Representative Office Establishment Services for Vietnamese Companies

When a business needs to expand its scope of operations, develop new markets, or strengthen trade promotion activities in other localities, establishing a representative office is an effective and cost-efficient solution. A representative office helps the company build a local presence and carry out liaison, market research, brand promotion, and business-support functions without setting up a new legal entity.

What is a representative office?

Under Article 44 of the Law on Enterprises 2020, a representative office is a dependent unit of the company, tasked with representing and protecting the company's interests under authorization. Enterprises may establish representative offices both inside and outside Vietnam; a company may have one or more representative offices in a given location, depending on administrative boundaries.

Functions of a representative office

• Serves as a liaison office: conducting market research, providing information, and helping the company access new markets and partners.
• Carries out trade promotion and brand-building activities on the company's behalf in locations other than the head office.
• Has no business function: it may not buy or sell, generate revenue, or sign contracts with customers.

Advantages of establishing a representative office

• No tax procedures or business license fee are required for a representative office.
• It may be located at the same address as the head office or in another province, including abroad.
• It helps the company develop new markets and promote its brand in other provinces and cities.

Disadvantages to note

• A representative office may not conduct any business activities.
• When relocating a representative office to another district, the company must still obtain confirmation of tax obligations from the tax authority at the old address.

Conditions for establishing a representative office

Under Vietnamese law, establishing a representative office of a domestic enterprise is relatively straightforward; however, the company must still meet certain conditions to be granted a Certificate of Representative Office Operation Registration:

• The representative office is a dependent unit performing authorized representation, trade promotion, market research, and protection of the company's interests — it may not directly conduct business or generate independent revenue.
• Its name must consist of the company name plus the phrase "Van phong dai dien" (Representative Office), must not duplicate or cause confusion with an already registered unit, and must appear on signage, transaction documents, and published materials.
• It must have a lawful, clearly identified operating address that complies with enterprise registration regulations — used for correspondence, transactions, and dealings with state authorities.
• The head of the representative office must be duly appointed by the company and act within the scope of authorization; the representative office may not sign commercial contracts in its own name — contracts require the company's approval and seal.
• On signage and printed materials, the representative office's name should be written in capital letters or in a smaller font size than the Vietnamese name of the parent company.