Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Vietnam face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBTQ residents.

[6][7] While the majority of Vietnamese historical accounts up to the modern era are concerned with the patriarchal ideas of Confucianism, the presence of homosexual activities in Vietnam has been recorded for a long time.

In the Gia Long Code (Hoàng Việt luật lệ) of 1812 introduced by emperor Gia Long, Article 332 stated the prohibition of prostitutions and other illicit sexual activities including extra-marital sex relations, while Article 340 forbade prostitutes and songstresses from civil and military services.

[20][16][21] On 27 May 2014, the National Assembly's Committee for Social Affairs removed provisions giving legal status and some rights to cohabiting same-sex couples from the bill submitted by the Ministry of Justice.

It is estimated that such relaxed policies will attract tourism revenue as Vietnam attempts to promote themselves as a tolerant and friendly society.

[30][31] On November 24, 2015, Vietnam passed a landmark law by a vote of 282–84, enshrining rights for transgender people in a move, advocacy groups say, paves the way for sex reassignment surgery.

[34] However, for that law to be fully enforced, a further bill needs to be passed, meaning it hasn't come into effect, so the transgender community has no protection from discrimination.

[35][36] In November 2018, speaking at a transgender rights event, the Vietnam's Union of Science and Technology Associations and Nguyễn Huy Quang, head of the Department of Legislation at the Ministry of Health, announced that the National Assembly was expected to discuss the bill in 2020.

[41] The proposed law would allow people the right to change gender identity, request a different gender identity to the one assigned at birth, the right to choose a medical intervention method for gender-reaffirming surgery, and also strictly prohibit any form of discrimination and false information against transgender individuals, their families and relatives.

[43][46] On September 13, 2024, the Standing Committee of the National Assembly announced the removal of the bill from its 8th plenary session, and stated that it would be needing further consultations from the government and the lawmaker Nguyễn Anh Trí himself.

[50] In August 2022, it was reported that within Vietnam conversion therapy became legally banned and it was declared that LGBT individuals "are not diseased" and should never be treated as such according to the Health Ministry.

[56] An online survey carried out from December 2015 to January 2016 found that 45% of respondents supported the legalization of same-sex marriage, while 25% opposed it and 30% answered "don't know".

[57] In 2000, crime journalist Bui Anh Tan's novel A World Without Women (Một Thế Giới Không Có Đàn Bà) was the first fictional Vietnamese book to deal extensively with gay people.

[59] Publications such as Thế Giới Phụ Nữ and Tiếp thị & Gia đình spoke of homosexuality as a disease and "deviant behavior that is incompatible with the good morals and time-honored customs of Vietnam.

The letter received hundreds of supportive responses from other readers that led the website to conclude it with an interview with Dr. Huynh Van Son, Dean of Psychology, at the Ho Chi Minh City Pedagogical University.

[66] Another ceremonial same-sex wedding between two Vietnamese citizens, Quốc Khánh and Thành Lợi, was held in Haiphong in northern Vietnam in June 2018.

[67] On 5 August 2012, Vietnam's first gay pride parade took place in Hanoi, with participants expressing support for equal marriage rights for LGBT individuals.

The parade uniquely involves supporters and participants peddling on their bikes to campaign for transgender rights and same-sex marriage in the country.