Technical standards & testing

Vietnam uses a two-tier technical-rule system for food: • National Technical Regulations (Quy chuẩn kỹ thuật quốc gia — QCVN) — mandatory. Specify ceilings for contaminants, microbiological criteria, food-additive use levels, food-contact-material requirements, and product-category-specific safety parameters. Issued by the Ministry of Health (for most consumer-facing food categories), MARD, or MOIT depending on the product. QCVN reference numbers appear on product declarations and are checked at post-market inspection. • Vietnamese Standards (Tiêu chuẩn Việt Nam — TCVN) — voluntary, but often cited as the technical basis where no mandatory QCVN exists. Many TCVNs are aligned with Codex Alimentarius and ISO standards. Testing requirements: • A food-safety test report is mandatory in every product declaration dossier (self-declaration or registered declaration) under Decree 15/2018. • The testing laboratory must be ISO 17025 accredited and designated or recognised by a Vietnamese competent authority. MOH publishes the list of designated food-testing laboratories. • Test reports are valid for 12 months from issuance for the purpose of the declaration dossier. Post-market sampling: VFA and the sectoral ministries operate annual sampling plans. Samples are tested against the applicable QCVN and the parameters declared by the business; non-conformities trigger recall and administrative penalty under Decree 115/2018/NĐ-CP (as amended by Decree 124/2021).

Framework: • Law on Food Safety 55/2010/QH12 — Articles on product safety conditions and testing. • Decree 15/2018/NĐ-CP — mandates the test report in declaration dossiers and sets the 12-month validity rule; sets out designated-laboratory requirements. • Law on Technical Regulations and Standards No. 68/2006/QH11 — framework law for QCVN and TCVN. Key technical regulations (illustrative — verify current effective version): • QCVN 8 series — biological and chemical contaminants in foods (heavy metals, mycotoxins, microbiological criteria). • QCVN 4 series — food additives. • QCVN 12 series — food-contact materials (packaging, utensils, containers). • QCVN 6 series — bottled / packaged drinking water and natural mineral water. Laboratory accreditation: • ISO/IEC 17025 — general requirements for testing laboratories; the lab's accreditation scope must cover the specific food matrix and parameters tested. • MOH and the sectoral ministries publish lists of designated food-testing laboratories. Note: QCVN numbers and specific limits are updated by MOH/MARD/MOIT announcements; verify against the latest text before relying on them for declarations.

2023–2025 — Permitted-additive list expansions: MOH has progressively expanded the permitted lists of food additives and flavours, broadly aligning with Codex positions and ASEAN harmonisation. These announcements are authoritative for all food categories. 2024 — Drinking-water QCVN revisions: MOH revised technical regulations for packaged drinking water and natural mineral water in the QCVN 6 series. Companies operating in this category should re-test against the updated parameters. Standing — Designated-laboratory list: MOH refreshes the list of food-testing laboratories designated under Decree 15/2018. Self-declarations relying on results from an unlisted lab can be rejected at post-market check.