Decree 152/2026/ND-CP Details Implementation of the Civil Judgment Enforcement Law

Scope

Decree 152/2026/ND-CP, issued on 13 May 2026 and published in Official Gazette No. 287 on 27 May 2026, provides detailed rules implementing Civil Judgment Enforcement Law No. 106/2025/QH15, covering enforcement procedures, handling of complaints and denunciations, state-budget funding for enforcement work, and the duties and powers of the agencies involved.

Representation and accepted late-filing grounds

• A litigant's representative, whether statutory or authorized, must hold a notarized or certified power of attorney stating the scope and duration of the authorization.
• The decree lists in detail what counts as an accepted «state of emergency», «objective obstacle», or «force majeure event» excusing a late enforcement request, for example natural disasters, epidemics, accidents, assignment to border or island duty, or a company merger or dissolution where the successor entity is not yet identified, along with the supporting documents required for each case.

Civil-enforcement database and digital platform

• The Ministry of Justice builds and operates a digital civil-enforcement platform linked to the national database, the VNeID app, and the National Public Service Portal.
• Notifications and verification of a debtor's ability to pay are carried out on the digital platform by default; paper-based methods are used only when digital channels are not available.

Issuing enforcement decisions

• Ex officio: the enforcement agency issues a decision on its own initiative for items such as confiscated assets, recovered tax arrears, compensation owed to the State or a wholly state-owned enterprise, and amounts payable directly into the state budget, with no request from a party required.
• On request: parties file requests via VNeID, the Public Service Portal, in person, or by post. The decree specifies the mandatory content of a request and the cases where the enforcement agency may not refuse it, such as transfer of property or custody of a minor.
• The limitation period for filing an enforcement request runs separately for each installment when an obligation is payable periodically; a mechanism exists to request enforcement after the deadline where one of the force-majeure or objective-obstacle grounds above applies.

Replacing enforcement officers and settlement agreements

• A litigant may request replacement of the enforcement officer if there is evidence of a prohibited act or a conflict of interest; the agency must respond within 3 working days.
• Parties may settle the enforcement of a judgment either before or after an enforcement decision issues. The settlement must be in writing and may be witnessed by the enforcement officer, who may refuse to witness or to recognize a settlement that breaches the law or is aimed at evading enforcement fees.

Notification methods

The decree sets an order of priority for notification:

1. Digital, via VNeID, the default channel.
2. Direct delivery, post, or through an enforcement office when the recipient's national ID number cannot be determined or the recipient cannot access the digital channel.
3. Public posting for 7 days when direct notice fails.
4. Newspaper or broadcast notice across two consecutive issues or broadcasts, for cases with many litigants or where the law requires it.
5. A separate procedure for parties abroad, including judicial assistance channeled through the Ministry of Justice with a process taking 3 to 6 months, and, failing that, publication on the Ministry's web portal.

Verifying a debtor's ability to pay

Enforcement officers verify assets, income, marital status, enterprise or cooperative registration numbers, and residence or headquarters via the digital platform or connected databases. For assets subject to ownership registration, the officer must obtain the land-management or planning authority's opinion before seizure or transfer.

Points that matter directly to businesses

• Enforcing arbitral awards: a request to enforce an arbitral award, including a foreign award, must include documents proving the court has accepted an application to set aside the award, or that the ad hoc award has been registered, which is relevant for businesses and foreign investors with commercial disputes.
• Interim measures tied to labor disputes: suspending a dismissal decision, or ordering an employer to advance wages, remuneration, or workplace-accident and occupational-disease benefits to an employee. These measures can be delegated for enforcement across provinces when the employer holds assets elsewhere.
• Offsetting mutual obligations between the parties is permitted, unless it would harm state interests or a third party's lawful rights.
• Money and property collected from prisoners who owe a civil judgment debt follows a dedicated process to transfer the funds and property to the civil enforcement agency within 1 month.

Note

This decree is mainly a procedural guide for enforcement agencies and enforcement officers. It matters to a business chiefly when the business is a party with rights or obligations under a court judgment, decision, or arbitral award that is being enforced.