Licences & Legal Eligibility
A Rental Shop Says You Do Not Need a Licence: How to Check the Official Position
About 7 minutes to read
If a rental shop says no licence is needed in Vietnam, the statement can be set against official texts rather than accepted or dismissed on trust. This article reads Vietnam’s 2024 road traffic law as a provincial government portal reproduces it (posted 9 September 2024), the penalties decree (portal copy dated 3 January 2025), a Hanoi government legal-information answer (2 January 2025), a Ministry of Finance insurance answer (page dated 23 June 2025), a traffic police note on a 2026 amendment, and the travel advice of the British, Australian and Canadian governments (updated September and October 2026). It reports what each says and ends with what they leave out.
First question: which vehicle is the shop talking about?
Law 36/2024/QH15 separates mopeds from motorcycles by engine size and motor power. Its Article 34 defines a moped (xe gắn máy) as a two- or three-wheeler with a design speed of no more than 50 km/h and, for a heat engine, a capacity of no more than 50 cm3, or, for an electric motor, a power of no more than 4 kW. A motorcycle (xe mô tô) is any other two- or three-wheeled motor vehicle. Article 57 then sets the licence classes.
| Vehicle | Definition in the law | Licence position in the law |
|---|---|---|
| Moped | Up to 50 km/h; up to 50 cm3 or up to 4 kW | Article 56(1) excepts moped riders from the licence requirement; Article 56(4) asks for knowledge of the traffic rules, riding skill and the age and health conditions (Article 59: 16 or over) |
| Motorcycle, class A1 | Two-wheeler up to 125 cm3 or electric motor up to 11 kW | Class A1 licence |
| Motorcycle, class A | Two-wheeler above 125 cm3 or above 11 kW | Class A licence, which also covers A1 vehicles |
Of the two classes defined above, “no licence needed” fits only a moped. A Hanoi government legal-information page (posted 2 January 2025) says the same: a moped rider does not need a licence, while a motorcycle rider must have one. A page on this site is titled 50cc Motorbike Rental in Hanoi: License & Legal Requirements.
What the law says about riding and handing over a bike
Article 9 lists prohibited acts. Clause 1 bans operating a motor vehicle on roads without the licence the law requires; clause 7 bans handing a motor vehicle to someone who does not meet the legal conditions to ride it. Article 56(1) lists the papers a driver carries: registration, a licence for the vehicle type, the inspection certificate where the law requires one and the compulsory civil liability insurance certificate. Article 56(3) allows papers held in the electronic identity account to be shown through it. Article 88 gives 1 January 2025 as the start date, with one clause (Article 10, clause 3) starting in 2026. Related reading: Do You Need a Motorcycle License in Vietnam? Current Rules.
Penalties and roadside checks under Decree 168/2024
The Lai Chau portal copy of Decree 168/2024/ND-CP (dated 26 December 2024, in force from 1 January 2025) sets these amounts.
| Situation | Amount (VND) |
|---|---|
| Two-wheeled motorcycle up to 125 cm3 or 11 kW ridden without a licence (Article 18(5)) | 2,000,000 to 4,000,000 |
| Two-wheeled motorcycle above 125 cm3 or 11 kW ridden without a licence (Article 18(7)) | 6,000,000 to 8,000,000 |
| Motorcycle or moped rider without a valid compulsory insurance certificate (Article 18(2)) | 200,000 to 300,000 |
| Owner of a motorcycle or moped who hands it over, or lets it be ridden, by a person not meeting Article 56(1) of the law (Article 32(10)) | 8,000,000 to 10,000,000 for an individual; 16,000,000 to 20,000,000 for an organisation |
Article 48 lets authorities hold a vehicle before a penalty decision for listed offences, including Article 18 clauses 5 to 7 and Article 32 clause 10. When a rider cannot show the licence, registration or inspection certificate, Article 48(3)(a) has a record drawn up against the rider and, for matching Article 32 offences, against the owner, with the vehicle held; under Article 48(3)(c), papers shown within the time set in the record mean no penalty for the missing papers and none for the owner. Decree 238/2026/ND-CP amends Decree 168 from 15 August 2026. The traffic police note of 30 June 2026 names child safety devices in cars, monitoring devices on transport vehicles, contract passenger transport and penalty authority, and does not mention the amounts above.
Insurance: where a missing licence matters
A Ministry of Finance insurance-supervision answer (page dated 23 June 2025) quotes Article 7(2)(c) of Decree 67/2023/ND-CP. That clause lists, among the cases excluded from compulsory civil liability insurance of motor vehicle owners, a driver who has no licence or uses an invalid, erased or expired one, or one unsuitable for a motor vehicle that must have a licence. GOV.UK says it is illegal to drive without third-party insurance, and Smartraveller says a travel insurer will likely deny claims from an unlicensed rider. For fuller reading, this site has Compulsory Motorbike Liability Insurance in Vietnam: What the Certificate Covers and What a Renter Should Check and Travel Insurance and Rental Motorbikes in Vietnam: Questions for Your Insurer.
What three governments tell visitors
| Page | Date shown | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| GOV.UK, Vietnam safety and security | Modified 21 September 2026 | Carry the 1968 version of the international driving permit and the UK licence when driving a car or motorbike; do not use a passport as a deposit for hiring vehicles |
| Smartraveller (Australia), Vietnam | Updated 24 September 2026 | Australian licences and Australian-issued permits are not allowed; a valid Vietnamese licence is needed to ride, including motorcycles of 50cc or more; contact the relevant ward police for further advice |
| Travel.gc.ca (Canada), Vietnam | Last updated 19 October 2026 | Canadian licences and Canadian-issued permits are not recognised; a valid Vietnamese licence is needed for an engine of 50CC or more |
A way to compare the statement with the texts
- Ask the shop whether it treats the bike as a moped or a motorcycle, with the engine size in cm3 or the motor power in kW, and which text it relies on.
- Set the answer against the Article 34 and Article 57 definitions above.
- Ask for the compulsory insurance certificate, which Article 56(1) lists among the papers carried and for which Decree 168 sets a fine if it is missing or invalid.
- Ask your own insurer about motorcycles, as Smartraveller says to check that a travel policy covers riding one.
- For remaining doubt, Smartraveller points to the relevant ward police.
Where the pages disagree or are unclear
At exactly 50 cm3 the wording differs: the law’s moped definition says not above 50 cm3 for a heat engine or 4 kW for an electric motor, Decree 168 Article 18(4)(a) in its 2024 text says from 50 cm3 or from 04 kW for people aged 16 to under 18 on motorcycles, and Smartraveller and Travel.gc.ca say 50cc or more. GOV.UK asks for a 1968 permit plus the UK licence, while the Australian and Canadian pages say their own permits are not accepted, and none explains the difference.
What the pages leave out
No page says whether a given rental motorbike counts as a moped or a motorcycle, or where its engine size is shown on its papers. None says what a Hanoi rental business must check before handing over a bike, or whether telling a visitor that no licence is needed breaches anything. The text of Decree 238/2026 was not read, so the amounts above are the 2024 original ones and may have changed. A reader question on the Ministry of Finance page describes Decree 67/2023/ND-CP as amended by Decree 220/2026/ND-CP of 22 June 2026; that amendment was not read either, so Article 7(2)(c) may read differently now. The Ministry of Finance answer concerns learner-driver vehicles and does not say how an insurer treats a moped rider. No page gives a Hanoi police or transport office address or phone number for a licence question in advance: Smartraveller points to the relevant ward police, Travel.gc.ca to the Department of Transport in the province of residence, and the only number listed is the national emergency number 113 (Smartraveller and Travel.gc.ca). No page from any other government, and none from any rental shop, was read.
Sources checked
- Nghe An portal, posted 9 September 2024: law text. Nghe An: road traffic law
- Lai Chau portal, 3 January 2025: decree text. Lai Chau: Decree 168
- Hanoi legal-information site, 2 January 2025: moped and motorcycle answer. Hanoi: licence answer
- Ministry of Finance, page dated 23 June 2025: insurance answer. Finance Ministry: insurance
- Traffic police, 30 June 2026: Decree 238 note. Traffic police: Decree 238
- GOV.UK, modified 21 September 2026: UK advice. GOV.UK: Vietnam safety
- Smartraveller, updated 24 September 2026: Australian advice. Smartraveller: Vietnam
- Travel.gc.ca, last updated 19 October 2026: Canadian advice. Canada: Vietnam advice
Thuê xe máy Nguyễn Hà is open 09:00–21:00 daily at Ngõ 5 Nguyễn Văn Cừ, Bồ Đề, Long Biên, Hà Nội (near Gia Lâm bus station). Phone: 0334 699 969.