Vietnam decriminalised homosexuality long ago and removed it from its list of "social evils" in 1990. Same-sex relationships aren't prosecuted, but there is no legal recognition — no marriage or civil union — and anti-discrimination law does not cover sexual orientation or gender identity. Unusually for the region, transgender identity has been legally recognised since 2016. Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have held Viet Pride since 2012, now drawing large crowds. The score (Equaldex Equality Index) reflects that mix: moderate legal progress, warmer public opinion, but real gaps — hence the ~.

Vietnam is a one-party state governed by the Communist Party. There are no competitive elections, no legal opposition and no independent press — outlets are state-owned or Party-linked, and Vietnam is one of the world's leading jailers of bloggers and journalists (RSF ranks it 173rd of 180 in 2025). The 2018 Cybersecurity Law tightened control of online speech. Alongside this, governance is relatively effective and a sustained anti-corruption drive has run since 2016; the economy is dynamic and largely market-driven under one-party oversight.

Vietnam ranks around 74th of 148 on the WEF Global Gender Gap Index (2025, score 0.759), scoring well on educational attainment and health but with gaps in economic participation and political representation. Female labour-force participation is relatively high for the region. Documented concerns remain around the gender pay gap and the trafficking of women and girls — particularly from ethnic-minority communities in the north — which NGO and government programmes work to address. Abortion is legal on request up to 22 weeks.

Vietnam's WJP Rule of Law score (0.50/1 in the 2024 index, ≈5.0/10 here) reflects a system where the law works reasonably well in commercial and civil matters — contracts are enforced, property rights exist — while political and fundamental rights are systematically restricted. The judiciary is not independent from the Communist Party. Corruption exists but is being actively prosecuted. For tourists the day-to-day experience is orderly; scams (overcharging, fake agencies) are a likelier issue than systemic legal risk.

Not every country is measured on every value. Where the public data doesn't exist, we'd rather tell you than fill the gap with a guess — and Vietnam is one of those cases.

The figure on our other country pages comes from the US Department of Labor's yearly review of what governments are doing about the worst forms of child labour, and that review covers the 131 countries which hold trade preferences with the United States. Vietnam is not one of them, so it is never assessed. Household surveys do measure child labour in some countries outside that system, but they are run in different years with different questions, so a number taken from one of them would not mean the same thing as the tiered assessment used elsewhere on this site. We would rather show nothing than a number that isn't comparable.