In 1917 and 1918 the French colonial government enacted regulations establishing five archive repositories for Indochina - Hà Nội (Tonkin, the central depository), Huế (Annam), Sài Gòn (Cochinchina), Phnom Penh (Cambodia) and Vientiane (Laos) - at the same time setting out guidelines for classification and administration and for the recruitment and training of archivists.

However, whilst dedicated archive repositories were subsequently built in Hà Nội, Sài Gòn and Phnom Penh, no separate archive building was constructed by the French in Vientiane; in subsequent years the Lao archive remained a small office within the headquarters of the Bureau de la résidence supérieure, today the office of the Ministry of Information and Culture. Throughout the colonial period a small royal archive was also maintained by the Royal Palace at Luang Prabang, containing important documents concerned with relations between the French government and the royal family as well as official colonial documents.

After independence from France in 1953, colonial records from the Résidence supérieure were transferred to a small archive within the Prime Minister’s Office of the Royal Lao Government, housed latterly in what is now the Lao National Museum building on Thanon Samsenthai in central Vientiane. This office functioned as the state archive of the Royal Lao Government down to 1975.

In the mid 1960s, following the escalation of hostilities between Washington and Hà Nội, a United States Information Service (USIS) compound was established at Ban Nahai Diou in central Vientiane. By the early 1970s official documents generated by this office were being stored in a converted garage building at the rear of the USIS compound.

Following the establishment of the People's Democratic Republic of Laos in 1975, the Prime Minister's Office relocated to the former USIS compound at Ban Nahai Diou. Records of the Royal Lao Government were then transferred to the makeshift former archive of the USIS, which was designated as the Department of Archives.

During the 1980s a second building was brought into use for additional storage and office accommodation. However, since conditions within the facility remained poor it was decided to send the bulk of colonial-era materials for safe keeping to Việt Nam, where they remain in store to this day in Hà Nội’s National Archives Centre 1. The State Records and Archives Department of Việt Nam plans to repatriate them to Laos as soon as a suitable storage facility is available to accommodate them.

After the demise of the monarchy in 1975 the Royal Palace in Luang Prabang became the Luang Prabang National Museum. Today the former royal archives remain intact in a storage area in the palace basement.