Guide to Buying Property in Vietnam As a Foreigner

A foreigner buying an apartment in Ho Chi Minh City and the Vietnamese citizen buying the unit next door are not acquiring the same thing, even when the paperwork looks identical. Vietnam treats all land as collectively owned, so a foreign buyer holds a 50-year leasehold on housing inside approved projects rather than the indefinite land use rights a local enjoys.

The 2023 Housing Law and 2024 Land Law reshaped how this works in practice. They confirmed what foreigners can buy and where, kept the caps that limit how much of any development can go to foreign owners, and significantly expanded the rights of overseas Vietnamese who hold a Vietnamese passport.

How Land Ownership Works in Vietnam

No individual or entity, Vietnamese or foreign, owns land outright in Vietnam. The State administers all land on behalf of the people, and what the law actually grants is a Land Use Right: the right to use, develop, transfer, and transact with land within set limits.

For a Vietnamese citizen, holding that right works much like ownership anywhere else. They can keep the land indefinitely, pass it to their children, sell it, or pledge it as loan collateral.

For a foreigner, the same right comes with hard edges. You hold housing for 50 years rather than indefinitely, you can buy only certain property types in specifically approved developments, and the share of any building or area that foreign owners can hold is capped. 

So when foreigners enter the Vietnamese property market, they're not buying the same thing a Vietnamese buyer would be buying, even if the property looks identical on paper.

Property Types Available to Foreigners

Under the Housing Law 2023, foreign individuals and foreign-invested organizations can own housing in Vietnam through specific channels:

1. Buying apartments or landed houses in approved commercial residential projects
2. Receiving housing as a gift or inheritance
3. Purchasing through lease-purchase agreements

The critical limitation is that these purchases can only happen within foreign-related projects. These are commercial residential developments specifically approved by the relevant provincial People's Committee for sale to foreign buyers.

The Ministry of Defense and Ministry of Public Security identify areas restricted for national security or defense reasons, and provincial People's Committees then determine which projects in non-restricted areas can sell to foreigners.

As an example of how this plays out in practice: by the end of 2025, Ho Chi Minh City had 88 foreign-related projects available for foreign purchase, including developments in Thao Dien, Phu My Hung, and Binh Trung. Hanoi and Da Nang have similar approved-project lists.

Most properties available on the open market in Vietnam are not foreign-related projects. Therefore foreign buyers need to verify project status before committing to a purchase.

How Many Properties Foreigners Can Own

Even within foreign-related projects, the Housing Law 2023 and Decree 95/2024/ND-CP impose specific caps:

• For apartments: Foreign owners cannot collectively own more than 30% of the total apartments in a condominium building. For complexes with multiple blocks sharing a common base, the 30% cap applies to each block, so the ratio cannot be unevenly spread across the development.
• For landed houses (villas, townhouses, semi-detached): Foreign owners cannot collectively own more than 250 houses within an area equivalent to a ward, defined as a population of 10,000 people. Where only one residential project exists in such an area, foreigners are limited to 10% of the houses in the project, with a total maximum of 250. Where multiple projects exist in the same area, ownership can be distributed across them up to the 250-house total.

The caps apply to the development or area, not to individual buyers. A foreign individual can own multiple properties within their allocation, subject to the lease term and renewal rules.

Owning Property as a Foreigner in Vietnam

There are three main routes for foreigners to hold property in Vietnam, each with different rights, durations, and restrictions:

Foreign Individual Ownership

Foreign individuals own housing in Vietnam on a 50-year leasehold basis, with one extension permitted under Article 20 of the Housing Law 2023. The maximum total ownership term is therefore 100 years through the original term plus one renewal.

A few practical points on renewal:

• The extension is not automatic; it requires application and approval
• The terms of renewal (fees, conditions) are determined at the time of extension
• If you sell or transfer the property to a Vietnamese buyer before renewal, the property converts to indefinite ownership in the new owner's hands
• For apartments, the use term of the building itself is determined by design specifications and actual construction quality, which can affect the practical value of a leasehold renewal

Foreign-invested organizations (companies) that hold housing for business purposes do so for the duration of their investment certificate, with the option to extend when the investment license is renewed.

What You Need to Buy Property in Vietnam

The standard documentation for a foreign property purchase in Vietnam includes:

• Valid passport with proof of legal entry to Vietnam (entry stamp or visa, not from a diplomatic or consular role exempt from foreign ownership rules)
• Notarized purchase or lease-purchase agreement
• Proof that the project is a foreign-related development
• Confirmation that ownership doesn't exceed the cap for that building or area
• Bank transfer documentation showing the purchase funds were transferred through a licensed Vietnamese bank

The purchase agreement must be notarized or certified by a Vietnamese notary office. Moreover, funds must move through Vietnamese banks rather than informal channels; cash payments are not acceptable for the purpose of establishing legitimate ownership.

Taxes and Fees on Foreign Property Purchases

A foreign property purchase in Vietnam involves several taxes and fees:

• Registration fee: 0.5% of property value
• Personal income tax on transfers: 2% of transfer value (paid by the seller in resale transactions)
• Notary fees: Variable, typically 0.1% to 0.3% of property value
• Administrative fees: Property registration, title issuance, and related costs

These are largely the same as for Vietnamese buyers, with no surcharge specifically targeting foreign purchases.

Expanded Rights for Overseas Vietnamese (Viet Kieu)

The Land Law 2024 made a significant change to the rights of Vietnamese people residing abroad. Under Articles 41, 43, and 44, Viet Kieu who hold Vietnamese nationality (a valid Vietnamese passport) now have land use rights equivalent to domestic Vietnamese citizens.

This means:

• Viet Kieu with Vietnamese passports can buy land plots and landed houses with land use rights, not just apartments in commercial projects
• They can transfer, lease, mortgage, inherit, and gift land use rights on the same basis as Vietnamese residents
• They're subject to the same taxes and fees as domestic citizens

For overseas Vietnamese without Vietnamese nationality but with Vietnamese origin, the 2024 Land Law also expanded rights, though not to the same level as those holding Vietnamese passports. The strongest position belongs to Viet Kieu who can prove current Vietnamese citizenship.

To benefit from these rights, Viet Kieu need to provide proof of Vietnamese nationality or origin and transfer purchase funds through licensed Vietnamese banks. The same documentation rigor applies to source-of-funds verification.

Buying Property Through a Foreign-Invested Company

Foreign investors who need property for business operations rather than personal residence can set up a foreign-invested company in Vietnam. This entity can then lease land or develop property for the company's use.

A foreign-invested company (typically a 100% foreign-owned LLC or a joint venture) can:

• Lease land directly from the State, with the lease tied to the investment certificate's validity period
• Lease land from an industrial park, hi-tech zone, export-processing zone, or economic zone
• Buy or build property for the company's operational use (offices, manufacturing facilities, employee housing)

Under the Land Law 2024, foreign-invested economic organizations can choose between annual or one-time land rent payment, providing more flexibility than the previous framework. The choice affects bankability: one-time payment qualifies the lease for bank mortgages, while annual payment offers more cash flow flexibility but typically can't be mortgaged.

For investors who plan to develop residential property for sale or lease, a separate licensing path under the Real Estate Business Law 2023 applies. Foreign-invested real estate businesses can:

• Rent land from the State and develop residential property on it for sale or lease
• Develop non-residential commercial property on State-leased land
• Acquire portions of ongoing real estate developments and list the developed property for sale or rent
• Operate in industrial parks, hi-tech zones, and economic zones

The Law on Real Estate Business No. 29/2023/QH15 (LREB 2023) sets specific capital requirements and project size thresholds for foreign-invested real estate businesses, with implementing decrees providing the operational details.

How Emerhub Can Help

Emerhub's Vietnam team works with foreign individuals and companies looking to acquire property in Vietnam, whether for personal residence, business operations, or investment.

Our team verifies whether a target property sits within an approved foreign-related project, structures the right legal entity for buyers who need a foreign-invested company, and handles the documentation and notarization process.

For investors building or developing in Vietnam, we cover the company setup, land lease negotiations with State or industrial park authorities, and the Real Estate Business Law licensing required for property development activities.

If you are interested in finding property for your company or for yourself as an individual, get in touch with one of our advisors via the form below!