Procedures for Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral
Awards in Vietnam
In the era of globalization, cooperation between countries have
been established in many aspects and fields. Especially in the judicial
field, the recognition and enforcement of
foreign arbitral awards are important procedure in order to
facilitate law enforcement between countries and protect the legitimate
interests of the litigants.
Arbitral Award Enforcement Law Firm
in Vietnam
The recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in
Vietnam is a specific procedure. Accordingly, the court will be the authority
to conduct the review to recognize the validity of foreign arbitral awards to
be enforced within the territory of Vietnam. When receiving a request for
recognition of a foreign arbitral award, the court will consider and accept the
settlement according to the prescribed principles. Specifically, Vietnamese
courts only recognize and enforce foreign judgments in the following cases: (i)
on the basis of international treaties; (ii) on the principle of reciprocity.
Therefore, it can be seen that not all requirements are recognized in Vietnam.
To process the request for recognition and enforcement, depending
on the case, the requesting individual or organization must file a request at
the Ministry of Justice or directly at the court. Furthermore, in order to
ensure that the petition is valid, the petition must satisfy the conditions of
form, extent and status of the subject entitled to file according to the
regulations that the applicant must pay attention to. In addition, the time
limit for filing a request for recognition and enforcement of a foreign
arbitral award is 03 years from the date on which the foreign arbitral award
takes legal effect. However, this time limit can also be extended if it can be
proved that the cause of the delay in filing the application is under force
majeure circumstances.
After receiving the application and considering accepting the
settlement, in case the dossier is sent to the Ministry of Justice, the
Ministry of Justice shall consider the application and enclosed documents and
request the applicant to pay the fee as prescribed at the Office of the
Ministry of Justice, then transfer the file to the authoritative court. Within
05 working days from the date of receipt of the dossier, the authoritative
court shall consider and accept it as prescribed.
Accordingly, after considering, the court will hold a meeting and
issue a decision to recognize or not to recognize the foreign arbitral award
and notify relevant parties. Relevant individuals and organizations have the
right to appeal or protest against that decision within 07 to 15 days from the
date the court issues the decision.
Where a recognized award is to be enforced in Vietnam, the parties
concerned are obliged to enforce that award. In case the party does not
voluntarily execute the judgment, the judgment enforcement agency will carry
out similar enforcement according to the provisions of the law on judgment enforcement
in Vietnam.
At present, foreign arbitral awards might encounter challenges in
recognition and enforcement in Vietnam due to complexed procedures. Therefore,
it is important for individuals and organizations to learn and strictly follow
the procedures as prescribed by law so that the process of recognition and
enforcement in Vietnam can be carried out smoothly.
You could learn more about enforcement of foreign arbitral awards
in Vietnam or contact our Arbitration lawyers in Vietnam for
advice via email ant@antlawyers.vn or call our office at (+84) 24 730 86 529
