MANAGEMENT AND USE OF INTERNET DOMAIN NAMES

LEGAL UPDATE

On 8 December 2021, the Ministry of Information and Telecommunications of Vietnam issued Circular No. 21/2021/TT-BTTTT (Circular 21), which supersedes Circular No. 06/2019/TT-BTTTT dated 19 July 2019 amending and supplements some articles of Circular No. 24/2015/TT-BTTTT (Circular 24) regulating on the management and use of internet resources. In general, Circular 21 targets to complete the legal corridor in the development of national internet resources in association with the goals of socio-economic development and digital transformation in the coming period.

Circular 21 took effect on 7 February 2022.

In this update, we set out some notable points for your information.

1. New Second-Level Domain Names and Registration Priority

Circular 32 adds the following three additional second-level domain names to the list of second-level domain names:

• id.vn for individuals to register the use of images, products and personal trademarks in the internet environment;

• io.vn for individuals and organisations to register the use of digital technology applications, platforms and services in the internet environment; and

• ai.vn for individuals and organisations to register their operations and services related to artificial intelligence in the internet environment.

With the addition of these new second-level domain names, Circular 21 would create more domain names suitable for technology development trends and is user-friendly. This would help extend the use of domain names in Vietnam.

Moreover, Circular 21 prioritises the registration of certain domain names for certain subjects. In particular, .id.vn for applicants who are Vietnamese individuals between 18 and 23, and .biz.vn for applicants that are newly established enterprises and business households are prioritised for registration. This would promote start-up activities and develop the digital economy.

2. Reduced Renewal Timeline of Domain Name Life Cycle

Under Circular 24, if a .vn domain name expires, such a domain name can:

• remains valid five days after the expiry date, but after this period, the operation of the domain name will be suspended (Suspension Date);

• be renewed within 35 days after the Suspension Date.

Circular 21 removes the five-day period during which the domain name remains valid upon expiry and reduces the late renewal timeline of domain names (for both .vn and international domain names) from 35 days to 25 days upon the expiry date. As such, a domain name will be suspended immediately upon expiry and can be renewed within 25 days upon the expiry date in accordance with Circular 21.

3. Synchronisation of Regulations on Management of .vn and International Domain Name

The regulations on the management of international domain names are harmonised with the regulations applied to .vn domain names under Circular 21. In particular, the regulations on the registration and usage principles and the procedures of suspending the operation of and revoking domain names applied to international domain names are now the same as those applied to .vn domain names.

For more information, please contact:

Mark Oakley / Managing Partner

mark.oakley@acsvlegal.com

Linh Nguyen / Associate

linh.nguyen@acsvlegal.com

© 2022 ACS Legal Vietnam Company Limited – All rights reserved

This legal update is not an advice and should not be treated as such.

Download pdf: Management and Use of Internet Domain Names

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