Special policy 'opens up' development for Hai Phong

Resolution No. 226 on special policies is expected to 'unleash' development for Hai Phong in the coming time.

Resolution 226/2025/QH15 is expected to create a boost for the development of Hai Phong city.

Outstanding mechanisms and policies

From September 1, Hai Phong city officially received the handover of 489.2/517.5 km of national inland waterways in the city for management, maintenance and organization of management of inland ports and wharves on the national inland waterway route from the Ministry of Construction . The city budget enjoys 100% of the fees and charges collected from inland waterways on the national inland waterway route and from the management of inland ports and wharves in the city... This is one of the specific policies stipulated in Resolution No. 226/2025/QH15 of the National Assembly.

Resolution 226/2025/QH15 of the National Assembly, effective from July 1, 2025, is considered a "lever" to help Hai Phong develop breakthroughs. The Resolution consists of 12 articles with 6 groups of specific mechanisms and policies, allowing the piloting of a number of mechanisms and policies to create a favorable legal corridor for Hai Phong to develop breakthroughs. The groups of mechanisms and policies include: investment management; financial management, state budget; planning, urban, natural resources and environment management; science and technology management, innovation; incentive mechanisms on income of cadres, civil servants and public employees under the city's management; establishment and mechanisms and policies in the city's Free Trade Zone.

The area is planned to establish the Southern Hai Phong Coastal Economic Zone with the "heart" being a Free Trade Zone with many outstanding incentive mechanisms and policies.

The most notable point is that the city established a Free Trade Zone with many outstanding special policies and mechanisms to attract investment, finance, trade, tourism, high-quality services and highly qualified human resources. Specifically, the City People's Committee decided to establish and adjust the boundaries of the Free Trade Zone associated with Dinh Vu - Cat Hai Economic Zone and the Southern Hai Phong Coastal Economic Zone. The Hai Phong Economic Zone Management Board directly manages the Free Trade Zone, provides public administrative services and supports enterprises in investment, production and business.

Free trade zones include: production zones, port and port logistics zones, logistics centers, trade and service zones and other types of functional zones.

Regarding the mechanism and policies in the Free Trade Zone, the resolution stipulates: Foreign investors are allowed to establish economic organizations in the Free Trade Zone without having to have an investment project and do not have to carry out procedures for granting investment registration certificates before establishing the economic organization... This area will apply outstanding incentive mechanisms such as: visa exemption and granting 10-year temporary residence cards to foreigners who are experts, scientists, talented people, managers, highly qualified workers and family members working at enterprises headquartered in the Free Trade Zone; corporate income tax incentives and simplification of investment and administrative procedures. The Free Trade Zone is expected to attract capital from high-tech corporations, international financial institutions and Research and Development Centers around the world...

Resolution 226 grants Hai Phong city the authority to manage investment, finance and special budget. The city has approved the investment policy for the investment project to build ports and port areas: with an investment capital scale of 2,300 billion VND or more belonging to Hai Phong seaport...

The city borrows through issuing local government bonds, borrowing from domestic financial institutions, other domestic organizations and from foreign loans from the Government to the city with the total outstanding loan balance not exceeding 120% of the city's budget revenue according to decentralization. This is considered a "push" to clear the bottleneck in urban traffic infrastructure.

Hai Phong established a Venture Capital Fund to invest capital in high-tech projects, innovative start-up businesses... The city budget enjoys 100% of the increased revenue from revenues due to adjustments in fee and charge policies to invest in socio-economic infrastructure and other spending tasks...

"Golden opportunity"

Comrade Le Trung Kien, member of the Standing Committee of the City Party Committee, Head of the Hai Phong Economic Zone Management Board, affirmed that Resolution 226 officially took effect from July 1, the right time when Hai Phong city merged with Hai Duong province and officially operated the 2-level local government, which is even more meaningful. In particular, the city successfully organized the Investment Promotion Conference: Hai Phong - Strategic Destination of the New Era on the sidelines of the 3rd meeting of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC III). At this conference, the city granted investment registration certificates to 32 projects and 7 memorandums of understanding with a total committed capital of more than 15.6 billion USD. This is a solid foundation for Hai Phong's breakthrough development in the coming time.

The world's leading investors highly appreciate the advantages of the Free Trade Zone and consider it an attractive force for Hai Phong to create new breakthroughs, attracting domestic and foreign investment capital.

With Resolution 226, Hai Phong city will focus on developing key areas such as seaport services, tourism...

In order for Hai Phong to take full advantage of Resolution 226, maintain its breakthrough development momentum, and effectively attract FDI capital, Minister of Finance Nguyen Van Thang suggested that Hai Phong city should promote the immediate and effective implementation of specific policies approved by the National Assembly in Resolution No. 226/2025/QH15. The Ministry of Finance supports Hai Phong city in quickly building the South Hai Phong Coastal Economic Zone. The Ministry of Finance will urgently work with Hai Phong to successfully implement the pilot operation of the Hai Phong Free Trade Zone with breakthrough policies, making Hai Phong a global strategic trade gateway.

Chairman of the Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) Pham Tan Cong assessed that Hai Phong is facing a “golden opportunity” for breakthrough development. In particular, the establishment of a Free Trade Zone (FTZ) in Hai Phong is expected to bring unprecedented strategic competitive advantages, with outstanding policies. VCCI is committed to accompanying Hai Phong in attracting high-quality investment capital, developing effective public-private partnership models, promoting innovation and sustainable development.

Comrade Le Ngoc Chau, Deputy Secretary of the City Party Committee, Chairman of the City People's Committee emphasized that Resolution No. 226/2025/QH15, which allows the establishment of a Free Trade Zone in Dinh Vu - Cat Hai Economic Zone and the Southern Hai Phong Economic Zone; together with the Specialized Economic Zone in the West of the city, will create the most open and attractive investment environment in the country. With the aspiration to rise, the city takes advantage of Resolution 226/2025/QH15 towards the goal of building Hai Phong into a leading economic center of the country, a strategic trade hub of the region and the world; a large seaport city, a pioneer in industrialization, digital transformation, green transformation and innovation.

The city will focus on developing key areas such as logistics; seaport services; tourism; education; science and technology; completing synchronous infrastructure and convenient connections, bringing Hai Phong to develop on par with typical Asian cities.

PHAM CUONG

Source: https://baohaiphong.vn/chinh-sach-dac-thu-mo-bung-su-phat-trien-cho-hai-phong-520949.html