First of all, when establishing a business in Vietnam, foreign investors need to meet requirements for foreign investors as prescribed in Article 22 of the Law on Investment 2020, including:

• Meeting the market access conditions for foreign investors;
• Having an investment project; carrying out procedures for issuing an Investment Registration Certificate.

Business lines of sports service are subject to the List of industries with market access conditions according to Appendix I, Decree 31/2021/ND-CP. Therefore,  foreign investors need to apply for an Investment Registration Certificate and meet business conditions for this line of business in accordance with Vietnamese law.

For that reason, the procedures for establishing a sport service business for foreign investors are carried out according to the following steps:

STEP 1: APPLYING FOR ISSUING INVESTMENT REGISTRATION CERTIFICATE (PROJECT IS NOT SUBJECT TO INVESTMENT POLICY APPROVAL)

1. Requirements for issuing Investment Registration Certificate

• Having an investment project which is not subject to List of lines banned from business investment;
• Having a location to implement the investment project;
• Having an investment project which is suitable with national planning, regional planning, provincial planning, urban planning and planning of special administrative – economic units (if any);
• Meeting conditions on investment rate on an area of land, number of employees used (if any);
• Meeting market access conditions for foreign investors.

1.2 Types of documents

• A written request for implementing the investment project;
• Documents on the investor's legal status;
• Documents to prove the financial capacity of investor;
• Proposal for investment project content;
• Other documents related to the investment project, requirements on condition and capacity of investor as prescribed by law (if any).

1.3. Settlement Agency: Department of Planning and Investment of province/city or Management Board of industrial zone, export processing zone, hi-tech zone and economic zone for investment projects in industrial zone, export processing zone, hi-tech zone, economic zone.

1.4 Time limit for settlement: Within 15 days from the date of receiving a valid dossier.

STEP 2: APPLYING FOR ISSUING ENTERPRISE REGISTRATION CERTIFICATE

2.1 Types of documents

• A written request for enterprise registration;
• Company’s charter;
• List of members (for Limited liability company), shareholders (for Joint stock company);
• Copies of the following documents:

• Legal documents of the individual for the legal representative; foreign investor;
• Legal documents for members, shareholders being an organization and authorized document of authorized representative; legal documents of individuals for the authorized representative of member being organization;
• For the members are foreign organizations, the copies of legal documents of the organization must be consular legalization;
• Investment Registration Certificate for foreign investors.

2.2 Procedures for issuing Enterprise Registration Certificate

• Step 1: Prepare for a dossier on establishing an enterprise.
• Step 2: Submit the dossier to the Business Registration Department, Department of Planning and Investment of the province/city where you intend to do business.
• Step 3: Business Registration Department – Department of Planning and Investment of the province/city will issue the Enterprise Registration Certificate within 03 days from the date of receiving a valid application.

STEP 3: APPLYING FOR ISSUING CERTIFICATE OF ELIGIBILITY FOR SPORT ACTIVITY BUSINESS

3.1 Requirements of sport activity business

• Clause 2, Article 18 of Decree 36/2019/ND-CP stipulates: Enterprise only conduct sport activity business after being granted a Certificate of eligibility for sport activity business by authority agency. Thus, after obtaining an Enterprise Registration Certificate, investors need to carry out the procedures for issuing Certificate of eligibility for sport activity business in order to do business in accordance with regulations.
• Article 55 of Law on Physical Training and Sports 2006, as amended in 2018 stipulates that enterprise doing sport activity business must meet the following requirements:

• Having a team of professional employees who are suitable for the activity content, including:

• Sports training instructor;
• Lifeguard;
• Medical staff.

• Having facilities and equipment to meet requirements of sport activity.

3.2 Types of documents

• A written request for Certificate of eligibility;
• A summary of  preparation for conditions for sport activity business    (attached a copy of Enterprise Registration Certificate; copies of diplomas, certificates and certificates of professional staff).

3.3 Procedures for issuing Certificate of eligibility for sport activity business

• Step 1: Submit 01 dossier to the physical training and sport agency under the People's Committee of the province where the place of business of sport activity is registered or where the enterprise's headquarter is located in case enterprise has many places of sport activity business.
• Step 2: The physical training and sport agency under the People's Committee of the province (hereinafter referred to as the agency issuing Certificate of eligibility) issues the enterprise with a receipt for application.
• Step 3: Within 07 working days from the date of receiving a valid dossier, the physical training and sport agency under the People's Committee of the province must check conditions for sport activity business in accordance with regulations and grant Certificate of eligibility for sport activity business; in case of rejection, it must notify a written notice with a clear reason.

The above is our advice related to the establishment of foreign-invested enterprise doing sport activity business in Vietnam. If you have any questions that need to be clarified, you can send an email, contact our phone number or come directly to our office to be counseled and supported by our Lawyers.

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