PCI DSS compliance in Vietnam

PCI DSS compliance in Vietnam at a glance

Neither the State Bank of Vietnam's Circular No. 18/2024/TT-NHNN on bank card operations nor its Circular No. 09/2020/TT-NHNN on information system safety names PCI DSS; the card circular points issuers instead to the domestic chip card base standard. PCI DSS reaches Vietnamese banks, payment intermediaries, e-commerce merchants and card-processing service providers through contracts — the card brands' programmes and the acquiring bank's requirements. Compliance is validated either by a Qualified Security Assessor listed by the PCI Security Standards Council or by self-assessment, as the payment brands and acquirer require; no Vietnamese authority issues a PCI DSS certificate. The requirements cover network security, protection of stored account data, encryption in transit, vulnerability management, access control, logging, testing and policy. Sterling's Ho Chi Minh City office scopes the cardholder data environment, closes gaps and prepares evidence for the QSA or the self-assessment questionnaire, with Effivity and Sterling Academy included. Local questions follow.

Who needs PCI DSS in Vietnam, and what happens without it

These are the organisations in Vietnam that most often need to show PCI DSS.

• Card issuers and acquirersCard brand and acquirer programmes require PCI DSS; the SBV card circular sets domestic chip standards.
• Payment intermediaries and e-wallet providersCovered by SBV information system safety rules; card data handling contractually requires PCI DSS.
• E-commerce merchants and card-processing service providersAcquirers require validation of PCI DSS compliance.

PCI DSS requirements in Vietnam

Strip away the vocabulary and PCI DSS asks any business that stores, processes or transmits card data to comply in six areas.

In Vietnam these six sit alongside the local laws and regulations listed under drivers below; one system can evidence both. The detail is on the global hub: PCI DSS explained →

• PCI DSS requirements, clause by clause in plain language
• The documents PCI DSS expects
• PCI DSS checklist

How to achieve PCI DSS compliance in Vietnam

One team from the Ho Chi Minh City office carries the work from scoping to sign-off. Delivery across Vietnam from the Ho Chi Minh City office, on-site and remote.

1. Discovery call and scopeEntities, locations, regulators and target date, agreed before any proposal.
2. Gap assessment against PCI DSS and the Vietnamese requirements that apply to youControls you already run for your regulators and customers are reused, not rebuilt.
3. Your system built with your team in EffivityRisks, controls, evidence, incidents and reviews in one live system the auditor can see.
4. Internal audit, management review and corrective actionsYour internal auditors trained by Sterling; the evidence proven before any external review.
5. Reviews by regulators, customers and auditorsSterling supports the reviews your regulators, customers and auditors run.

The Sterling Promise: 100% on-time completion, 100% success, 8,100+ client engagements.Sterling does not certify. Certification decisions stay with independent bodies.

• PCI DSS gap analysis
• PCI DSS implementation plan
• PCI DSS internal audit

How long does PCI DSS compliance take in Vietnam?

There is no standard duration: it depends on your scope and on how much of the system already runs. In Vietnam these are the factors that set the timeline.

• Size of the cardholder data environment and segmentation
• Number of third-party service providers in scope
• Evidence of quarterly scans and penetration testing

Sterling agrees a dated plan with you on the discovery call, once the scope is known.

• What drives the PCI DSS timeline
• Scope and timeline estimator

How much does PCI DSS compliance cost in Vietnam?

The cost has two parts: the consulting work to build and prove the system, and any external assessor’s fees, which are quoted separately. In Vietnam these factors move both.

• Scope of the cardholder data environment
• QSA fees quoted separately from consulting
• Technical remediation (encryption, logging, segmentation)

Sterling gives one customised, all-inclusive proposal after the discovery call, never before the scope is agreed.

• What makes up the cost of PCI DSS

PCI DSS consultants and assessors in Vietnam

Two different organisations are involved. A consultant helps you build the system and prove it works; your regulators, customers and auditors then audits or assesses it and decides. Keeping the two separate is what makes the result credible to buyers and regulators.

• Check that the body’s accreditation or approval covers PCI DSS and your sector, and that its certificates can be verified online.
• Ask the consultant how the local requirements in Vietnam are mapped into the same system, so nothing runs twice.
• Ask for client references in your sector; Sterling’s client letters are available on request.
• Agree who owns the evidence and the tool after the engagement; with Sterling the system stays yours, in Effivity.

PCI DSS in Vietnam: questions clients ask

More on PCI DSS for Vietnamese organisations

• PCI DSS: the complete guide
• Watch: How to implement PCI DSS
• Banking and financial services: PCI DSS for the sector
• BPO and contact centres: PCI DSS for the sector
• E-commerce and retail: PCI DSS for the sector
• Fintech and payment facilitators: PCI DSS for the sector
• Healthcare providers and insurers: PCI DSS for the sector
• Hospitality and travel: PCI DSS for the sector
• Software and hosting: PCI DSS for the sector
• Sterling in Ho Chi Minh City
• PCI DSS compliance in Vietnam and every other standard Sterling delivers there

Other standards Vietnamese businesses ask Sterling for

Organisations in Vietnam often combine PCI DSS with one of these, under one management system where the scopes allow.

All 20 standards Sterling delivers in Vietnam →