Can I obtain a visa if I purchased a home in Vietnam?

cm1204 wrote:

Hi,

I'm a US citizen who has been working and living in Vietnam for several years now. I have a temporary residence card, which was obtained through my employment. I'm planning to end my employment with my company and was wondering if I can extended/renew my visa as a homeowner. The apartment has been paid in full.

Any info or advice will be much appreciated. Thank you 🙏🏻

I am in a similar situation & when I asked that question with my lawyer here & agent (9 months ago) the answer was no, that does not qualify you for any special Visa. If anyone has heard different it would be interesting to know.

I also am not aware of any special circumstance where merely being a property owner will extend any sort of visa benefit.  I own a couple properties and it doesn't get me anything.  Marriage to a Vietnamese citizen will do that, though.  Beyond that it's the normal work permit visa situation that you have been in for the last couple of years.

goodolboy wrote:

cm1204 wrote:

Hi,

I'm a US citizen who has been working and living in Vietnam for several years now. I have a temporary residence card, which was obtained through my employment. I'm planning to end my employment with my company and was wondering if I can extended/renew my visa as a homeowner. The apartment has been paid in full.

Any info or advice will be much appreciated. Thank you 🙏🏻

I am in a similar situation & when I asked that question with my lawyer here & agent (9 months ago) the answer was no, that does not qualify you for any special Visa. If anyone has heard different it would be interesting to know.

Funny that this subject has come up. A friend of mine just received a TRC, he is neither married or has a work permit. I told him that his TRC was done under the table and his response was "The agent said a new rule came in,if you buy property you can get a TRC". I told him that was incorrect and the fact that he paid double the price proves his TRC was done under the table.

colinoscapee wrote:

goodolboy wrote:

cm1204 wrote:

Hi,

I'm a US citizen who has been working and living in Vietnam for several years now. I have a temporary residence card, which was obtained through my employment. I'm planning to end my employment with my company and was wondering if I can extended/renew my visa as a homeowner. The apartment has been paid in full.

Any info or advice will be much appreciated. Thank you 🙏🏻

I am in a similar situation & when I asked that question with my lawyer here & agent (9 months ago) the answer was no, that does not qualify you for any special Visa. If anyone has heard different it would be interesting to know.

Funny that this subject has come up. A friend of mine just received a TRC, he is neither married or has a work permit. I told him that his TRC was done under the table and his response was "The agent said a new rule came in, if you buy property you can get a TRC". I told him that was incorrect and the fact that he paid double the price proves his TRC was done under the table.

Double the price of a genuine legit TRC or double the price of an "under the table" one?

goodolboy wrote:

colinoscapee wrote:

goodolboy wrote:

I am in a similar situation & when I asked that question with my lawyer here & agent (9 months ago) the answer was no, that does not qualify you for any special Visa. If anyone has heard different it would be interesting to know.

Funny that this subject has come up. A friend of mine just received a TRC, he is neither married or has a work permit. I told him that his TRC was done under the table and his response was "The agent said a new rule came in, if you buy property you can get a TRC". I told him that was incorrect and the fact that he paid double the price proves his TRC was done under the table.

Double the price of a genuine legit TRC or double the price of an "under the table" one?

Double the price of a legit one, always a sign of a backdoor deal.

cm1204 wrote:

Hi,

I'm a US citizen who has been working and living in Vietnam for several years now. I have a temporary residence card, which was obtained through my employment. I'm planning to end my employment with my company and was wondering if I can extended/renew my visa as a homeowner. The apartment has been paid in full.

Any info or advice will be much appreciated. Thank you 🙏🏻

- There's no visa for homeowner. 

- However, you can apply for a new visa if you have proof of being an investor or being married to a Vietnamese national.  With the new visa, you may qualify for a new TRC.

- Speaking of TRC, the old law that allowed a one-year TRC for 3B investment is no longer valid.  Since July 1, 2020, 3B will give you a renewable one year business visa, providing the investment stays the same at the time of renewal.  My understanding is that the visa comes with unlimited renewal as long as the investment is unchanged. 

In my thinking, this is better for small investors who don't want to tie the knot with the locals but want to stay in the country for many years.  A loan of $13,500 for continuous renewal is much less expensive than a lifetime emotional investment in a marriage or a much higher capital investment for TRC.

In expanding that thinking, I have the idea of comparing that renewable business visa with other countries' retirement visa (this one is without the age requirement).  My logic tells me that it's essentially the same thing, but I may be wrong.

I guess nothing has changed then. It's a little odd that you can get a visa by being an investor in a company for a fraction of a property cost, but you can't obtain a visa for investing in a property.

cm1204 wrote:

I guess nothing has changed then. It's a little odd that you can get a visa by being an investor in a company for a fraction of a property cost, but you can't obtain a visa for investing in a property.

There's nothing odd about it.  Investing in your property is putting money in something that belongs to you.  Investing in a company is loaning capital to a business that doesn't belong to you and you don't have any control over the outcome.

And yes, there's a small change in the law.  Before July 1, 2020, you could have one-year TRC for 3B.  Now, you can't.

cm1204 wrote:

I guess nothing has changed then. It's a little odd that you can get a visa by being an investor in a company for a fraction of a property cost, but you can't obtain a visa for investing in a property.

In some countries you can do this, but not in VN. Down the track Im sure things will change.

You could have created a company and bought the apartment with your company, but now it's late.

Not replying to anybody in particular, but what about a hotel or motel?

You'd be starting a business and as with many people in Vietnam you could live on the property.

Maybe you could have another business within the hotel such as a spa or a salon or a workout center?

I'm sure the answer is probably no but I just thought I'd throw it out there

OceanBeach92107 wrote:

Not replying to anybody in particular, but what about a hotel or motel?

You'd be starting a business and as with many people in Vietnam you could live on the property.

Maybe you could have another business within the hotel such as a spa or a salon or a workout center?

I'm sure the answer is probably no but I just thought I'd throw it out there

Now that sounds interesting there OB.

Ciambella wrote:

There's nothing odd about it.  Investing in your property is putting money in something that belongs to you.  Investing in a company is loaning capital to a business that doesn't belong to you and you don't have any control over the outcome.

And yes, there's a small change in the law.  Before July 1, 2020, you could have one-year TRC for 3B.  Now, you can't.

Here's where I differ in thinking. The Vietnamese government grants visas to foreign business investors based on the premise that investment capital will be infused into the economy. The investment amount can be low as $10k or even lower based on business category. However, it costed approx $40k (aside from the purchase cost of the apartment) to hire contractors/suppliers for design and construction (3 months completion). Isn't hiring companies and buying Vietnamese products considered infusing money into the economy as well?

I may own the property, but it's temporary ownership. Also, with real estate investment, there is a risk of not being able to make a profit (numerous friends of mine had unfortunately experienced).

I'm not debating here, but my point is that both are investments and both infuse money into the economy. Like owning a home, you can also partially own a company with your investment. The only difference is that you are given a fixed amount of time for homeownership and your investment is larger. Hence the reason I say “odd.”

There is not much change for law from 1 July 2020. But I think you can open any business then keep a visa business to stay here.

@cm1204 -- I thought I already replied to your post in a timely manner.  Guess I didn't hit the "Submit" button.  Sorry about the lateness of this reply.

cm1204 wrote:

Here's where I differ in thinking. The Vietnamese government grants visas to foreign business investors based on the premise that investment capital will be infused into the economy. The investment amount can be low as $10k or even lower based on business category.

Was there a time when business visa was issued for an investment of $10k or lower?  If there was, I missed that.  Since I've been in this country, the lowest amount of an investment that resulted in a legitimate business visa and TRC was 1B or $44k.  Now, the amount is 3X higher.

cm1204 wrote:

However, it costed approx $40k (aside from the purchase cost of the apartment) to hire contractors/suppliers for design and construction (3 months completion). Isn't hiring companies and buying Vietnamese products considered infusing money into the economy as well?

That infusion benefits a limited number of individuals in short term.  The company in which your large investment goes benefits the country in the long term.

cm1204 wrote:

I'm not debating here, but my point is that both are investments and both infuse money into the economy. Like owning a home, you can also partially own a company with your investment. The only difference is that you are given a fixed amount of time for homeownership and your investment is larger. Hence the reason I say “odd.”

You missed the bigger and more important difference: with investor visa, your money stays in the business that is approved by the government for the life of the visa and TRC.  You can sell your house and get your money back; you cannot withdraw the investment, which is, in essence, a collateral for your TRC.

It's a HUGE difference between buying a home to live in and putting money in a business that is more than likely not of your choice, then not be able to touch it until you terminate your stay in VN.

Lucy hoang wrote:

There is not much change for law from 1 July 2020. But I think you can open any business then keep a visa business to stay here.

Your thought is incorrect.

I am confused by your comment concerning the amount required by a “SMALL” investor to be eligible for a One year investor visa.

Initially you state that a 3B investment, which I assume to mean vnd 3.0 billion = ~$130,000 is no longer acceptable to obtain a One year Investor visa.

Thereafter you say that $13,500 = ~vnd 300 million is the loan amount to make for a small investor to get a One year renewable visa (and preferable to a marriage visa)

I would very much appreciate you clarifying your comment. Thank you

Italstal wrote:

I am confused by your comment concerning the amount required by a “SMALL” investor to be eligible for a One year investor visa.

Initially you state that a 3B investment, which I assume to mean vnd 3.0 billion = ~$130,000 is no longer acceptable to obtain a One year Investor visa.

Thereafter you say that $13,500 = ~vnd 300 million is the loan amount to make for a small investor to get a One year renewable visa (and preferable to a marriage visa)

I would very much appreciate you clarifying your comment. Thank you

For the last 4+ years, I've been answering inquiries every day, meaning I posted about 80 comments each month.  I wrote about the topic of investor visa so many times on several different threads, I can't remember everything now. 

If you're confused about something I posted, I suggest that you read the entire thread/s, not just my comments so you will not see things out of context.

If you want me to explain a specific point, you must quote or copy and paste what I wrote, or give me a link and location of my specific comments, so I can understand your question and help to clear your confusion.

One more thing:  please post all your inquiries on the forum.  I've stopped replying to PMs asking for help two years ago when they all became endless demands.  Any help I can give, it'll be given to the community of expats at large, on the forum, not in my PM.

Ciambella wrote:

In expanding that thinking, I have the idea of comparing that renewable business visa with other countries' retirement visa (this one is without the age requirement).  My logic tells me that it's essentially the same thing, but I may be wrong.

Is this one on your list even though it is not limited to retirees?

https://www.thaienquirer.com/32668/cabi … oreigners/

Travelfar wrote:

Is this one on your list even though it is not limited to retirees?

https://www.thaienquirer.com/32668/cabi … oreigners/

I actually don't have any list because I don't know much about other countries' visa. In my mind, all visas that require a large sum of money being deposited long term in the government's approved markets are the same, no matter the name. So, even though VN doesn't have retirement visa, investor visa (not to be confused with business visa) would serve the same purpose. Your money is the collateral for your stay.

It's an old thread but the answer is a big "NO" unlike many other countries offers TRC for real estate investors!