capped at 30%.
- Establishing an airport business, or transferring shares or capital contributions to a foreign investor, requires prior policy approval from the Ministry of Transport.
- Aviation services at airports (passenger terminal operations, cargo terminal/warehouse operations, aviation fuel supply, ground handling, in-flight catering) each require a separate service license.
Imported Aircraft Age Limits
Used aircraft imported into Vietnam face age caps: no more than 10 years old at the time of import (purchase/lease-purchase) or 20 years at the end of a lease term for passenger aircraft (helicopters: no more than 25 years at lease end); no more than 15 years at import or 25 years at lease end for cargo and general-aviation aircraft; no more than 20 years at import or 30 years at lease end for other aircraft types. Aircraft must carry a type certificate issued or recognized by one of the recognized international aviation authorities (FAA, EASA, Brazil, Canada, Russia, the UK, China) or by Vietnam's Ministry of Construction.
2026 Update
Decree No. 14/2026/ND-CP (effective January 15, 2026), led by the Ministry of Construction, cut and simplified several related administrative procedures: it removed one application-file component for air transport licensing, shortened certain appraisal and approval timelines, added a principle of substituting national or sector database records for paper documents once those databases are operational, and allowed administrative results to be delivered electronically with the same legal validity as paper copies.
This document is the official consolidated text, merging base Decree No. 92/2016/ND-CP with its amending decrees 89/2019/ND-CP, 64/2022/ND-CP, 15/2024/ND-CP, 89/2025/ND-CP, and 14/2026/ND-CP, certified by the Ministry of Construction and published in Official Gazette No. 165 dated March 30, 2026. The consolidation does not itself change the legal effect of the underlying decrees; it exists for reference purposes only.