Citizeo Expand your global options
Pathway

Vietnam Spouse or Family Visa

Vietnam Residency
Pathway overview

At a glance

Vietnam’s TT family route covers eligible relatives of Vietnamese citizens and spouses or children under 18 of specified foreign residents. A separate exemption certificate supports repeated family visits; work and permanent residence require separate eligibility.

Vietnamese-citizen family
An eligible parent, spouse, or child
Foreign-resident family
A spouse or child under 18 of a holder of a listed category
Five-year exemption
A separate document, normally allowing up to 180 days per entry

Summary

Vietnam offers family visa and residence options for eligible relatives, with the appropriate route determined by the sponsor’s status and the relationship. TT status is not a three-year visa: the visa limit is 12 months, while the separate TT Temporary Residence Card can reach three years. The five-year family visa-exemption certificate permits repeated entry but normally gives up to 180 days of temporary stay per entry. None of these documents automatically authorizes work, permanent residence, or citizenship. Family-sponsored permanent residence and naturalization have separate tests.

A separate five-year visa-exemption certificate is available to eligible overseas Vietnamese people and specified foreign spouses or children. It normally allows visits of up to 180 days at a time, not a continuous five-year stay. Permanent residence requires another application.

Could this pathway work for you?

Eligibility

TT family permission through a Vietnamese citizen

A foreign parent, spouse, or child of a Vietnamese citizen may qualify. Prove the relationship with the required marriage, birth, adoption, or other civil records.

Foreign documents may need translation, legalization or accepted authentication, and recording or annotation under Vietnam’s civil-status rules. Ask what applies to your document; do not assume every foreign marriage must be re-registered or that no processing is needed.

TT family permission through a foreign resident

A qualifying foreign resident can support a spouse or child under 18. The resident must hold one of these listed categories:

LV1, LV2, LS, ĐT1, ĐT2, ĐT3, NN1, NN2, DH, PV1, LĐ1, or LĐ2.

Check the exact code on the sponsor’s documents. A ĐT4 investor, short-stay visitor, or another unlisted category cannot be assumed to support TT status. You do not need Vietnamese ancestry or to already live in Vietnam for this foreign-resident family route.

The sponsor or inviting organization completes the relevant immigration filing. The sponsor’s status must remain valid, and the family permission is limited by the supporting status and passport validity.

The five-year visa-exemption certificate

This may fit:

Prove the Vietnamese citizenship or origin connection and the relevant family relationship. Under Decree 82/2015/ND-CP, the certificate can last up to five years but must end at least six months before passport or travel-document expiry.

Each entry normally allows up to 180 days, or only the remaining certificate validity if shorter. A further stay may be considered with a sponsor and valid reason, but it is a separate decision, not an automatic extra six months.

Permanent residence through Vietnamese family

A foreign parent, spouse, or child of a Vietnamese citizen permanently living in Vietnam can seek permanent residence with that citizen’s guarantee, lawful housing, and stable support.

The residence-history requirement is generally at least three years of temporary residence within the four years immediately before applying, proved through entry and exit records. Meeting that period does not guarantee approval.

Choosing Vietnamese family entry or residence permission
  1. Confirm the sponsor and family category Check citizenship or the foreign resident’s exact visa code and relationship rules.
  2. Choose the correct document and prepare records Distinguish TT residence, repeated-visit exemption, and permanent residence.
  3. Complete the relevant application Follow validity limits and assess employment or later citizenship separately.

A five-year exemption certificate is different from a residence card and does not permit five continuous years of stay.

What This Route Allows

TT supports temporary family residence. An approved card can reduce repeated visa-extension applications and allows residence and re-entry while the family basis, sponsor, passport, and card remain valid.

The exemption certificate supports repeated qualifying visits without a new visa for each entry. Its long validity does not remove the limit on each visit.

Permanent residence is a separate, more lasting status. For ordinary naturalization, the residence period runs from the Permanent Residence Card, not a TT visa, temporary card, or exemption certificate.

A Vietnamese spouse or biological child can support specified naturalization waivers, but citizenship still needs its own application and decision. A spouse using that waiver must still be permanently resident in Vietnam when applying.

What This Route Is Not

TT and the exemption certificate do not automatically authorize employment. A working family member must qualify for a work permit or exemption and the appropriate immigration status.

The one-year visa and three-year card periods are ceilings, not promised validity. Marriage does not automatically grant permanent residence or citizenship. Naturalization remains discretionary, and retaining another citizenship requires the applicable exception and Presidential permission.

Next Steps

  1. Identify the sponsor: Vietnamese citizen, overseas Vietnamese person, or foreign resident. For a foreign resident, verify the exact eligible visa or card code.
  2. Choose the document that matches your plans: TT residence, repeated visits under an exemption certificate, or a separate permanent-residence application.
  3. Gather complete relationship and identity records, check translation and civil-registration requirements, and resolve short passport or sponsor validity.
  4. Use the current filing forms and channel. Circular 70/2026/TT-BCA changed immigration forms and procedures from July 1, 2026.
  5. Check work permission separately. For permanent residence, document the full four-year travel window, housing, registration, sponsor, and income evidence.

Stay up to date on this pathway

Get an email when something important changes.

No account needed. Unsubscribe anytime.

Discussed in these reports

Other routes in Vietnam.

Sources