For anyone with a Vietnamese bank account, registering biometric authentication has moved past the "good to have done" stage into the "can't use it unless you've done it" stage. The identity-verification overhaul led by the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) began with the mass deletion of dormant accounts and, in January 2026, went as far as suspending online banking for the unregistered. To help Japanese living in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City, or those holding accounts for business trips, judge whether their account is safe and what to do to avoid a freeze, here are only the confirmed facts.
The backstory: 86 million accounts already gone
The story goes back to September 1, 2025. The SBV deleted more than 86 million accounts in total—those not yet identity-verified and those long dormant. Domestic accounts were said to number about 200 million, so roughly 40% were swept away. What remained were 113 million personal accounts linked to biometric data and just over 710,000 corporate accounts (as tallied in July 2025). The stated aim of the deletions is to eliminate “ghost accounts” used as receiving accounts under others’ names or for money laundering.
This deletion is not a future plan but a past event already carried out. Headlines still circulate online saying “86 million accounts will be closed on September 1,” but that refers to a 2025 measure. Now, in 2026, what residents should face is the next stage.
From January 2026, unregistered accounts can't be operated online
On January 1, 2026, Vietnam's banks suspended mobile- and internet-banking transactions for users who had not completed biometric authentication. The basis is SBV Circulars 17/2024 and 25/2025, and major banks including Vietcombank, VietinBank, Agribank, and BIDV all issued advance notice of the suspension. Most likely to face a freeze are those who registered only the old nine-digit ID, those whose ID has expired, and those whose chip-embedded ID data doesn't match their registered facial information.
The money in the accounts doesn't vanish. The funds remain, but until authentication is completed, withdrawals and transfers can't be done online. For people abroad, or those away from Vietnam for a while, this condition — "you have to go to a counter to fix it" — becomes a headache. For corporate accounts, in-person face authentication of the representative is required, and the point that transfers halt when the representative is absentAn article on the system requiring facial recognition for corporate transferstouches on it individually.
'No passports' applies to citizens; foreigners are handled separately
One line stands out in the coverage: "from January 1, 2026, you can't do banking with a passport." But this rule targets Vietnamese citizens, who are required to use the chip-embedded citizen ID card (CCCD), the conventional ID, or a Level 2 electronic ID (VNeID). It's premature to read it as foreigners being uniformly barred from using their passports.
The practicalities for resident foreigners branch off from those for citizens. In guidance compiled by the Australian Chamber of Commerce (AusCham), foreigners without a chip-embedded ID are advised to go to a bank branch and register in person with a clerk's help. In other words, when it can't be completed by app alone, the realistic answer is to go to a branch. For long-term residents, VNeID enrollment is spreading to those holding a temporary residence card (TRC) or permanent residence permit, and after in-person registration at a police station it can now be used as a bank-side means of authentication too. The trend of administrative procedures leaning onto VNeIDThe move consolidating immigration procedures into VNeIDis seamlessly connected to it as well.
Steps to check so your account isn't frozen
There are two entry points for verification: doing it entirely on your phone, or registering at a branch counter. Which one is open to you depends on the ID you hold and your residency status.
| Target | Main usable forms of authentication | A practical way to proceed |
|---|---|---|
| Long-term residents holding a chip ID | Reading the chip via a banking app plus NFC | Likely can be completed on your own in the app |
| Foreigners who have obtained VNeID (Level 2) | VNeID linkage / app | First, register for VNeID at a police station |
| Foreigners without a chip-embedded ID | In-person registration at a branch counter | Contact the branch where you bank in advance and visit in person |
The app-based flow is broadly the same across banks: log in to the bank app, choose "update information," photograph your face, shoot the front and back of your ID, read the chip with your phone's NFC, and confirm with an OTP. According to the SBV, 60 financial institutions support in-branch chip-ID verification, 49 via mobile app, and 22 via VNeID. Since the method isn't narrowed to one, check in advance which route your account supports through your bank's notices.
What Japanese residents should do this week
What tends to be overlooked in this system is the group that “left it alone because cash and an app were enough day to day.” Accounts that put biometric authentication off may already have had online operations halted as of January 2026. For an account tied to salary deposits or automatic rent payments, a missed authentication translates directly into a life snag. First test whether you can get to the transfer screen on your main account, and if you are rejected, suspecting you are unregistered is the fast route.
Short-term business travelers and those with no plans to return to Vietnam for a while can't relax either. Accounts that require counter registration can't be fixed until you go to a branch in person, so there's nothing you can do while in Japan. It's safest to plan ahead to set aside a half-day on your next trip to Vietnam and stop by a branch. The trend of government filings consolidating into local offices and portalsThe consolidation of temporary-stay declarations onto a new siteGrasp it together with this and it's easier to knock out your errands for a Vietnam trip in one go.
The aim as fraud prevention, and what comes next
The whole tightening converges on a single point: fraud prevention. The SBV's fraud-monitoring system, SIMO, is said to have issued 2.13 million fraud alerts to users as of December 11, 2025, preventing more than 105 million dollars in losses. The idea is to cut off transfer scams and money laundering using accounts in others' names at the account's entry point. In the course of tidying the data, 120.9 million personal records and 1.2 million corporate accounts were verified and updated with biometric data from chip IDs and VNeID.
For reference, you won't be asked for face recognition on small payments in the tens of thousands of dong. The rough threshold for being required to use biometrics each time is a transfer over 10 million dong (about 60,000 yen at 10,000 dong ≒ 60 yen) at once, or over 20 million dong (about 120,000 yen) in a day—kept separate from small everyday payments. Now that the rules have taken shape, all that's left for residents is not to worry, but to check their account status once and, if needed, spend 30 minutes at a branch.
Sources
- Vietnam News「More than 86 million bank accounts to be terminated from September 1」
- VietnamNet「Biometric deadline nears: Millions of accounts face online suspension from 2026」
- AusCham Vietnam「Foreigners advised to visit bank branches for biometric verification」
- Vietnam+「Vietnam to stop accepting passports for banking transactions from January 1, 2026」
