What the law says about prescriptions
Vietnamese law treats some medicines as prescription medicines (thuốc kê đơn), and Decree 90/2026/ND-CP fines a seller who sells one without a prescription. The Ministry of Health's Circular 26 of 2025 sets the current rules for outpatient prescriptions. It lets doctors prescribe up to 90 days of medicine, where the old limit was 30 days. Viet Nam News describes the 90 day provision as covering outpatients with health insurance, for long term conditions on a list of 252 diseases. A senior doctor at Bach Mai Hospital told the Vietnam News Agency that 90 days is a maximum, not a default, and that each case is judged on its own.
The same circular moved prescriptions online. Hospitals had to switch to electronic prescriptions by 1 October 2025, and other medical facilities by 1 January 2026. An electronic prescription carries the same legal weight as a paper one.
Sources: Decree 90/2026/ND-CP on administrative penalties in the health sector, official Vietnamese text, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Justice; Viet Nam News, Personalised treatment key to effectively applying new prescription circular, 9 July 2025; SGGP, Ministry requires hospitals to implement electronic prescriptions before October, 14 July 2025.
Why the counter does not always match the rules
For years, many people in Vietnam bought prescription medicines, antibiotics included, straight from a pharmacy without seeing a doctor. Reporting in July 2026 described this as long standing practice and linked it to antimicrobial resistance, where germs stop responding to the medicines meant to kill them. The same report cites a World Health Organization estimate of nearly 300,000 deaths in Vietnam between 2020 and 2023 associated with antimicrobial resistance.
The government is now pushing back. Decree 90/2026/ND-CP on health sector penalties took effect on 15 May 2026. Under Article 59, selling prescription medicine without a prescription carries a fine of VND 10 million to 20 million (roughly USD 380 to 760) for an individual, and the decree sets fines for organisations at twice the individual level. The Star, reporting for Vietnam News, called this double the previous maximum. The same article of the decree also fines retail sales of prescription medicines and specially controlled drugs through e-commerce, with a narrow exception for medical quarantine during a declared epidemic. In July 2026 Ho Chi Minh City's Department of Health published fines against several pharmacies for exactly this.
For you, the practical point is simple. If a medicine needs a prescription, expect to be asked for one, and do not rely on a pharmacist to sell it anyway.
Sources: Decree 90/2026/ND-CP on administrative penalties in the health sector, official Vietnamese text, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Justice; The Star (Vietnam News/ANN), HCM City fines pharmacies for selling prescription drugs without doctors' orders, 8 July 2026.
Fake and hard to find medicines
The UK government warns that some medicines can be hard to find in Vietnam and that many are fake. It also says some major brands that are easy to get in the UK may not be sold in Vietnam at all.
Sources: UK FCDO travel advice for Vietnam, Health; UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Living in Vietnam (updated 23 September 2025).
Medicines from home that are not sold here
The UK government says certain medicines may not be available in Vietnam, including major brands that are easy to buy in the UK, and that some may be prohibited from being brought in. Its advice is to talk to your own doctor before you travel about alternatives that are available in Vietnam.
Sources: UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Living in Vietnam (updated 23 September 2025).
Asking for the right medicine
The UK government notes that some major brands that are easy to buy in the UK are not available in Vietnam, so the name on a home packet may not appear here. Our editors suggest carrying a prescription that also shows the generic name of the active ingredient and its strength.
Sources: UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Living in Vietnam (updated 23 September 2025).
When you buy, read these parts of a Vietnamese box:
| Vietnamese on the box | What it means |
|---|---|
| Thành phần | Ingredients |
| Thuốc bán theo đơn | Medicine sold on prescription |
| Hạn dùng (HSD) | Expiry date |
| Số lô | Batch number |
| Ngày sản xuất (NSX) | Date of manufacture |
| Đọc kỹ hướng dẫn sử dụng trước khi dùng | Read the instructions carefully before use |
A quick checklist at the counter
- Show your prescription, paper or electronic, for any prescription medicine.
- Check the seal, the expiry date and the batch number before you pay.
- Keep the receipt and the leaflet.
Pharmacists, doctors and prescriptions
Under Circular 26 of 2025, prescriptions in Vietnam are issued by doctors at medical facilities, and since 1 January 2026 all facilities have been required to issue them electronically. This guide does not cover which health problems need a doctor: that is a question for a doctor or a licensed pharmacist.
For long term medicines, two rules set the limits: the 90 day maximum for one prescription, described above, and the customs limits on medicine brought into the country, which our guide to bringing medication to Vietnam covers. Our community pharmacy picks show the kind of pharmacy our editors noted for clear labelling and helpful staff.
This guide explains the rules and how the system works. It is not medical advice. Ask a doctor or a licensed pharmacist about any medicine for your own case.
If something goes wrong
Vietnam's ambulance number is 115. Keeping the box, the leaflet and the receipt gives a record of exactly what was bought, and where.
Pharmacies can be fined for breaking the rules, and the city health department in Ho Chi Minh City now publishes the penalties it hands out. The July 2026 list included fines for selling without a prescription, for running a pharmacy without its required professional supervisor, and for failing to keep expired or recalled medicines apart.
Common questions
- Do I need a prescription to buy medicine in Vietnam?
- For many medicines, yes. Vietnamese law lists medicines that may only be sold on a doctor's prescription, and since 15 May 2026 Decree 90/2026/ND-CP fines an individual VND 10 million to 20 million for selling them without one, and an organisation twice that.
- Can I buy antibiotics without a prescription in Vietnam?
- Expect to be asked for a prescription. A July 2026 report on fines in Ho Chi Minh City ties the crackdown on prescription medicines sold without a prescription to the misuse of antibiotics and to antimicrobial resistance.
- Can I buy prescription medicine online in Vietnam?
- As a rule, no. Decree 90/2026/ND-CP, in force from 15 May 2026, fines retail sales of prescription medicines and specially controlled drugs through e-commerce. The decree makes one exception for prescription medicines: medical quarantine during a declared epidemic of a group A infectious disease.
- What does thuốc bán theo đơn mean on a medicine box?
- It means the medicine is sold on prescription. Expect the pharmacy to ask for a doctor's prescription before it sells it.
- What is an electronic prescription in Vietnam?
- It is a prescription created, signed and stored digitally. Under Circular 26 of 2025, hospitals had to use them by 1 October 2025 and other medical facilities by 1 January 2026, and they carry the same legal weight as paper ones.
Sources
- Viet Nam News, Personalised treatment key to effectively applying new prescription circular, 9 July 2025
- SGGP, Ministry requires hospitals to implement electronic prescriptions before October, 14 July 2025
- Decree 90/2026/ND-CP on administrative penalties in the health sector, official Vietnamese text, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Justice
- The Star (Vietnam News/ANN), HCM City fines pharmacies for selling prescription drugs without doctors' orders, 8 July 2026
- UK FCDO travel advice for Vietnam, Health
- UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Living in Vietnam (updated 23 September 2025)