柬埔寨与泰国、马来西亚、越南的准入对比

Updated: 2026-11-09 · GRZAN Regulatory Team · Verification date 2026-10-20

1. Key takeaway

Among the six core ASEAN markets, Cambodia’s market access structure differs from Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam in three essential respects:

DimensionCambodiaThailandMalaysiaVietnam
Legislative formNo dedicated device law; a three-layer assembly of the 1996 law + Prakas No. 1258 of 2012 + the AMDDMedical Device Act B.E. 2551 (2008), amended by B.E. 2562 (2019)Medical Device Act Act 737 (2012), in force from 1 July 2013Decree 98/2021/ND-CP (issued 8 November 2021, in force 1 January 2022), amended by 07/2023 and 04/2025
Competent authorityDDF of the Ministry of HealthThai FDA (TFDA)Medical Device Authority (MDA)Ministry of Health / Department of Medical Equipment and Construction (IMDA)
ClassificationA/B/C/DClass 1–4 (numeric)A/B/C/DA/B/C/D (Annex I, Circular 05/2022/TT-BYT)
Product groupingNot permitted——Grouping supported (practical interpretation)
Published tiered timelinesNone; the committee holds final review in rounds every 3 to 4 monthsTiered cycles (for example, around 30 days for Class 1, around 1 year for Class 4)Tiered cycles (around 3 to 5 weeks for Class A)Statutory timelines (C/D fast track 10 working days, standard 45 days)
Certificate validity3 years (practical interpretation)5 years5 yearsA/B unlimited; C/D registration numbers valid long term
Regional recognitionNot joinedMalaysia–Thailand reliance fully implemented from 1 May 2026 (Classes B/C/D)Malaysia–Singapore recognition and Malaysia–Thailand reliance in forceReference authority fast track (including China’s NMPA)

(The Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam columns are grade B/C secondary sources; verify each item against the official texts of the country concerned.)

GRZAN note: the three essential differences are 1 legislative gap (no dedicated law), 1 grouping prohibition (not permitted) and 1 timing mechanism (committee rounds every 3 to 4 months); Cambodia holds 0 regional recognition arrangements.

2. Regulatory basis

ItemSource or numberDateGrade
Cambodia has no dedicated device lawUNGM notice 25605320 December 2024B
Cambodia’s current basisPrakas No. 1258; 1996 law and 2007 amendment8 November 2012; 17 June 1996; 8 November 2007A
Thai Medical Device ActB.E. 2551 (2008), amended by B.E. 2562 (2019)2008 / 2019C
Malaysian Medical Device ActAct 737 (2012), in force from 1 July 20132012C
Vietnamese device decreesDecree 98/2021/ND-CP; Decree 07/2023; Decree 04/2025; Circular 05/2022/TT-BYT8 November 2021 / 3 March 2023 / 1 January 2025 / 1 August 2022C
Malaysia–Thailand reliance schemeJoint announcement by the MDA and the Thai FDA of full implementation1 May 2026B

3. Expert commentary

  1. Legislative form determines regulatory certainty. Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam all have written device regulations that can be searched and checked directly; Cambodia does not, leaving companies dependent on the local entity and the DDF’s current interpretation. This turns Cambodia from a ”technical problem” into an ”information problem”.
  1. “No product grouping” is a cost amplifier unique to Cambodia. Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam all support family or group submissions in practice (Vietnam’s grouping rules are the most explicit); Cambodia does not. For the same product family, the workload in Cambodia can be several times that in Vietnam.
  1. Regional recognition is reshaping ASEAN, but Cambodia is for now absent. Malaysia and Thailand moved their reliance scheme to full implementation on 1 May 2026; a recognition arrangement also exists between Singapore and Malaysia; Vietnam achieves de facto acceleration through a reference authority fast track (including China’s NMPA). Cambodia has not entered any such arrangement — which means that, as regional recognition keeps expanding, Cambodia’s relative cost of market access may rise rather than fall.

4. Practical recommendations

  1. In ASEAN multi-country planning, treat Cambodia as a ”high-touch-cost” market. Neither budget nor timeline should be extrapolated from the Thai, Malaysian or Vietnamese experience.
  2. Obtain a Malaysian or Thai registration certificate first, then use it as reference-market evidence to support the Cambodian submission. Although there is no recognition channel, reference-market evidence still carries real weight in Cambodian review.
  3. For Vietnam, assess eligibility for the reference authority fast track. Vietnam lists China’s NMPA among its reference authorities, so manufacturers holding NMPA certificates may find a faster path in Vietnam than in Cambodia (grade B, to be verified separately).

5. Verification checklist

  • □ Confirmed that Cambodia has no dedicated device law, in contrast to Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam
  • □ Cambodia’s SKU workload recalculated on the ”no product grouping” basis
  • □ Confirmed that Cambodia is not part of the Malaysia–Singapore or Malaysia–Thailand recognition/reliance arrangements
  • □ Cambodia’s timeline modelled separately in multi-country scheduling (including committee windows)
  • □ Specific regulatory details for Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam flagged for verification against each country’s official texts
  • □ The ”obtain Malaysia/Thailand certificate first, then support the Cambodian submission” pathway assessed

Regulatory information verified as of 29 October 2026.

In Southeast Asia, GRZAN’s core capabilities focus on three areas. First, tracking the legislative progress of dedicated medical device laws across member states — Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam have each established written device regulatory frameworks, whereas Cambodia still has no dedicated Medical Device Law. The current rules are assembled from three layers: the legal basis for registration numbers provided by the 1996 Law on the Management of Pharmaceuticals and its 2007 amendment, the classification and procedures provided by Prakas No. 1258 of 2012, and the technical framework of the ASEAN Medical Device Directive. Regulatory certainty is therefore markedly lower than in markets that have completed legislation. Second, local authorised representative services: GRZAN may act as the manufacturer’s statutory representative in Cambodia, carrying registration submissions, regulatory communication and post-market reporting obligations, and assisting with the practical implementation of the Cambodian registered pharmacist and pharmaceutical import/export enterprise licence requirements. Third, quality system and testing support: assisting with the establishment of a quality management system meeting ISO 13485 requirements, and organising the technical dossier in accordance with the ASEAN Common Submission Dossier Template (CSDT).

Business enquiries: info@grzanglobal.com

Disclaimer

Prepared by GRZAN from publicly available regulation. It is provided for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Legislation and official fees are subject to change by the competent authority.

About GRZAN

GRZAN (Global Regulatory Zone Access Navigator) — the global market-access navigator for medical devices and IVDs.

GRZAN is a specialist consultancy for medical device and IVD market access, providing end-to-end regulatory solutions across the product lifecycle and making international market entry simpler and faster.

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What we do. Global market access: multi-country registration programmes, technical documentation, regulatory advice. Clinical evidence: clinical evaluation reports (CER), usability studies, overseas clinical investigations. Quality systems: ISO 13485, MDSAP, FDA QMSR and BGMP implementation and audit readiness. Authorised representative and licence-holder services across Southeast Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and North America.

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