The first postage stamp officially circulated in Cochinchina (now South Việt Nam) in 1863 by the French colonialists which were used in all French colonies (the difference was the post marks of each colony). The first type of commercial stamps appeared in Việt Nam in the period between 1886 and 1887, overprinted with abbreviation C.CH, (which stand for Cochinchine - the former name of South Vietnam).

In 1888, this kind of stamps circulated in central Việt Nam which was overprinted with the letter A (abbreviation of ANNAM) in northern Việt Nam it was over-printed with the letter T (abbreviation of TONKIN).

In 1889, the Indochinese stamps officially came into being and were used in Việt Nam, Laos and Cambodia.

From 1941 to 1945, almost all of Indochinese stamps were designed by Vietnamese painters and printed in Việt Nam as well.

From 1945 to 1975, Việt Nam had undergone an extraordinary historical stage. There existed several political regimes in the country and they all issued their own postage stamps. Historically, there were two major ideologies of stamps, namely:

1. Postage stamps issued by the Democratic Republic of Việt Nam:

a. The over-printed Indochinese stamps: 1945 - 1946 (provisional stamps).

b. The stamps issued by the Democratic Republic of Việt Nam: From 2 September 1946 to 24 June 1976, circulated in North Việt Nam.

2. Postage stamps issued by the Socialist Republic of Việt Nam: since 24 June 1976, circulated all over the country.

3. Postage stamps issued by the National Front for Liberation of South Việt Nam (from 20 December 1963 to 1969); and Postage stamps issued by Provisional Revolutionary Government of Republic of South Việt Nam (from 22 April 1970 to 24 June 1976), circulated in the liberated zones of South Việt Nam.

1. Việt Nam National stamps (Bảo Đại stamps): from 1951 to 1955, circulated in temporarily occupied areas.

2. Stamps of the Republic of Việt Nam (former Saigon puppet regime): from 1956 to 1975, circulated in the areas under the control of the former Sài Gòn puppet regime.

With the victory on 30 April 1975, South Việt Nam was completely liberated and Việt Nam reunified, the stamps issued by Sài Gòn puppet regime terminated its circulation.

After half a century of existence and development, Việt Nam Postage Stamps have been growing in every aspect. Việt Nam Postage Stamps have reflected the country of Việt Nam: land and people, historical landmarks, development and all social activities.