Specify regulations on domain name withdrawal, donation and gifting

The Ministry of Information and Communications has recently proposed a number of new regulations on Internet resource management, including the national domain name ".vn".

Specifically, inheriting existing regulations, the donation, giving, capital contribution, and inheritance of the right to use the domain name “.vn” will be carried out in accordance with the law on property rights and other relevant regulations.

In the draft Decree detailing a number of articles of the Law on Telecommunications (Decree), the Ministry of Information and Communications has supplemented and completed regulations on procedures for implementing transfers, rights and obligations (including tax obligations) of related parties.

Accordingly, individuals and organizations are requested to change the name of the subject registering to use the Vietnamese national domain name “.vn” in cases where it is necessary to complete the process of donating, giving, contributing capital, or inheriting the right to use.

Changing the name of the domain name registrant also needs to be done when an individual or organization changes its name, splits, merges, consolidates or changes its functions and tasks. A business reorganizes or has activities of buying and selling, contributing capital, shares, or changing functions and tasks between parent and subsidiary companies, leading to changes in the right to use the domain name.

Cumulative number of .vn.jpg domain names
Cumulative number of ".vn" domain names as of January 2024.

According to data from the Vietnam Internet Network Information Center (VNNIC), the total number of ".vn" domain names has reached 604,000, with 10 domestic domain name registrars and 6 foreign registrars in operation. Of which, by the end of December 2023, nearly 19,000 ".vn" domain names had their usage rights transferred.

The draft Decree also clarifies the procedures for revocation of Vietnam's Internet resources. Specifically, the Ministry of Information and Communications will notify organizations and individuals by direct means, mass media, text messages, and websites at least 3 months in advance of the revocation date.

After issuing the decision, the Ministry of Information and Communications will compensate organizations and individuals whose Vietnam Internet resources are revoked. The compensation will be paid by the State Budget.

For Vietnamese Internet resources that are directly allocated and directly granted, the compensation level is determined by the remaining maintenance fee amount calculated from the time of withdrawal.

For Vietnamese national domain names “.vn” granted by auction of usage rights, the compensation level is determined by the auction winning amount.

Prioritize the protection of Internet resources related to national sovereignty

The Law on Telecommunications passed by the 15th National Assembly in 2023 clearly stipulates that Internet resources are a collection of domain names, Internet addresses, network numbers and other names and numbers under the management of Vietnam.

Internet resources include Vietnamese Internet resources and international Internet resources, allocated by international organizations for organizations and individuals to use in Vietnam.

In the draft Decree currently being consulted by the public, the Ministry of Information and Communications has clarified many detailed regulations on the management of this special resource.

Nan Sin Lao Cai Ethnic Boarding Primary and Secondary School, Thuy Nga.jpg
Teachers and students of Nan Sin Ethnic Boarding School (Lao Cai) use the Internet to support teaching and learning. Photo: Thuy Nga

In principle, Internet resources will be planned in a unified manner to ensure that Vietnam's Internet activities are safe, reliable and effective.

In particular, Internet resources related to national sovereignty, interests, and security; to Party and State agencies, organizations, and socio-political organizations will be given priority for protection and must not be violated.

The management and use of Internet resources must ensure correct purposes, objects, regulations and not infringe upon the rights and legitimate interests of other organizations and individuals.

Internet resources may only be put into operation or continued to be maintained after agencies, organizations and individuals have paid fees and charges as prescribed.

New proposal on allocating, leasing, and changing telecommunications subscriber numbers The Ministry of Information and Communications is proposing to issue a number of regulations on the management and use of telecommunications number reserves, including allocating, leasing, and changing subscriber numbers.