Regulations on the Traceability of Products and Goods
Deputy Prime Minister Ho Quoc Dung, on behalf of the Government, signed Decree No. 372/2026/ND-CP on September 29, 2026, regulating the identification, authentication, and traceability of products and goods.
Decree No. 372/2026/ND-CP consists of 8 chapters and 38 articles regulating the National Platform for Identification, Authentication, and Traceability of Products and Goods; activities related to the identification, authentication, and traceability of products and goods in the digital environment through the National Platform for the Identification, Authentication, and Traceability of Products and Goods; the development, management, operation, interconnection, sharing, and utilization of the National Platform for Product and Goods Identification, Authentication, and Traceability and the National Database on Products and Goods; and the rights and responsibilities of relevant agencies, organizations, and individuals.
The Decree specifies that activities related to the identification, authentication, and traceability of products and goods through the National Platform for Product and Goods Identification, Authentication, and Traceability, as prescribed in this Decree, shall be carried out by batch, production or business batches, or down to individual units of products and goods, based on the risk level of the products and goods, as follows:
a) For products and goods with a high risk level, the identification and verification of product and goods master data, as well as traceability, are mandatory; the list, implementation timeline, and methods for implementation by batch, production or business batch, or down to individual units of products or goods, key events, and sector-specific data requirements shall be determined and decided by the sector- or industry-managing ministry within its authority, ensuring feasibility and alignment with business capabilities and the specific development characteristics of each industry. The national platform for product and goods identification, authentication, and traceability performs technical functions related to identification, authentication, verification, record-keeping, data connectivity, and data sharing based on the catalog, implementation roadmap, and sector-specific requirements issued by the competent authority;
b) For products and goods with medium or low risk levels, identification, authentication, and traceability are encouraged to be implemented on a voluntary basis in accordance with the provisions of this Decree.
The Decree also stipulates that for exported products and goods, the application of identification, authentication, and traceability is carried out on a voluntary basis, unless otherwise specified by sector-specific laws. The State encourages organizations and individuals to proactively implement these measures to meet the requirements of importing countries, export markets, and international trade activities.
Products and goods subject to temporary import-reexport; products and goods in transit, transshipment goods; transshipment products and goods; and imported products and goods stored in bonded warehouses for export to a third country are not within the scope of this Decree.
The mandatory provisions on identification, authentication, and traceability set forth in this Decree do not apply to products and goods in the fields of national defense, security, and classified information that require confidentiality regarding their origin and provenance.
Provisions regarding product and goods traceability operations shall be implemented in accordance with Decree No. 37/2026/NĐ-CP and relevant sector-specific legal regulations.
The product and goods identification code (referred to as the UID) is a digital link compliant with national standards and international GS1 standards, automatically generated on the National Platform for the Identification, Authentication, and Traceability of Products and is capable of identifying and tracing individual units, lots, batches, or types of products and goods. The UID is represented through a data carrier that complies with Vietnamese technical standards and specifications and is compatible with international standards, ensuring the ability to identify, collect, share, and verify information in a digital environment and within the supply chain; it does not replace the GTIN, Global Location Numbers (GLNs), product traceability codes, or location traceability codes that have been legally issued and used in accordance with the law on codes, barcodes, and traceability. The creation, management, and use of the UID must comply with the principles, standards, structure, and technical requirements specified in the Annex attached to this Decree. The UID must be automatically linked to the entity’s Decentralized Identifier (DID) as prescribed in Article 6 of this Decree, the private key, public key, and the dedicated electronic signature specified in Article 7 of this Decree, as well as with the digital certificate and digital evidence specified in Article 8 of this Decree, ensuring independent authentication and traceability. Each UID code may only be assigned to a specific product, good, or batch of products or goods and linked to a single master data record on the National Platform for Product and Goods Identification, Authentication, and Traceability. The name of the product or goods in the master data is the name self-designated and labeled by the manufacturing or importing organization or individual in accordance with the law on product labeling; Organizations and individuals may declare additional trademarks and other names for the same product or goods in the master data to facilitate searches and comparisons. The master data on products and goods is standardized according to codes, group names, and product categories under the Vietnamese Product Classification System, and commodity codes under the Vietnamese Export and Import Commodity List. The listing of goods names on invoices and documents is carried out in accordance with the provisions of the law on invoices and documents; the UID code is used to cross-reference goods names with the verified master data on the National Platform. |
Scope of Application
This Decree applies to:
1. Competent state agencies responsible for state management regarding the identification, authentication, and traceability of products and goods; and for the management, operation, and maintenance of the National Platform for the Identification, Authentication, and Traceability of Products and Goods and the National Database on Products and Goods.
2. Organizations and individuals that produce, process, manufacture, trade, distribute, import, transport, or store products and goods.
3. Organizations providing electronic authentication services for products and goods.
4. Organizations and individuals involved in accessing and using information on the National Platform for Identification, Authentication, and Traceability of Products and Goods and the National Database on Products and Goods.
5. Other organizations and individuals involved in the identification, authentication, and traceability of products and goods.
Traceability of Products and Goods
The Decree stipulates the traceability of products and goods as follows:
Product and goods traceability activities are conducted in a digital environment through the UID code on the National Platform for Identification, Authentication, and Traceability of Products and Goods. The content and operational requirements for traceability not specified in this Decree shall be implemented in accordance with Decree No. 37/2026/ND-CP and relevant sector-specific legal regulations.
Product and goods traceability must be recorded by generating the digital certificates specified in Clause 4 of Article 8 of this Decree using the UID code to ensure integrity, verifiability, and independent traceability. Such recording through the issuance of digital certificates shall be performed for key events during the production, import, export, distribution, and consumption processes (including the issuance of invoices and the recording of the time when customs authorities grant clearance for goods in accordance with tax, customs, and other forms of management as prescribed by law).
Organizations and individuals responsible for key events in the supply chain as defined in this section are responsible for ensuring that a digital certificate corresponding to that stage is generated using the UID of the product or goods, except in cases where data confirming the completion of the stage has already been synchronized with the National Database on Products and Goods.
If the creation of the digital certificate is performed by a service provider, there must be an agreement clearly specifying the entity responsible for implementation, the scope of implementation, the responsibility to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the data, and the legal liabilities of the parties in accordance with the law.
The sector- or industry-specific management ministry is responsible for providing guidance and carrying out state management functions regarding traceability in accordance with Decree No. 37/2026/NĐ-CP for each specific entity and product category; specify the key events requiring the issuance of digital certificates during the traceability process for high-risk products and goods, in accordance with the specific characteristics of each group of products and goods under their jurisdiction, ensuring that this does not result in duplicate procedures or reporting obligations for organizations, and individuals, and ensuring the ability to connect, share, and utilize existing data within government information systems, as well as the synchronization and interoperability of data with the National Database on Products and Goods.
In cases where the supply chain of a product or commodity falls under the jurisdiction of two or more ministries, or agencies of equivalent rank, the ministry or agency of equivalent rank responsible for managing those products and goods shall serve as the lead agency, coordinating with relevant ministries and agencies of equivalent rank to define and issue the list of key events requiring the issuance of digital certificates and traceability.
The traceability data for each product or good in the National Platform for Product and Goods Identification, Authentication, and Traceability and the product and must include the minimum information specified in Clause 5 of Article 23 of Decree No. 37/2026/ND-CP.
Product and goods quality certificates; certificates of origin; certificates of conformity and compliance; and other documents associated with products and goods that pose a high risk during the traceability process shall be digitized, authenticated, interconnected, and synchronized with the National Platform for Product and Goods Identification, Authentication, and Traceability in accordance with the roadmap, data standards, and management requirements prescribed by the competent authority.
The documents and certificates specified in this clause, which are associated with products and goods classified as medium-risk and low-risk, are encouraged to be digitized, authenticated, linked, and synchronized with the National Platform for Product Identification, Authentication, and Traceability, goods to meet the requirements of specialized state management.
The issuance of corresponding digital certificates for the documents and certificates specified in these regulations shall be carried out when the certification-issuing system, certification-issuing agencies, conformity assessment bodies, and certification bodies meet the technical conditions for connecting and sharing data with the National Platform for Product and Goods Identification, Authentication, and Traceability in accordance with legal regulations and the guidance of the competent authority.
The sector- or field-specific management ministries are responsible for organizing the issuance or directing, requiring, and ensuring that authorized organizations and units issue quality certificates for products and goods; certificates of origin; certificates of conformity and compliance; and other documents related to products and goods to generate the corresponding digital certificates and ensure data connectivity and interoperability with the National Platform for Product and Goods Identification, Authentication, and Traceability; compile and issue a list of documents and certificates related to products and goods under their jurisdiction that must be issued as digital certificates, along with an implementation roadmap, and update or amend this list as required by law when changes occur.
Digital certificates for product and goods quality certification; goods origin certification; conformity and standard compliance certifications, and other documents associated with products and goods that have been generated on the National Platform for Product and Goods Identification, Authentication, and Traceability shall be valid for use as originals.
This Decree shall take effect on January 1, 2027.
The Appendix sets forth provisions regarding the product and goods identification code (UID)./.