Dual Citizenship issues for Vietnam

It is heartwarming to know that the Vietnamese Embassy and consulates are just as uncooperative for Viet Kieu as they are for non-Viet Americans.     Equal rudeness for all.

I got mine done at the consulate in SF about 3 years ago, and got mine 1.5 years later.  Service was courteous and line was short in the morning.

I would assume that you are Việt kieu and be able to prove it with past birth certificate, and some local relatives be able to stand by your story.

As for the benefits it depends what and how you want to use it.  There will always be naysayers who are against the idea.

Yoda0807 wrote:

I got mine done at the consulate in SF about 3 years ago, and got mine 1.5 years later.  Service was courteous and line was short in the morning.

I would assume that you are Việt kieu and be able to prove it with past birth certificate, and some local relatives be able to stand by your story.

As for the benefits it depends what and how you want to use it.  There will always be naysayers who are against the idea.

Thanks for the reply!

And..wow..1.5 years?!  It really takes that long??

That's pretty crazy. I'm assuming everyones situation is a bit different as far as family members contact, etc... But if it really takes even a year average...that's pretty intense.

Yeah, of course about everyone having an opinion. I just wonder if there has been any factual incidents or negative facts in general with having both that has occured.

Thanks again for the reply!

The main negative only comes if you are involved in something illegal, short of murder or some other serious crime.  Then you will subject to Vietnamese law and tried as a Vietnamese citizen.  Of course if you kill someone or get caught smuggling large amounts of drugs    you will be tried no matter what your citizenship status.  If you are single citizen of US or another country, you would more likely be deported for a minor crime.  Being a dual citizen could put you in a better situation if  you are involved in a civil action like a traffic incident or a property dispute.

THIGV wrote:

The main negative only comes if you are involved in something illegal, short of murder or some other serious crime.  Then you will subject to Vietnamese law and tried as a Vietnamese citizen.  Of course if you kill someone or get caught smuggling large amounts of drugs    you will be tried no matter what your citizenship status.  If you are single citizen of US or another country, you would more likely be deported for a minor crime.  Being a dual citizen could put you in a better situation if  you are involved in a civil action like a traffic incident or a property dispute.

Haha..good response. Good to know

So, I spoke with someone at the SF consulate today. Pretty nice, actually answered the phone and all my questions.

She quoted me $300 for the passport process ( and extra $100) for expedited service. 1 year vs 3+ months.

My next question is, can this process be done in Vietnam?? Stupid as I was there for a few years and I think I inquired but was told it had to be done here in your home country but never really pursued it fully. But as we know, anything is possible with the almighty dollar.

So, does anyone know if it is possible to get your Vietnamese passport done in the homeland vs paying the US consulate to get it done?

peterpan75 wrote:

So, does anyone know if it is possible to get your Vietnamese passport done in the homeland vs paying the US consulate to get it done?

I asked this question at the SF consulate and was told no. I was quoted $300 with a 3-6 months processing time.

I was quoted $3000 and 1+ year processing time from a dozen or so lawyers in Vietnam for actual citizenship (national identity card and family register).

I paid the expedited service also and was quoted 3-4 months but in actuality it turned out to be 1.5 years.  Consulate sent application back to VN, and local officials would do the “diligent” detective work to verify your background.  And we all know how things work here in VN.  It could have been a year in my case as they made one call to my auntie and she happened to be out of town.  So my file was back to bottom of stack for follow up.

I avoided the potential bullshit of doing it locally, thus, don't really know if possible.

Yoda0807 wrote:

I paid the expedited service also and was quoted 3-4 months but in actuality it turned out to be 1.5 years.  Consulate sent application back to VN, and local officials would do the “diligent” detective work to verify your background.  And we all know how things work here in VN.  It could have been a year in my case as they made one call to my auntie and she happened to be out of town.  So my file was back to bottom of stack for follow up.

I avoided the potential bullshit of doing it locally, thus, don't really know if possible.

Thanks for the replies guys and good to know.

And OMFG, you payed for the expedited and it took 1.5 years?!

Who did you deal with with the service? DC or SF?? Did you ever call and ask them about it, push them along? Seems insane to pay an extra $100 and not get any better service. Can you also confirm that $100 was the price for expedited service.

I am also thinking I should just pay the expedited service but I would go postal if it actually took that long. Jesus.

I went to SF consulate to check on status after first  6 months.  Then called SF consulate office from VN every 3-4 months.