The gaps revealed from the sensational cases
The new regulations are issued in the context that many streamers and TikTokers doing online business are criminally handled, showing loopholes in sales activities on social networks. Some cases such as Hoang Huong, Hai Sen Family, Cun Bong... are being investigated related to trading in counterfeit goods, declaring untruthful revenue and large-scale tax evasion.
To close these loopholes, the E-commerce Law takes effect from July 1, 2026. Livestream sellers are no longer just simple product introducers but must bear greater responsibility for information provided to consumers.
Mr. Pham Nam (Ninh Binh) - Fashion business for middle-aged people through social networks and e-commerce platforms, said that tightening management is necessary in the context that consumers are increasingly losing trust because fake and poor quality goods appear a lot on e-commerce platforms.
Serious sellers like us always have full invoices, documents and product declaration papers. Therefore, the new regulation does not create too much pressure but on the contrary, it also helps filter out untransparent sales units and unhealthy competition," Mr. Nam said.
However, according to Mr. Nam, in the early stages of implementation, management agencies and e-commerce platforms need to have specific guidance on the list of documents to be provided for each group of goods so that sellers can easily implement it. "We hope that platforms will have tools to support document authentication once, then use them for many livestream sessions instead of having to supplement repeatedly," Mr. Nam suggested.
Livestream sales must come with legal documents
Talking to Lao Dong Newspaper, Lawyer Dao Thi Lien, Hanoi Bar Association, said that the new E-commerce Law has stipulated that before conducting livestream sales, sellers must provide complete documents proving business conditions for conditional industries, and at the same time provide documents proving that products meet quality standards according to the provisions of law.
For products subject to advertising content confirmation, sellers must provide a written confirmation before conducting livestreams. Product introduction content in live broadcasts must also be consistent with the content approved by competent authorities.
In particular, the person who broadcasts live sales is responsible for refusing cooperation if the seller does not provide sufficient documents as prescribed. This regulation is considered an important new point, because for the first time the responsibility is placed on the livestreamer instead of just focusing on the sales unit.
In addition, the law also strictly prohibits providing false or misleading information about the uses, origin, quality, selling price, promotions or warranty policies of products.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Vietnam's e-commerce is maintaining an average growth rate of about 25% per year. In 2025, the scale of the online retail market is estimated at 31 billion USD, accounting for about 11% of total retail sales of goods and about 60% of the population participating in online shopping.
The rapid development of the market has created many opportunities for businesses and consumers. However, along with that are risks related to counterfeit goods, false advertising, trade fraud and tax revenue loss.
In that context, the E-commerce Law is expected to create a stricter legal corridor for new business models, especially livestream sales activities that are developing strongly on digital platforms.
