5. Vietnam Long-Stay VisasIf wishing to reside in Vietnam, you, as a foreigner, is required to register your temporary or permanent residence in Vietnam with the Vietnam Immigration Department. To do this, you must first of all possess a valid foreign passport, a visa (if not exempted from visa) and other documents as prescribed in Articles 10, 37 and 41 of Law No. 47/2014/QH13 & No. 51/2019/QH14 on Entry, Exit, Transit and Residence of Foreigners in Vietnam (Vietnam Immigration Law).
According to the Law, Vietnam has 15 types of visas: NG, LV, LS, DT, DN, NN, DH, HN, PV, LD, DL, TT, VR, SQ & EV, of which the following three types are granted with longest duration (over 12 months): LS, DT & LD. More specific:
- LS: granted to foreign lawyers practicing in Vietnam.
- DT1: granted to foreign investors with a contributed capital of at least VND 100,000,000,000 (USD 4,333,333)
- DT2: granted to foreign investors with a contributed capital of at least VND 50,000,000,000 (USD 2,166,666)
- DT3: granted to foreign investors with a contributed capital of at least VND 3,000,000,000 (USD 130,000)
- LD1: granted to people who come to work with a work permit exemption.
- LD2: granted to people who come to work with a work permit.
| Symbol | Maximum visa | Card* |
1 | LS | 5 years | 5 years |
2 | DT1 | 5 years | 10 years |
3 | DT2 | 5 years | 5 years |
4 | DT3 | 3 years | 3 years |
5 | LD1 | 2 years | 2 years |
6 | LD2 | 2 years | 2 years |
(*) Granted for DT1; LS, DT2, LV1, LV2, NG3, DH; DT3, TT, NN1, NN2; LD1, LD2, PV1
Pinklaw provides services to foreign lawyers, foreign investors and foreign workers applying for LS, DT and LD visas to Vietnam.