GlobeQuest

Vietnam visas and residency

Who can visit Vietnam without a visa, and the 3 long-stay routes that let you actually live there.

Short stay

Visiting Vietnam, by passport

How the 198 passports we track get in. A visitor entry is never permission to work, study or settle — that is what the routes further down are for.

United Statese-VisaUnited KingdomVisa-free · 45 daysIndiae-VisaCanadae-VisaAustraliae-VisaGermanyVisa-free · 45 daysFranceVisa-free · 45 daysNetherlandsVisa-free · 45 daysIrelande-VisaSpainVisa-free · 45 daysItalyVisa-free · 45 daysPortugale-VisaPolandVisa-free · 45 daysSwedenVisa-free · 45 daysSwitzerlandVisa-free · 45 daysSouth Africae-Visa
Long stay

How you actually move to Vietnam

Work / sponsoredHigh confidenceVerified July 2026

Work permit + temporary residence card (TRC)

Anyone employed by a Vietnamese entity. The work permit comes first; the TRC is what actually lets you stay without visa runs.

What you need
  • Job offer from a registered Vietnamese employer
  • Degree plus at least 3 years' relevant experience for most 'expert' roles
  • Criminal record check — from Vietnam if you've been resident 6+ months, otherwise from home
  • Health check at an approved Vietnamese hospital
  • Legalised and consularised documents (degree, police check)
How long it lasts
Work permit up to 2 years; TRC issued to match, renewable.
Path to permanent residence
Permanent residence exists but is narrow in practice — largely for those with Vietnamese family ties or exceptional contributions. Most long-term foreigners simply keep renewing the TRC.
Cost
Work permit and TRC state fees are modest; legalisation, translation and agent fees usually dominate.
Processing time
Budget 1–3 months, mostly waiting on document legalisation.
Worth knowing
  • Document legalisation is the step that derails timelines. Start it in your home country before you fly.
  • The TRC is tied to your sponsoring employer — changing jobs means a new work permit.
  • Vietnam has no digital nomad or remote-work visa. Remote workers use the 90-day multiple-entry e-visa, which is a visitor permission: it creates no residence, no TRC and no path to anything. Any site advertising a 'Vietnam digital nomad visa' is describing the e-visa under a nicer name.
  • Tax residency is not only the 183-day count. You are also resident if you have a permanent residence in Vietnam — which includes a leased place taken for a qualifying period — and cannot prove tax residence elsewhere. That second limb is routinely omitted and catches people who kept their days under 183 but held a year-long lease.
Sources:Vietnam Immigration DepartmentMinistry of Home Affairs — labour and work permit rules
InvestmentMedium confidenceVerified July 2026

Investor visa / TRC (DT categories)

Founders and shareholders in a Vietnamese company. Tiered DT1–DT4 by capital contributed.

What you need
  • Registered Vietnamese company with you named on the investment registration certificate
  • Capital contribution — the DT tier, and the length of stay it earns, scales with the amount
  • Business licence appropriate to the activity
How long it lasts
From 12 months at the lowest tier up to 5 years at the highest.
Path to permanent residence
Large, sustained investment can support a permanent residence application, but it is not automatic.
Cost
Company formation and capital requirements dwarf the visa fees.
Processing time
1–3 months including incorporation.
Worth knowing
  • The DT tier is set by capital actually contributed, not merely registered.
  • An investor TRC does not by itself permit you to be employed by another company.
  • Vietnam's much-reported 'golden visa' — a 5-to-10-year investor or talent residence — remains a proposal. It was put to the Prime Minister in May 2025 and has not been legislated, so there is no application process. The DT categories here are the real investor route today.
Sources:Vietnam Immigration Department
FamilyMedium confidenceVerified July 2026

Family / spouse TRC (TT visa)

Spouses and children of Vietnamese citizens, and dependants of TRC holders.

What you need
  • Marriage or birth certificate, legalised and translated
  • Sponsor's Vietnamese ID or valid TRC
  • Proof of accommodation and residence registration
How long it lasts
Up to 3 years, renewable.
Path to permanent residence
Spouses of Vietnamese citizens have the most realistic route to permanent residence.
Cost
State fees are low; translation and legalisation are the real costs.
Processing time
Several weeks once documents are legalised.
Worth knowing
  • A TT card does not include the right to work — that still needs a work permit.
Sources:Vietnam Immigration DepartmentVietnam National e-Visa Portal
On the ground

Where you'd land in Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh City

Electric, fast-growing hub for builders and digital nomads.

Full Ho Chi Minh City guide
Hanoi

Vietnam's capital — formal, cheap, and colder and smokier in winter than anyone expects.

Full Hanoi guide
Da Nang

Vietnam's coastal remote-work base — beach, cheap fibre, and a flood season that picks your street.

Full Da Nang guide

Vietnam at a glance

Capital
Hanoi
Population
101.6M
Languages
Vietnamese
Currency
VND