A draft revision of Vietnam’s Penal Code would abolish the death penalty for six offenses and retain capital punishment only for treason, murder, terrorism and illegal drug production.
Vietnam is considering a significant further narrowing of the death penalty as part of a sweeping overhaul of its Penal Code, with the maximum punishment proposed to remain applicable to just four crimes.
Minister of Public Security Luong Tam Quang, acting on behalf of the Prime Minister, presented the draft revised Penal Code to the National Assembly on August 20.
Under the proposal, capital punishment would be retained for treason, murder, terrorism and illegal production of narcotics, while being removed from six other offenses.
The proposal emerged as one of the most closely watched elements of a broad revision that would reshape hundreds of provisions of Vietnam’s criminal law.
The draft consists of three parts, 25 chapters and 415 articles. Compared with the existing Penal Code, it would remove eight articles, add 14 new ones, amend 301 and leave 100 unchanged.
Death penalty could be restricted to four crimes
Minister of Public Security Luong Tam Quang presents the draft revised Penal Code to the National Assembly.
According to Quang, the draft continues Vietnam’s policy of narrowing the scope of capital punishment by proposing its removal from six crimes.
The National Assembly’s Law and Justice Committee agreed with the overall direction of further restricting the death penalty, but some members urged caution over its removal from several particularly serious offenses.
Committee members specifically called for careful consideration of proposals to abolish capital punishment for illegal drug trafficking, rape of a person under 16, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Presenting the committee’s appraisal, its chairman, Phan Chi Hieu, said amendments should avoid weakening the deterrent, preventive and enforcement effects of criminal law.
The issue, he said, should be assessed against the seriousness of each offense as well as the overall effectiveness of measures used to prevent and combat particularly dangerous crimes.
The debate highlights the balance lawmakers face as Vietnam seeks to further restrict capital punishment while maintaining strong sanctions for offenses considered especially serious.
Nine new crimes proposed
The death penalty provisions form only one part of the much broader overhaul.
According to Quang, the bill adds provisions dealing with organized criminal groups and introduces a new offense covering the establishment of or participation in an organized criminal group.
Nine new crimes would be added to the Penal Code, while new forms of conduct would be incorporated into the legal elements of some existing offenses.
Several crimes would also be abolished, merged or separated.
The government says the changes are intended to streamline the code, improve consistency and better differentiate criminal liability according to the nature, role and level of danger posed by different types of conduct.
Financial penalties would also change substantially.
The government proposes broadly doubling monetary fines and monetary thresholds used to determine offenses and sentencing brackets.
At the same time, the use of non-custodial reform as a basic punishment would be expanded to another 10 offenses.
Greater legal protection for innovation and controlled experimentation
Another notable element concerns criminal liability arising from innovation and experimentation.
The draft proposes expanding circumstances in which criminal liability may be excluded for activities involving the research, testing and application of new technologies.
The provisions would also cover controlled testing of new technologies, processes, solutions, products, services and business models intended to support technological development and innovation.
Exclusions from criminal liability would similarly be broadened for certain activities involving national defense, security and crime prevention carried out by the armed forces.
The proposals reflect an attempt to create greater legal room for experimentation while still defining the boundaries of criminal responsibility.
Lawmakers warn against abuse of leniency
Phan Chi Hieu, chairman of the National Assembly’s Law and Justice Committee, presents the committee’s appraisal of the draft.
The National Assembly’s Law and Justice Committee backed the need for a fundamental and comprehensive revision of the Penal Code.
It also supported proposed provisions allowing the temporary suspension of criminal prosecution or exemption from criminal liability in certain cases involving economic violations or losses.
The proposed leniency would apply where conduct was intended to promote socioeconomic development or safeguard national defense and security, involved no corruption and ultimately generated socioeconomic benefits for a locality or the country.
However, the committee raised an important safeguard.
Rather than allowing such policies to potentially apply across all crimes, it recommended reviewing relevant areas of law and specifying exactly which offenses should qualify.
The rules, the committee said, must ensure that leniency cannot be exploited to legitimize economic wrongdoing.
That concern places one of the draft’s central policy questions into sharper focus: how Vietnam can provide legal space for officials, businesses and innovators to take legitimate risks without creating loopholes that could shield misconduct.
Proposed to take effect in March 2027
The government has asked the National Assembly to discuss the revised Penal Code during the current session.
It is expected to be submitted for approval at the legislature’s second session in October.
If adopted according to the proposed timetable, the revised Penal Code would take effect on March 1, 2027.
The scale of the proposed revision - covering more than 300 amended articles, new provisions on organized crime and innovation, substantially higher financial penalties and a narrower application of capital punishment - makes it one of the most consequential changes to Vietnam’s criminal law framework in recent years.
Vietnamnet.vn
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