Propose policies on priority treatment and preferential treatment in bidding and procurement of domestically produced goods

The Ministry of Finance noted that the current preferential mechanism under the Bidding Law is primarily applied during the bid evaluation stage and does not yet provide a sufficiently strong legal basis to prioritize or reserve procurement for goods and services encouraged by the State, particularly goods, products manufactured by domestic enterprises, high-tech products, strategic technology products, green products, and innovative products.

The current Bidding Law stipulates that only construction and installation contracts with a contract value not exceeding VND 5 billion may be reserved for micro and small enterprises to participate in bidding. In practice, to implement the policy of developing the private economy, the National Assembly enacted Resolution No. 198/2025/QH15, raising the threshold to VND 20 billion for construction and installation contracts, goods procurement contracts, and mixed contracts funded by the state budget for small and medium-sized enterprises. This indicates that directly stipulating in the Law the beneficiaries of preferential treatment and the thresholds for contract values does not ensure sufficient flexibility in adjusting policies to meet the socio-economic development needs of each period; when policies or guidelines change, it requires amending the Law or enacting special mechanisms, thereby reducing the timeliness and flexibility of the legal system.

The Law only stipulates general principles regarding eligible entities and the contents of incentives, and delegates to the Government the authority to prescribe detailed regulations on how to apply these incentives to each eligible category—with a focus on creating preferential mechanisms for high-tech and strategic technology products of Vietnamese origin, as well as small and medium-sized enterprises... in accordance with policies and resolutions on the development of the private sector, science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation.

At the same time, it stipulates that in cases where there are discrepancies between the application of incentives under this Law and provisions in other laws, National Assembly resolutions, or sector-specific legislation, the more favorable incentive policy shall apply to ensure consistency in the application of the law and maximize the effectiveness of the incentive policies.

The draft Law is expected to provide specific details on how to apply preferential measures to each eligible entity, including a mechanism prioritizing the procurement of domestically produced goods for products listed in the High-Tech and Strategic Technology Categories; mandating the use of domestically produced goods in business investment projects, rather than merely applying preferential incentives such as bonus points or monetary incentives as under current regulations.

This approach ensures the stability of the Law while providing a legal basis for the Government to proactively adjust preferential policies in line with the socio-economic development needs of each phase, thereby contributing to the development of the domestic market, enhancing the competitiveness of Vietnamese enterprises, promoting innovation, and achieving sustainable development goals.

Incentives in the Selection of Contractors and Investors

Specifically, Article 8 of the draft proposes the following provisions regarding incentives in the selection of contractors and investors:

Entities eligible for preferential treatment in contractor selection include:

- Goods of Vietnamese origin;

- Environmentally friendly products and services in accordance with environmental protection laws;

- Domestic contractors producing goods of Vietnamese origin that comply with the bidding documents;

- Foreign contractors in a joint venture with a domestic contractor, provided that the domestic contractor undertakes 25 percent or more of the contract’s value;

- Domestic contractors participating in the bidding process either independently or in a joint venture with another domestic contractor when participating in international tenders;

- Contractors that are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as defined by laws on the development of small and medium-sized enterprises;

- A contractor that is an individual, an innovative startup, or an organization supporting innovative startups recognized by the competent authority; an innovation center; a science and technology enterprise; a science and technology organization; a research and development center; strategic technology enterprises, high-tech enterprises, enterprises manufacturing high-tech products, high-tech incubators, and high-tech business incubators as defined by laws on science, technology, and innovation, laws on high technology, and other relevant laws;

- Contractors that employ women, war veterans, people with disabilities, or members of ethnic minority groups;

- Strategic technology products listed in the Strategic Technology Products Catalog and high-tech products listed in the High-Tech Products Catalog—which are encouraged for development—produced by strategic technology enterprises, high-tech enterprises, or enterprises manufacturing high-tech products in accordance with laws on high technology; products and goods resulting from special science, technology, and innovation projects, as well as products and goods resulting from domestic science, technology, and innovation projects in accordance with the law on science, technology, and innovation; digital technology products and services that meet the requirements set by the Minister of Science and Technology;

- Other entities as prescribed by sector-specific laws and regulations.

Preferential treatment in contractor selection includes:

- A higher ranking for contractors eligible for preferential treatment in cases where a contractor eligible for preferential treatment and a contractor not eligible for preferential treatment are evaluated as equal;

- Awarding additional points to the evaluation score of contractors eligible for preferential treatment;

- Adding a monetary amount to the bid price or the evaluated price of a contractor not eligible for preferential treatment;

- Priority in the evaluation of capacity, experience, and other criteria during the bid evaluation process;

- Reserve the contract specifically for contractors eligible for preferential treatment;

- Requiring contractors to offer goods or services for which they are eligible for preferential treatment;

- Other preferential treatments as prescribed by sector- or industry-specific laws.

In cases where there are discrepancies between the application of preferential treatment under this Law and the provisions of other laws, National Assembly resolutions, or sector-specific laws and regulations, the more favorable preferential policy shall apply.

Eligible entities for preferential treatment in the selection of investors include:

Investors who propose technological solutions to minimize environmental pollution for projects classified as having a high risk of adverse environmental impact under environmental protection laws.

Investors who commit to transferring technology listed in the Catalog of Technologies Prioritized for Investment and Development under laws on high technology, or in the Catalog of Technologies Encouraged for Transfer under laws on technology transfer, or in the Catalog of Strategic Technologies under laws on high technology.

The investor is: a science and technology enterprise; an innovative startup or an organization supporting innovative startups recognized by the competent authority; an innovation center; strategic technology enterprises, high-tech enterprises, enterprises manufacturing high-tech products, high-tech technology incubators, and high-tech business incubators as defined by laws on high technology; and foreign investors who have committed to transferring technology to domestic investors or partners.

The incentives for investor selection include:

A higher ranking for eligible investors in cases where an eligible investor and a non-eligible investor are evaluated as equal.

Additional points added to the composite score for comparison and ranking purposes.

Please read the full draft and submit your comments here./.