Over 81% of household businesses in Vietnam report revenue decline in 2025

The findings were published in the 2025 Vietnam Private Economic Report, which described household businesses as a foundational component of the country’s socio-economic structure rather than merely small-scale business units.

The sector employed around 10 million workers nationwide and contributed approximately VND32.8 trillion (US$1.24 billion) to the state budget in 2025.

The report was based on a survey conducted by VCCI between February and April 2026 involving 1,001 active household businesses across 34 provinces and cities nationwide.

The survey showed that household businesses entered the 2025-26 period under mounting pressure from market fluctuations and increasingly stringent management requirements.

Regarding business performance in 2025, 73.7 percent of the respondents said they earned only small profits, 12.9 percent broke even, 9.3 percent reported minor losses, 2.2 percent suffered heavy losses, and only 1.9 percent achieved expected profit levels.

The findings indicate that although most household businesses managed to maintain operations, profit margins remained thin, leaving limited room for reinvestment.

About 23 percent of the businesses polled said their revenue declined sharply in 2025, while 58.5 percent experienced slight decreases in revenue.

Meanwhile, 20.6 percent reported a sharp decline in customer numbers and 54.8 percent saw a slight decrease.

According to VCCI, the widespread decline in both revenue and customer numbers suggests that difficulties faced by household businesses stem not only from their small scale but also from weakening market demand during an economic adjustment period.

The survey also showed cautious business sentiment for the next two years.

Around 60.8 percent of the respondents planned to maintain their current operations, 33 percent intended to scale down, 4.4 percent expected to dissolve their businesses, and only 1.8 percent planned expansion.

VCCI researchers said the figures reflect a dominant trend among household businesses toward maintaining stability and managing risks instead of pursuing growth.

The report identified major challenges facing the sector, including limited resources, weak market demand, rising input costs, and legal obstacles.

Tax compliance and electronic invoicing were among the most common difficulties. About 71.2 percent of the businesses surveyed said they struggled to collect customer information required for issuing e-invoices, 67.6 percent had difficulty accounting for deductible expenses, and 62.3 percent faced problems with tax declaration and payment procedures.

The survey highlighted strong demand for support related to e-invoicing.

Around 35.3 percent of the respondents reported technical problems, 54.8 percent did not know how to correct invoice errors, 31.1 percent lacked the necessary equipment, and 9.6 percent encountered other difficulties. 

Only 13.6 percent said they encountered no issues when using electronic invoices.

One notable finding was that the level of difficulty tended to increase alongside revenue scale, potentially affecting the transition of household businesses into formal enterprises.

Only 15.6 percent of the household businesses said they planned to convert into enterprises within the next two years, while 84.4 percent had no such plans, indicating that most are reluctant to formalize in the short term.