On 30/6, a representative from the Traffic Police Department (Cuc CSGT, Ministry of Public Security) announced new regulations under Decree No. 238, which amends Decree No. 168. Effective 15/8/2026, this decree introduces a warning penalty for drivers of oto carrying children under 10 years old and shorter than 1,35 m if they do not use suitable safety devices. The decree also modifies administrative penalties for road traffic violations, including driving license point adjustments.
Beyond the safety device requirement, Decree 238 strictly prohibits children under 10 years old and shorter than 1,35 m from sitting in the front passenger seat. This rule applies to all vehicles except for oto that have only one row of seats.
These new child safety provisions do not apply to passenger transport oto.
 |
Carrying children without safety seats will incur a warning penalty. Photo: Xuan Hoa
The decree also includes strict regulations for the installation, management, and data transmission of journey monitoring devices and image recording devices.
Vehicle operators or transport businesses failing to install these required devices, or operating with non-functional or data-falsifying devices, will face penalties. Operating a vehicle without a journey monitoring or image recording device can result in fines of 5-6 trieu dong for individuals and 10-12 trieu dong for organizations owning the vehicle.
The implementation of penalties for image recording device violations will be phased. From 1/1/2028, enforcement will begin for devices recording driver images in passenger transport oto with fewer than 8 seats, cargo transport vehicles (excluding tractors), and internal transport vehicles.
Subsequently, from 1/1/2029, authorities will extend penalties to violations related to image recording devices in passenger compartments.
Decree 238 also redefines the penalty authority for various officials. The Cuc CSGT force is now explicitly authorized to penalize violations related to driving tests and license issuance, following the Ministry of Public Security's new role in state management for this sector.
In a related change, communal police are now empowered to penalize vehicle registration violations, aligning with the current decentralization of vehicle registration services to the communal level.
Decree No. 238 takes effect from 15/8/2026.
Viet An
