Why Amendments to Decree 168 to Increase Penalties for Traffic Violations Are Being Considered

The Public Security Ministry says that the situation of traffic order and safety remains complex, so researching amendments to Decree 168 is necessary. According to the latest news, the Public Security Ministry is seeking comments on revising Decree 168 (2024) on penalties for administrative violations in road traffic order and safety, including points deduction and restoration of driver’s license points. The draft focuses on revising penalties for many groups of violations, with significant changes to the penalty authority compared with current regulations. The Public Security Ministry notes that after more than a year of implementing Decree 168/2024, it has basically met the requirements to strengthen state management; the rate of violations processed has increased, and traffic accidents have declined. Specifically, authorities have logged more than 3.3 million violation cases and fined over 6,727 billion VND. Of these, 634,556 were alcohol-related violations (16.65%), 37,931 were overweight cargo violations (1%), 786,484 were speed violations (20.63%), 57,041 were violations of traffic signal commands, and 178,295 involved driving in the wrong lane or road (4.68%). Additionally, 147,289 violations involved students. In the same period, there were 18,447 traffic accidents, causing 10,379 deaths and 12,282 injuries (including 26 particularly serious cases, with 96 deaths and 74 injuries). Compared with the same period last year, accidents fell by 5,293 cases, deaths by 708, and injuries by 5,257. The causes of accidents were analyzed as drivers not paying attention (21.06%), driving in the wrong lane or direction (11.98%), violations of turning safety rules (9.66%), consumption of alcohol or stimulants (8.2%), overtaking violations (3.75%), speeding (3.13%), and failure to yield (2.9%). However, the Ministry notes that traffic order and road safety remain complex. It emphasizes issues such as vehicles operating as transport businesses without proper licensing, transporting passengers or goods for money, and “shadow” transport, which undermine fair competition and tax revenue. The draft also points to nonstandard containers on tractors or trailers and oversized chassis as problems lacking adequate penalties. Another issue cited is that from March 1, 2025, the Public Security Ministry has taken on state management of licensing tests for drivers, previously under the Ministry of Transport (now under the Ministry of Construction); however, traffic police have not yet penalized violations related to driving tests due to unclear jurisdiction. The drafting body argues that revising certain provisions of Decree 168 is essential to ensure completeness, universality, and consistency in the regulatory framework for administrative penalties, traffic order and road safety. The aim is to facilitate the implementation of the law and address practical gaps, thereby strengthening state management and safety on the roads. “The Decree aims to tighten discipline in complying with road traffic rules, particularly for organizations, individuals and those operating transport businesses,” the Public Security Ministry says. The draft further asserts that, in principle, the proposed rules do not require new resource allocations and can continue to rely on the current enforcement framework. If approved, the new Decree would take effect from July 1, with some specific provisions taking effect on January 1, 2028 or January 1, 2029. If a violation occurs and is completed before this Decree takes effect but is discovered or under consideration afterward, enforcement would follow the decree in force at the time of the violation. “Tow trucks could face heavier penalties,” the draft proposes penalties of 12–14 million VND for drivers of cars not engaged in passenger transport who nonetheless carry passengers for money or sign contracts, with a 6-point deduction. Provisions on transport contracts would be tightened in Article 20. The Ministry also proposes fines of 5–10 million VND for cases such as a rescue vehicle driving a vehicle that is not overweight for a rescue operation or towing an over-weighted vehicle, in addition to a 2-point license deduction. The draft also adds numerous penalties related to internal transport vehicles. The latest draft also proposes penalties for passenger transport businesses that fail to install child safety devices, with fines of 800,000–1,000,000 VND for carrying children under 10 years old or under 1.35m in height in seats that do not have appropriate safety devices. The new rules would apply to all passenger transport vehicles, not only eight-seater vehicles. It also introduces an obligation to install image-recording devices in the passenger cabin and to manage, transmit, store and archive data from those devices. Article 20 would also set a 1–2 million VND fine for passenger transport businesses that operate without capturing images of the driver or with devices that are installed but nonfunctional or that distort data. The provisions for eight-seat and larger passenger vehicles would be updated to apply these rules uniformly. Further details are provided in the draft. The report concludes with a note that if the Decree is passed into law, it would take effect from July 1, with certain transitional rules specified for 2028 and 2029. Source: Minh Tuệ; VTC News. If a violation ends before the effective date but is discovered later, the current decree at the time of the violation would apply.