Vietnam’s National Assembly passed the country’s first Law on Artificial Intelligence on 10 December 2025, with the law taking effect from 1 March 2026. This makes Vietnam one of the first countries in Southeast Asia and among the first developing economies globally to enact a standalone AI law. The law establishes a legal framework for AI governance including provisions that directly touch on AI education and workforce readiness, alongside classification of AI applications by risk level and requirements for responsible deployment.
The law’s passage follows an active policy period that included Vietnam’s National Plan on teacher digital competency (2025), a UNESCO AI Readiness Assessment Report completed in October 2025, and the launch of a national school AI pilot in December 2025 covering grades 1 to 12.
Who it affects: All entities developing, deploying, or using AI systems in Vietnam. The education-specific provisions affect schools, universities, teachers, and students as the government integrates AI into national curricula in alignment with the legal framework. Government agencies are also subject to the law’s governance provisions.
What is notably missing: While the law establishes a governance framework, the enforcement body and its specific mandate have not been fully detailed in available public reporting. The law’s education provisions appear to set a direction for AI integration rather than defining a binding minimum AI literacy standard for all students or workers. Vietnam’s shortage of advanced AI expertise (approximately 300 PhD-level specialists as of 2025) creates a significant capacity gap for implementation.