Hanoi (VNA) – Party General Secretary To Lam signed the Politburo’s Resolution No. 66-NQ/TW on April 30 on the reform of law-making and enforcement processes to meet the country's development requirements in the new era.
The resolution describes legal reform as the “breakthrough of breakthroughs” in perfecting national institutions. It positions a modern, workable, and transparent legal system as a core competitive advantage for Vietnam in the 21st century when the quality of governance matters as much as resources or labour.
The resolution is framed as a strategic blueprint to restructure the country’s institutional foundations so Vietnam can grow quickly, sustainably, and fairly. It builds on decades of progress: Vietnam already has a broad legal system covering nearly all areas of social life, from constitutions and major codes to some 300 current laws. The National Assembly’s 15th tenure, especially its 9th session, made major strides. It passed 34 laws and 34 resolutions, including amendments to the Constitution to support reorganising two-tier local government.
Yet, the Politburo also acknowledges persistent problems. Some Party policies have been slow to translate into law. Overlapping and conflicting rules hinder implementation. A “control-heavy” mindset remains in some areas, raising compliance costs for people and businesses. Law enforcement is uneven, and policy responses to new issues - like digital transformation or green growth - are sometimes slow. Decentralisation is not strong enough, and administrative procedures are still complicated.
Resolution 66 responds to these gaps. It calls for a legal system that is coherent, simple, predictable, and friendly to innovation and investment - turning the law into a true driver of development.
Immediately after issuing Resolution 66, on May 1, the Politburo issued Decision No. 288-NQ/TW to establish the central steering committee on institutional and legal perfection, headed by Party General Secretary To Lam. This demonstrates the great determination of the country's highest leadership agencies to quickly put the resolution into practice.
By 2025, the country will remove key legal bottlenecks. By 2045, Vietnam will have a high-quality, modern legal system, approaching advanced international standards and practices and suitable to the country's reality.
Law becomes the standard of conduct for all subjects in society, modern national governance with a streamlined, efficient, effective, and effective state apparatus, meeting the requirements of rapid and sustainable national development, becoming a developed, high-income country with a socialist orientation by 2045.
Seven strategic tasks in Resolution 66
To realise the orientations, Resolution 66 sets out seven tasks and strategic solutions.
First, ensuring direct, comprehensive Party leadership in law-making
Ministers and heads of ministerial-level agenices must personally lead legislation in their sectors and be accountable for policy quality. Each ministry, sector agency, and National Assembly body should have at least one top leader with legal expertise. Provinces should assign Party Committee members to oversee judicial work and include Directors of Justice Departments in provincial Party Committees. Rotation of legal officials will deepen practical experience. Stronger power control and anti-corruption safeguards are mandated across the process.
Second, changing the law-making mindset to unlock creativity and resources
Laws should be stable, simple, easy to implement, and put people and businesses at the centre. The resolution urges moving beyond the mentality of “if we can’t manage it, we ban it.” Policy design must start early, from practice and international experience, and must seriously absorb feedback from those affected - without shifting burdens onto citizens or firms. Vietnam’s socialist-oriented market economy needs a clear, open, transparent, and safe legal environment that ensures real freedom of business and equality among all enterprises. The private sector is affirmed as a vital growth engine and should have fair access to capital, land, and high-quality human resources, with support for both leading private groups and SMEs.
The resolution also prioritises laws for science, technology, innovation, and digital/green transitions including frameworks for AI, data resources, tokenised assets, and other new fields, so Vietnam can form new growth drivers. As a rule, only core principles should be set by law for fast-changing areas; detailed, flexible rules can be assigned to the Government and localities to keep pace with reality.
Third, making law enforcement a true breakthrough
The law must be applied fairly, consistently, promptly, and effectively. Priority goes to enforcement that boosts socio-economic development, science-technology, innovation, digital transformation, and essential public services. Two clear commitments stand out: do not criminalise civil, administrative, or economic relationships, and do not use administrative measures to settle civil/economic disputes.
Fourth, strengthening international legal cooperation
Vietnam will expand cooperation on law and justice, build capacity to fulfil international legal obligations, and handle international legal disputes, especially in trade and investment. The country will develop a network of foreign legal experts, including overseas Vietnamese, and work to raise Vietnamese experts’ presence in international legal bodies.
Fifth, upgrading legal human resources
Special policies and competitive pay/contracting will attract talent for law-making and enforcement. Strategic policy and legal research institutions—especially at central agencies—will receive greater investment to improve the quality of legislation.
Sixth, accelerating digital transformation in law
The resolution calls for strong investment in IT infrastructure, big data, and AI to modernise law-making and enforcement. It orders quick rollout of a national legal big-data platform and AI applications to support drafting, checking, and reviewing legal documents, improving speed and accuracy.
Seventh, create a special finance mechanism for law-making and enforcement
Budgeting should be timely, adequate, and result-based. Spending for law-making must be no less than 0.5% of total annual budget and rise over time. A Policy and Law-Making Support Fund will be set up to ensure stable resources.
How to implement
According to General Secretary Lam, to bring the Resolution No. 66-NQ/TW to life and achieve pratical results, the entire Party, army and need to thoroughly grasp and well implement the tasks and solutions, particularly the following ones.
First, it is necessary to ensure the comprehensive and direct leadership of the Party in law-making work, and to promote Party spirit in law-making and enforcement. Party committees at all levels must lead the transformation of Party guidelines into law, and intensify inspection and supervision. Ministers must personally direct law-making in their sectors and be accountable for outcomes.
Second, orientations for law-building work must ensure effective state management and encourage creativity, fully unleashing productive forces and unlocking all development resources.
Law-making must fully, correctly, and promptly institutionalise the Party’s guidelines and policies, serving the overarching interests of the nation; firmly abandon the mindset of “banning what cannot be managed”; promote democracy; respect, ensure, and effectively protect human rights and citizens’ rights; and strike a reasonable balance between any restriction of rights and the legitimate benefits achieved.
Legal provisions must be stable, simple, easy to implement, and place people and businesses at the centre. Strategic policy research should start early, grounded in reality and international experience, to enhance foresight and improve legislative quality.
Immediate priorities include creating a transparent, safe, low-cost legal environment; cutting unreasonable business and administrative procedures; ensuring genuine freedom of business, property rights, and contractual autonomy; and developing laws for science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation. Laws on judicial and auxiliary judicial bodies must be aligned with judicial reform goals.
Third, it is necessary to create breakthroughs in law enforcement.
It shoud maximise the spirit of public service, development-oriented thinking, and action for the common good among public officials. Priorities should be given to effective law enforcement to drive socio-economic, scientific, technological, and digital transformation, as well as other key public welfare areas.
Other measures include building a culture of legal compliance, making constitutional and legal supremacy a universal social norm; focusing on legal interpretation and guidance, strengthen dialogue and feedback mechanisms, and promptly resolve legal difficulties faced by individuals, organisations, enterprises, and localities.
It is also needed to regularly assess post-enactment effectiveness of laws, apply technology to identify and address legal “bottlenecks” swiftly and comprehensively.
Fourth, it is important to enhance the effectiveness of international cooperation and international law.
It is necessary to strengthen the capacity of Vietnamese agencies and organisations to fully meet international legal obligations, participate effectively in shaping international legal institutions and norms, and address emerging international legal issues, especially in investment and trade disputes.
Vietnam must implement special mechanisms to attract, recruit, train, and develop highly qualified professionals in international law and dispute resolution, and increase the presence of Vietnamese experts in international legal organisations and tribunals; and expand international cooperation in law and justice.
Fifth, the Resolution stressed the need to implement breakthrough solutions to improve legal human resources, promote digital transformation and AI applications, and adopt special financial mechanisms for lawmaking and enforcement.
High-quality, people-centred, and reality-based laws are decisive to national success; therefore, any institutional weakness or legislative shortcoming must be firmly rejected.
Leaders and experts underline that institutions are both a resource and a driver of development. Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has stressed that investing in institutions is investing in growth. Former National Assembly official Nguyen Si Dung calls Resolution 66 a strategic design to restructure Vietnam’s institutional base, while economist Nguyen Dinh Cung labels institutional reform the “breakthrough of breakthroughs” that must go first to open the way for science-technology, innovation, and digital transformation.
Their message is clear with strong political will from the Party and Government, Vietnam has a rare opportunity to push bold legal reforms, unlock resources, and accelerate development./.
