Vietnam Orders Aggressive Action on Online Piracy Amid US Tariff Threats

Vietnam’s government has announced a new crackdown on online piracy and counterfeit goods, set to begin on May 7, in response to escalating pressure from the United States over intellectual property (IP) violations. The initiative, ordered by Prime Minister Le Minh Hung, aims to increase the detection of copyright infringement cases by at least 20% during the month of May.

The directive, issued on May 5 and published on the government’s online portal, instructs ministries to intensify efforts to identify and address IP violations. The Ministry of Finance has been specifically tasked with ensuring that the number of cases involving suspended customs clearance procedures and subsequent processing rises by at least 20% compared to May 2025. The focus will be on imported shipments where clear evidence of counterfeit goods is found, although the government did not disclose figures for previous violations.

This renewed enforcement effort follows a warning from the United States last week, which cited Vietnam’s “persistent failure” to address intellectual property violations. The US, which maintains a multibillion-dollar trade surplus with Vietnam—exceeding even that with China so far in 2026, according to US data—has revived the possibility of imposing new tariffs on Vietnamese goods.

The Trump administration has repeatedly called on Hanoi to rebalance trade relations and, last week, labeled Vietnam as the world’s worst offender for IP infringements. The administration warned that it could initiate a tariff investigation by the end of May if Vietnam does not take substantive action.

Vietnam’s trade relationship with China and the US is significant. China remains Vietnam’s largest supplier, with exports to Vietnam reaching a record US$186 billion in 2025, according to official Vietnamese data. The US is Vietnam’s largest export market, with shipments valued at US$153 billion in 2025. Key exports include electronic goods, garments, and footwear, much of which is assembled by foreign multinationals using components and raw materials sourced primarily from China.

Prime Minister Hung’s order also sets a deadline at the end of May for a 20% increase in the number of cases addressing copyright violations involving computer programs, movies, music, TV shows, online video games, and counterfeit goods sold domestically.

Vietnam, governed as a one-party communist state, grants prosecutors and police broad enforcement powers. The country previously launched a similar crackdown in 2025, shortly after the Trump administration imposed duties of 46% on Vietnamese imports. These tariffs were subsequently reduced to 20% in July 2025, and further to 10% in February 2026, following a US Supreme Court decision that invalidated some of the Trump administration’s global tariffs. Despite this, the administration has pledged to reinstate tariffs using alternative legal mechanisms.

On April 30, the US Trade Representative’s office classified Vietnam as the only “priority foreign country” in its annual intellectual property report. This marks the first time in 13 years that Vietnam has been placed in this category, which is reserved for nations with the most severe IP-related acts, policies, and practices that have the greatest negative impact on relevant US products.

“Vietnam’s newfound status as a priority foreign country for intellectual property infringements certainly increases the risk of the US government imposing higher trade barriers,” said Heng Jian Xin, an analyst at research firm BMI.

In response to the US warning, Vietnam has asserted that it has made significant efforts to protect intellectual property and has called for an “objective and balanced assessment” from Washington.