Vietnam introduced new education investment and operating conditions on September 17, 2026. The rules under Decrees 360 and 361/2026 on education investment in Vietnam affect new projects and existing institutions. Investors should review funding, premises, licensing and transition obligations before committing to an opening date or expansion.
The decrees implement the revised education, vocational education, higher education and investment framework. They replace specified earlier provisions and connect the new conditions with approvals and applications handled during the transition. Their stated principles emphasize decentralization, electronic procedures, reuse of government data and continuing institutional responsibility. For management, the result is a revised basis for planning investment and demonstrating compliance.
Decree 360/2026/ND-CP covers preschools, general schools, continuing education and other specified institutions. Decree 361/2026/ND-CP addresses vocational education, higher education and education quality accreditation. The seven points below explain how these rules affect investment and operating decisions.
Quick Reference
Education investment conditions govern the resources and permissions needed to establish and operate an institution. Decrees 360 and 361 cover different institution types, with different funding, premises and approval requirements. Investors should identify the legal model before committing capital or rent. Existing operators should check their approvals, pending applications and transition deadlines, including the investor-structure procedure due before January 1, 2027 for specified private institutions.
7 Points to Check
Identify the Education Model Before Seeking Approval
Decree 360 expressly includes relevant private preschools and general schools funded by domestic or foreign investors. It also covers specified continuing education centers, including language centers. Decree 361 covers private vocational and higher education institutions, as well as branches of foreign institutions and accreditation organizations.
These categories have different requirements. A language center should not use the investment calculation for a general school. A Vietnam-established university and a branch of a foreign university also require separate classification.
For a foreign university branch, Decree 361 adds requirements concerning the overseas institution. The overseas institution must also operate lawfully, maintain internal quality assurance and hold qualifying recognition or accreditation.
Both decrees discontinue specified provisions of earlier education regulations. They do not repeal the entire foreign-investment framework. Investors should review the surviving investment, curriculum and cooperation requirements separately. The education model should fit the wider Vietnam market entry strategy before campus or partnership terms are fixed.
Calculate School Investment Against the Planned Scale
Decree 360 sets financial conditions for private schools at the operating-approval stage. For private preschools, the minimum is VND 30 million per child, excluding land-use costs. The calculation uses the highest projected enrollment, with funding planned for each development phase.
For private general schools, the ordinary minimum is VND 50 million per student, excluding land-use costs, with a VND 50 billion total as minimum. The calculation uses the highest projected enrollment. A smaller first-year intake does not replace that planned scale.
Private preschools and general schools may qualify for reduced investment requirements when they only lease or use existing facilities without new construction. The decree sets this at no less than 70% of the stated investment level. For general schools, investors should confirm with the competent authority how this provision applies to the total investment floor before relying on a reduced budget.
The decree recognizes several forms of financial evidence, depending on the funding and contribution arrangements. These include credit commitments, blocked-account confirmations, payment records, completed investment evidence and documents supporting contributed assets.
These are education investment requirements. They should not automatically be described as company charter capital or an obligation to hold the entire amount in cash. Finance teams should reconcile the enrollment plan, staged investment and supporting records before filing.
Distinguish Completed Investment From Future Funding Commitments
Decree 361 makes the timing and form of investment particularly relevant to vocational and higher education projects. For private institutions, lawful funding must support the planned scale and development for at least five years. Land-use-right value is excluded from the investment calculation.
At establishment appraisal, private vocational institutions need completed and accepted facilities, infrastructure, equipment and other tangible assets at the main campus. Their actual investment value must be audited or valued. The minimum is VND 12 billion for vocational high schools, VND 15 billion for intermediate schools and VND 30 billion for colleges. The specified appraised assets and operating funds must be transferred to the institution within 90 days after establishment permission.
For private higher education institutions, the decree generally requires at least VND 300 billion of qualifying completed investment at the main campus. It also requires the specified transfer of appraised assets and operating resources within 90 days after establishment permission.
A specific arrangement applies to qualifying private higher education institutions with foreign investors using leased facilities or existing facilities contributed by a Vietnamese party. The initial qualifying investment threshold is VND 200 billion. Within 90 days after establishment permission, the investor must transfer funds covering at least five years of main-campus lecturer and educational support staffing costs. The remaining committed operating investment must be transferred within two years after operating permission. Failure to meet these investment obligations results in suspension of new enrollment until the obligations are fulfilled.
A newly established branch of a Vietnam-established private university has a separate VND 100 billion minimum for completed, accepted investment, audited or valued. The site must meet the applicable land-area standard per learner for a planned minimum of 800 equivalent regular learners, adjusted by training level and field. This is a planning requirement, not a requirement to enroll 800 students in the first year. The general premises condition requires at least 50 years of remaining lawful use when filing. Qualifying foreign-invested institutions may instead lease branch facilities in stable, continuous cycles of at least five years. Converting existing lawful facilities into a branch has separate treatment.
A branch of an overseas university follows the foreign-branch conditions, which refer to the university-level requirements. Investors should not budget for that project using the VND 100 billion domestic-branch figure.
The funding schedule should distinguish completed assets, transfer deadlines and operating finance. Finance teams should also assess the applicable foreign investment capital account rules before moving money.
Align the Premises and Licensing Sequence With the Opening Date
A university must have at least one main-campus site covering five hectares, supported by the prescribed land allocation, land lease or certified rights. Decree 361 also permits qualifying foreign-invested private universities to lease facilities in stable, continuous cycles of at least five years. That provision does not expressly waive the five-hectare minimum. Investors should budget for the area requirement and confirm the proposed lease and land documents before committing to the site.
Vocational institutions also have minimum main-campus land requirements: 0.5 hectares for vocational high schools and intermediate schools, and one hectare for colleges. Qualifying foreign-invested private vocational institutions may lease facilities in stable, continuous cycles of at least five years. This permission contains no express waiver of the land-area minimum.
Other lease requirements depend on institution type. Under Decree 360, preschool and general-school establishment files may rely on a lease of at least five years. Relevant private continuing education centers require a lease of at least three years.
A suitable lease term does not establish that the premises satisfy educational, land-use, construction and safety requirements. Before signing, management should check permitted use, facilities, capacity and the landlord’s ability to provide supporting records. Lease conditions should address approval delays, necessary works and the consequences if the site cannot qualify. Where a property acquisition is proposed, real estate due diligence in Vietnam should precede payment commitments.
For schools and institutions subject to separate establishment and operating approvals, establishment permission alone does not authorize teaching. Continuing education centers follow their own establishment and operating framework, so the same two-stage description should not be applied universally.
The responsible authority also depends on the institution. Decree 360 generally assigns preschool, primary and lower-secondary school establishment and operating decisions to commune-level People’s Committee chairpersons. Special categories have different authority rules. Upper-secondary establishment generally rests with provincial chairpersons, while provincial education department directors handle operating permission. Under Decree 361, the education minister handles specified college, university and foreign-branch decisions. The filing authority must therefore be checked against the particular project.
Keep Expansion Within the Approved Scope
The decrees address relocation, restructuring and continuing compliance. Under Decree 361, an institution surviving a merger or division may continue within its existing approved scope where the stated conditions remain unchanged. A new legal entity or changes to quality conditions or approved activities can require operating permission or an amendment.
For higher education, Decree 361 connects operating permission to training levels, subjects or fields, and approved premises. Changes to the relevant scope require adjustment. Digital teaching remains within legally permitted training methods and the approved scope. It also requires arrangements for student management, assessment, records, verification of results and relevant information and data security. Operators should connect those controls with their wider Vietnam data compliance review.
An operator considering an additional campus or online program should compare its proposal against the actual approval and institutional records. A commercial expansion announcement should follow that assessment. It should not become the basis for assuming that permission already exists.
Continuing conditions also affect revenue. Decree 361 allows enrollment suspension for relevant failures, including operating outside the approved scope. Activity suspension can follow specified circumstances, including failure to remedy an enrollment suspension. Managers should maintain evidence of staffing, facilities, quality controls and accurate regulatory data throughout operation.
Check Foreign Accreditation Before Signing the Contract
Decree 361 places responsibilities on both foreign accreditation organizations and the Vietnamese institutions selecting them. A foreign organization must satisfy legal-status, recognition, methodology, independence and other requirements. Its experience must include at least five years of accreditation activity or at least 30 qualifying external evaluations.
The Vietnamese vocational or higher education institution must check and retain evidence that the organization meets the requirements before signing. The accreditation scope must also match the proposed assessment. A familiar overseas name or a broad marketing statement is insufficient evidence of eligibility for the particular engagement.
The foreign accreditor must disclose information and update data before accreditation activity in Vietnam. Government publication of the information does not guarantee the organization’s capability, reputation or service quality.
The contracting team should therefore obtain the recognition evidence, relevant experience, assessment scope, conflict controls and complaints procedure. The contract should address continued eligibility and access to supporting records if the institution’s choice is later reviewed.
Apply the Transition Rules to the Institution’s Actual Status
Existing approvals do not automatically become invalid. Decree 360 generally does not require covered institutions to obtain their existing establishment or operating permissions again. Decree 361 preserves lawfully issued approvals within their stated terms or until legally amended, replaced or withdrawn. Continuing operations remain subject to the applicable transition and compliance requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1: Can leasing premises reduce a private school’s required investment?
Decree 360 provides reduced investment requirements for qualifying private preschools and general schools that only lease or use existing facilities without new construction. Before relying on a lower amount, investors should confirm their eligibility and how the provision applies to the proposed school’s investment requirement. Other premises and operating conditions continue to apply.
Q2: Does a five-year university lease remove the five-hectare requirement?
The decree contains no express waiver of the five-hectare minimum. The lease provision allows qualifying foreign-invested private universities to use leased facilities, subject to operating conditions. The proposed campus and legal documents still need assessment.
Q3: Does VND 100 billion cover a branch of an overseas university?
No. That figure concerns a newly established branch of a Vietnam-established private university. An overseas university branch follows separate conditions referring to the university-level requirements and must also satisfy the overseas-institution eligibility tests.
Q4: Must every existing institution apply for a new license?
No. Existing lawful approvals receive transitional protection. Changes to activities or premises, continuing conditions and specific transition obligations require separate review.
In short, the seven points under Decrees 360 and 361/2026 on education investment in Vietnam turn on institution type and project status. Funding, land, permissions and deadlines should be assessed together before approving an opening or expansion budget.
Conclusion
Management should begin with the institution’s approvals, investor records, campus documents and investment schedule. Assign each identified gap to a responsible person and set completion dates around the next funding, enrollment or expansion decision. Existing institutions should record which transition provision supports continued operation and what action remains due.
About the Author
Hanh Pham is a Legal Research Specialist at ANT Lawyers with more than 10 years of experience, supporting legal teams through regulatory research, authority liaison, documentation review, and knowledge development. She has been trained in corporate, civil law and related areas. The article has been reviewed by Tuan Nguyen, Managing Partner, ANT Lawyers; member of the Hanoi Bar Association and Vietnam Bar Association.
About ANT Lawyers, a Law Firm in Vietnam
Founded in 2012, ANT Lawyers is a Vietnam law firm with offices in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang. Our education lawyers advise on education licensing, school establishment, foreign investment, education projects and regulatory compliance in Vietnam. We combine legal analysis with practical understanding of Vietnam’s regulatory environment and local administrative practice.
General Disclaimer
This article is for general informational purposes only, does not constitute legal advice, and does not create a lawyer-client relationship. Vietnamese laws, regulations and administrative practice change over time, and the correct position for any matter depends on its specific facts and the rules in force when action is taken. Verify the current position before relying on anything stated here, and consult qualified counsel on your specific situation.
How ANT Lawyers Could Help Your Business?
You could reach ANT Lawyers for advice via email ant@antlawyers.vn or call our office at (+84) 24 730 86 529