Traditionally the most festive and awaited holiday season in Vietnam, Tet, or Lunar New Year, is also a time when many customs encompassing the shared values of its people are practiced, including ‘li xi,’ or the giving of lucky money.
Li Xi is a way of wishing good luck, health and happiness for both children and elders during Tet.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, this year falling on January 28, children line up to recite New Year wishes to their parents and grandparents.
In return they are given brand-new banknotes, usually of small face value, in a red envelope, symbolizing good luck and the power to ward off evil spirits.
The lucky money is also given to elders in the family as a way of wishing them longevity and health for the rest of the year.
With Tet just around the corner, many locals have already begun their hunt for new and unique banknotes to be used as lucky money.
Earlier this month, the State Bank of Vietnam announced that no new banknotes with face values of VND5,000 (US$0.22) or less will be printed for Tet, giving rise to many online money exchange services.
On one Facebook page, new banknotes available in all face values are offered in exchange for a ‘fee’ of 15 percent of their value. Those that exchange more than VND1 million worth of banknotes enjoy a more favorable commission rate of ten percent.
![]() |
To exchange for Vietnam’s 500-dong notes, the second lowest value note among those still in circulation, a buyer must pay a 120% fee.
Commemorative banknotes which were issued on the 65th anniversary of the State bank of Vietnam are also hunted for prices between two and three times their original costs.
Apart from local currency bills, unique banknotes such as Maldivian bills and fake dollars featuring imprinted roosters, the upcoming lunar year’s zodiac animal, are also being sought after by Vietnamese collectors.
Maldivian rufiyaa banknotes, which feature a departing sailboat, are believed to signify a year of ‘smooth sailing’.
Each of these special banknotes, including the fakes, are sold at five to ten times their face values.
According to Nguyen Hoang Minh, deputy director of the Ho Chi Minh City branch of the State Bank of Vietnam, the act of exchanging old banknotes for new ones at a profit is against Vietnamese law.
“The people’s demand for new banknotes is understandable, but it is not an essential task for banks,” Minh explained. “The number of newly printed banknotes is limited compared to the huge demand.”
Under the plan, all central and local media outlets are required to launch columns on the campaign, maintain regular coverage, and produce at least five to seven in-depth reports each month in key search areas. Media agencies will also be encouraged to gather and verify valuable information and develop high-quality products in both Vietnamese and foreign languages, including feature articles, documentaries, reports and short videos.
Ambassador Pham Quang Hieu expressed confidence that the establishment will serve as a strong spiritual anchor for Vietnamese people living in Japan while contributing to friendship and cultural exchanges between the two countries.
Cyberspace now runs through children’s learning, entertainment, and daily lives, but warned it is laced with dangerous content, online insults, threats, and seemingly harmless clicks that can trigger fraud, data breaches, and risks children who are not yet equipped to handle.
Cambodia’s General Department of Immigration under the Ministry of Interior deported the group for violations of regulations related to immigration, labour and residency.
A scholar has stressed the need for Vietnam to make use of cooperation opportunities arising from the RoK’s foreign policy, particularly in semiconductor technology, artificial intelligence (AI), supply chains, digital transformation, and green energy, as well as chances in multilateral diplomacy.
Protecting children in the digital environment is becoming an increasingly urgent issue as children gain access to the internet earlier and face growing online risks.
The citizens, whose registered living places, are mainly in northern, central, Central Highlands, and southwestern localities, had travelled to Cambodia through different border gates at various times.
VOV.VN - Vietnam’s competent agencies have dismantled a self-proclaimed organisation known as “Bahnar Dega Kon Kong” in the Central Highlands, describing it as a variant of the outlawed “Dega Protestantism” movement allegedly directed by overseas FULRO-linked extremists.
Police in Ho Chi Minh City have filed charges against 35 people with illegally storing and trading toxic substances in connection with a large-scale cross-border cyanide smuggling ring, investigators said on May 23.
The 2026 fundraising programme served as a platform connecting art and compassion while spreading the message that “No one should fight cancer alone.”
Pham Van Hat is best known as the creator of the made-in-Vietnam “Seed Sowing Robot,” now exported to 15 countries, alongside dozens of practical inventions that have eased labour for thousands of farmers.
Films, music, television programmes, e-books, video games, journalistic works, images and creative data can now be copied, edited and redistributed within minutes. While copyright violations were once linked mainly to pirated discs or counterfeit books, infringements have shifted online with faster speed, wider scale and greater anonymity.
Consul General Nguyen Viet Kien stressed President Ho Chi Minh’s reputation and career transcended Vietnam’s borders to inspire liberation movements worldwide, and that his ideas on the right to self-determination, peace, and friendship among nations remain deeply relevant today.
Party General Secretary and State President To Lam stressed that citizens should have access to stable, safe and affordable housing suited to eligible beneficiaries, with rental housing becoming a long-term pillar.
Sailing Ship 286 – Le Quy Don of the Vietnam People’s Navy (VPN) departed on May 16 for a diplomatic and training voyage to Thailand and Cambodia, combining naval exchanges with long-distance maritime training for cadets.
A key target under the new plan is the establishment of five digital technology incubators, or Deeptech Hubs, at universities and research institutes with strong potential. The education ministry also plans to launch a training programme for 1,000 outstanding technology entrepreneurs and develop criteria for selecting and supporting startup ecosystems within educational institutions.
During the second phase of the 25th campaign, nearly two months of operations under challenging terrain and weather conditions, as well as the dangers posed by unexploded ordnance, enabled search teams to recover 158 sets of remains, bringing the total number recovered during the campaign to 322.
To accelerate the implementation of the the Ethnic Affairs Strategy by 2030, with a vision toward 2045, the Prime Minister requested ministries, agencies and local authorities to continue thoroughly carrying out the Party and State’s policies on ethnic affairs, enhancing the effectiveness of State management and strengthening oversight of policy implementation.
Vietnamese authorities also provided the Chinese side with photographs and video footage recording the rescue operation and repairs to the vessels, demonstrating transparency and Vietnam’s full efforts in maritime search and rescue.
The team examined the APEC 2027 Convention Centre, where main conference activities are scheduled; Sun Serenia Hospital, designated to provide healthcare and emergency medical services for delegates; provincial road DT.975, which connects Phu Quoc International Airport to the convention centre; and the area surrounding Phu Quoc International Airport.