Việt kiều thừa kế nhà đất tại Việt Nam: Quyền, thủ tục và 5 rủi ro phải biết (Luật sư Lê Bình Phương phân tích)Overseas Vietnamese Inheriting Real Estate in Vietnam: Rights, Procedures and 5 Risks to Know (Analysis by Lawyer Lê Bình Phương)

Reference translation for convenience. The Vietnamese version is the authoritative text.

Overview

One morning, you receive a call from Vietnam — your mother has just passed away. In the same call, your siblings back home begin talking about “the house mum and dad left behind,” and about “how we’ve been living there for years.”

You are in the US, Canada, Australia, or France. You left Vietnam ten, twenty, thirty years ago. You renounced Vietnamese citizenship when you naturalised abroad. The first question that comes to mind: do I still have any rights over that piece of land, that house?

This is one of the most common concerns among overseas Vietnamese — and it is also a point that 80% of people research incorrectly from the start.

The core confusion: “the right to inherit” and “the right to hold title” are two entirely different concepts. Vietnamese law draws a clear distinction between the two — and that is the key to understanding where you stand.

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🌐 For overseas Vietnamese readers — English summary

Overseas Vietnamese Inheriting Real Estate in Vietnam: Rights, Process & Risks (2024+ Update)

Quick answer: Yes — every overseas Vietnamese has the right to inherit real estate in Vietnam, regardless of citizenship status. Whether you can hold title is a separate question, with conditions defined by the 2024 Land Law.

Key points:

• “Right to inherit” ≠ “Right to hold title” — two distinct legal concepts that 80% of overseas Vietnamese confuse.

• Most overseas Vietnamese (permitted to enter Vietnam) can directly hold title to housing attached to residential land.

• If you cannot hold title, Vietnamese law still entitles you to monetary value through transfer or gift.

• 30-year statute of limitations on real estate inheritance — beware of letting it lapse (Article 623 Civil Code 2015).

• 5-step procedure from documentation to title transfer; 5 common risks to avoid.

Legal basis: Land Law 2024 (Articles 28, 44, 45); Civil Code 2015 (Articles 609, 623, 644, 651, 652).

Contact: Master – Lawyer Le Binh Phuong | Phone/Zalo: +84 966 45 45 45 | Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Remote consultation available for clients abroad (US, Canada, Australia, EU).

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Relevant Legal Provisions

The right to inherit — independent of citizenship

Article 609 of the Civil Code 2015 (Law No. 91/2015/QH13):

“An individual has the right to make a will to dispose of his or her property; to leave his or her property to statutory heirs; to receive an estate under a will or under statute.”

This article places no condition on citizenship or place of residence. Every individual — Vietnamese or foreign national, residing in Vietnam or settled abroad — has the right to inherit if they fall within the class entitled to receive under a will or by law.

Article 651 of the Civil Code 2015 — Statutory order of heirs:

“The first rank of heirs comprises: the spouse, biological father, biological mother, adoptive father, adoptive mother, biological children, and adopted children of the deceased…”

When parents pass away, their children — including children settled abroad — fall within the first rank of heirs. The right to receive an estate is not lost merely because you are overseas.

The right to hold title — conditional under the Land Law 2024

Article 44(1) of the Land Law 2024 (Law No. 31/2024/QH15, effective 01/8/2024):

“Persons of Vietnamese origin settled abroad who are permitted to enter Vietnam are entitled to own residential housing attached to residential land use rights in Vietnam; and to exercise residential land use rights acquired through transfer within housing development projects.”

This is the critical point. The condition “permitted to enter Vietnam” is the decisive factor in determining whether a person of Vietnamese origin settled abroad may hold title to a Land Use Rights Certificate. In practice, the vast majority of overseas Vietnamese holding foreign passports and permitted to enter Vietnam satisfy this condition.

Article 44(3) of the Land Law 2024 — Cases where holding title is not possible:

“Where all persons inheriting land use rights, house ownership rights, and other assets attached to land are foreign nationals or persons of Vietnamese origin settled abroad who do not fall within the category entitled to own residential housing attached to residential land use rights in Vietnam as defined in clause 1 of this Article, such persons may not be issued a Certificate of Land Use Rights and Ownership of Assets Attached to Land, but may transfer or gift the inherited land use rights…”

In plain terms: if you cannot hold title, you do not lose your inheritance — you may transfer (sell) or gift the land use right and receive its monetary value.

Article 28(1)(h) of the Land Law 2024 — Inheritance rights of overseas Vietnamese:

“Persons of Vietnamese origin settled abroad who are permitted to enter Vietnam may purchase or rent-to-purchase residential housing attached to residential land use rights, receive residential land use rights within housing development projects; inherit residential land use rights and other land types on the same parcel as the residential housing in accordance with civil law…”

Statute of limitations — critically important for overseas Vietnamese

Article 623(1) of the Civil Code 2015:

“The limitation period for an heir to request partition of an estate is 30 years for immovable property and 10 years for movable property, calculated from the time the inheritance opens. After this period, the estate belongs to the heir who is directly managing it…”

This is the greatest trap for overseas Vietnamese. Parents passed away long ago; relatives in Vietnam have managed the property for decades — if 30 years pass without a formal estate declaration, the estate belongs to the person currently managing it under this article.

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Analysis and Application

The core distinction — the right to inherit ≠ the right to hold title

This is the point that virtually every overseas Vietnamese person gets wrong when they first start researching. Let us settle it upfront:

• The right to inherit is the right to receive a share of the estate under law or under a will. This right does not depend on citizenship — the Civil Code 2015 places no citizenship restriction on it.

• The right to hold title on a Certificate of Land Use Rights and House Ownership is a property right tied to eligibility criteria under the Land Law 2024. This right has limits — and overseas Vietnamese must satisfy the conditions in Article 44(1) in order to hold title.

If you cannot hold title, do you lose the asset? No. You receive its monetary value through transfer or gift — under Article 44(3).

Three groups of overseas Vietnamese — different entitlements

Group 1 — Overseas Vietnamese who retain Vietnamese citizenship (including dual citizens). This is the simplest case. The law treats you as a “Vietnamese individual” and you have the same full rights as a domestic citizen — including unrestricted title-holding.

Group 2 — Persons of Vietnamese origin settled abroad who have relinquished Vietnamese citizenship, hold a foreign passport, and are permitted to enter Vietnam. This covers the majority of overseas Vietnamese. Under Article 44(1) of the Land Law 2024, you are entitled to own residential housing attached to residential land — meaning you may hold title normally for residential land with a house on it.

Group 3 — Persons of Vietnamese origin settled abroad who are not permitted to enter Vietnam (an extremely rare case — for example, someone who is barred from entry). In this case, title-holding is not possible, but you may still receive monetary value through transfer or gift.

5-Step roadmap to inheriting real estate in Vietnam

Step 1 — Gather core documents. Before any procedure, you will need: the death certificate of the person leaving the estate; household registration book or confirmation of family relationship (birth certificate proving the parent–child relationship); the original Land Use Rights Certificate (if available); the heir’s passport; documents proving Vietnamese origin (Vietnamese birth certificate, old household registration book, or a Certificate of Vietnamese Origin issued by a competent authority).

Step 2 — Execute a power of attorney with consular legalization. If you are not coming to Vietnam, execute a power of attorney authorising a representative in Vietnam (a lawyer or family member) to carry out all procedures on your behalf. The power of attorney must be notarised abroad and then consularized at the Vietnamese Embassy or Consulate General in your country of residence. This is where many people go wrong — a POA merely notarised domestically abroad, without consular legalization, will be rejected by Vietnamese notary offices.

Step 3 — Declare the estate at a Notary Office. All heirs of the relevant rank (or their authorised representatives) jointly sign an Estate Declaration or Estate Partition Agreement at the Notary Office in the locality where the real estate is situated. The Notary Office posts a public notice for 15 days at the commune-level People’s Committee to confirm there is no dispute.

Step 4 — Register title transfer at the land registration authority. Following the estate declaration or partition agreement, submit the file to the land registration authority (formerly the Land Registration Office). If you fall under Group 2 and wish to hold title, the file will update the land use rights into the heir’s name. If you fall under Group 3, the file is noted in the Land Register only — you then carry out a transfer or gift to receive its monetary value.

Step 5 — Pay taxes and fees. Registration tax (stamp duty): 0.5% of the real estate value. Inheritance between first-rank heirs (parent–child) is exempt from personal income tax. If you subsequently transfer (sell) the property, personal income tax of 2% on the transfer price applies. Notarization fees are charged according to the notarization fee schedule.

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Real-World Situation

Ms M settled in the US in 1995, naturalised as an American citizen, and relinquished her Vietnamese citizenship. In March 2025, her mother passed away in Saigon, leaving a shophouse in the former inner-city district valued at approximately VND 18 billion. Ms M has two brothers in Vietnam — one of whom has been living in the house for many years.

When she investigated, everyone told her something different. Some said: “You’ve lost your Vietnamese citizenship so you have no rights.” Others said: “You have to come back to Vietnam to do anything.” Others said: “The property must be in the name of a Vietnamese citizen in the country.”

The actual path Ms M took:

April 2025: Ms M executed a power of attorney in favour of a lawyer in Ho Chi Minh City to carry out all procedures on her behalf, including declaring the estate and negotiating the partition with her two brothers. She executed the POA at a notary public’s office in California, then had it consularized at the Vietnamese Consulate General in San Francisco.

May 2025: The lawyer/representative collected the documents — the mother’s death certificate, the birth certificates of all three children (proving family relationship), Ms M’s passport, the old household registration book proving Vietnamese origin, and the original Land Use Rights Certificate.

June 2025: At the Notary Office, the three heirs (Ms M through her authorised representative, and the two brothers in person) signed an Estate Partition Agreement. The agreement: the house was divided into three equal shares under Article 651(2) of the Civil Code 2015 (heirs of the same rank each receive an equal share).

Practical issue: Ms M did not want to hold title to 1/3 of the house — it is difficult to manage from abroad — and the brother living there did not have the cash to buy her out immediately. Solution: the two brothers signed to take Ms M’s share through a gift arrangement with an agreed value reimbursement, and Ms M received VND 6 billion (1/3 of the value) wired to her Vietnamese bank account, from which it was transferred abroad under current foreign exchange regulations.

July 2025: Title transfer registration completed at the land registration authority, with payment of registration tax (VND 90 million) and notarization fees. The entire process from the mother’s death to the completion of the estate partition took approximately 4 months.

Ms M did not return to Vietnam once during the entire process.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can overseas Vietnamese inherit real estate in Vietnam?

→ Yes, regardless of citizenship.

According to lawyer Lê Bình Phương, the right to inherit and the right to hold title are two entirely separate matters. The Civil Code 2015 gives every individual the right to inherit from family members — regardless of citizenship or place of residence. Whether you may hold title on the Certificate depends on Article 44 of the Land Law 2024 — and the majority of overseas Vietnamese permitted to enter Vietnam satisfy the conditions for holding title to residential housing attached to residential land.

Can an overseas Vietnamese person without Vietnamese citizenship hold title to a Land Use Rights Certificate?

→ Conditionally, yes.

According to lawyer Lê Bình Phương, Article 44(1) of the Land Law 2024 provides that persons of Vietnamese origin settled abroad who are permitted to enter Vietnam are entitled to own residential housing attached to residential land use rights. In practice, the vast majority of overseas Vietnamese holding foreign passports and permitted to enter Vietnam satisfy this condition. Where the condition is not met, you may still receive monetary value through transfer or gift under clause 3 of the same article.

Do overseas Vietnamese need to return to Vietnam to receive their inheritance?

→ Not necessarily.

According to lawyer Lê Bình Phương, you may authorise a representative in Vietnam (a lawyer or family member) to carry out all procedures. The core requirement: the power of attorney must be executed before a competent authority abroad (notary public, foreign notary) and consularized at the Vietnamese Embassy or Consulate General before being sent back to Vietnam.

What is the statute of limitations for inheriting real estate in Vietnam?

→ 30 years for immovable property.

According to lawyer Lê Bình Phương, Article 623(1) of the Civil Code 2015 provides that the limitation period for requesting estate partition is 30 years for immovable property, calculated from the time the inheritance opens (the date of death of the person leaving the estate). After this period, the estate belongs to the heir currently managing it — this is the greatest risk for overseas Vietnamese whose parents passed away long ago and who have not yet formally declared the estate.

Can overseas Vietnamese sell land in Vietnam after inheriting it?

→ Yes.

According to lawyer Lê Bình Phương, even overseas Vietnamese who do not qualify to hold title may transfer the inherited land use right to a person eligible to own housing in Vietnam, under Article 44(3) of the Land Law 2024. The proceeds from the transfer may be remitted abroad in accordance with foreign exchange management regulations.

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Important Notes — 5 Real-World Risks

Risk 1 — Siblings in Vietnam declare the estate before you find out. This is a very common situation. When one heir files an estate declaration at a Notary Office without fully disclosing all other heirs (especially those abroad), the Notary Office still posts a 15-day public notice — but you, being overseas, have no way of knowing. Once the notice period expires, the property is transferred. By the time you discover it, you must bring court proceedings to annul the declaration — a lengthy and expensive process. Prevention: as soon as you learn that the person leaving the estate has died, contact a lawyer in Vietnam immediately and execute a consularized power of attorney right away.

Risk 2 — Exceeding the 30-year limitation period. If parents passed away more than 30 years ago and no one has ever formally declared the estate, and someone is directly managing the property, under Article 623 of the Civil Code 2015 the estate belongs to that person. Prevention: review the history — has anyone ever produced formal declaration documents? Has anyone ever registered title? If there have been breaks in management (for example, you returned to Vietnam at some point and paid land tax, or sent money for property taxes over the years) — those may be grounds to show the limitation period has not run.

Risk 3 — Power of attorney not consularized. This is a common technical error. You go to a notary public in the US and have the POA notarised, then send it to Vietnam — the Vietnamese Notary Office rejects it because it has not been consularized. Prevention: after notarisation, take the document to the Vietnamese Consulate General in your country to have it consularized (bearing the consulate’s official seal). The process takes 5–15 days depending on the country.

Risk 4 — Lost documents, especially proof of Vietnamese origin. Overseas Vietnamese who left before 1990 often have lost their Vietnamese birth certificates, old household registration books, or identity papers from that era. To prove Vietnamese origin, you may need a Certificate of Vietnamese Origin issued by the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Prevention: prepare early, while your parents are still alive — do not wait until the inheritance arises before looking for a Vietnamese birth certificate.

Risk 5 — Assets previously registered in a sibling’s name on your behalf. In many overseas Vietnamese families, parents previously had a child in Vietnam hold title to some assets on their behalf. After the parents pass away, the person holding title may claim that the asset is their own personal property. This is a legally complex area — you must prove the “nominee title-holding” relationship through documentation, testimony, or financial records. Prevention: if you discover assets of this type, execute a written acknowledgement of the trust/nominee arrangement while your parents are still of sound mind, signed by all parties and notarized.

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Related Articles — Overseas Vietnamese Cluster

A specialist cluster for overseas Vietnamese — read by topic group:

Rights and legal standing:

• Who is a “person of Vietnamese origin settled abroad”? Confirming Vietnamese origin

• Can overseas Vietnamese hold title to a Land Use Rights Certificate in Vietnam?

• Does losing Vietnamese citizenship affect assets in Vietnam?

Real estate transactions:

• Overseas Vietnamese buying a home in Vietnam 2026 — rights and conditions

• Overseas Vietnamese selling property in Vietnam — procedures and taxes

• Can you reclaim land that was registered in someone else’s name on your behalf?

• Overseas Vietnamese inheriting agricultural land in Vietnam

Cross-border procedures and legal matters:

• Power of attorney for overseas Vietnamese — consular legalization

• Overseas Vietnamese making a will for assets in Vietnam

• Overseas Vietnamese divorcing a spouse in Vietnam — jurisdiction and procedure

Related Articles — General Inheritance Cluster

• Dividing an estate without a will — order of heirs and practice

• Inheriting land use rights without a will

• Mandatory inheritance share under Article 644 of the Civil Code 2015

• Statute of limitations for inheritance disputes — what you need to know

• Inheritance disputes — rules and resolution

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Conclusion

Overseas Vietnamese have the right to inherit real estate in Vietnam — regardless of citizenship. This is not something you need to worry about. What genuinely needs attention is not “whether you have rights,” but following the right roadmap and avoiding the five real-world risks set out above.

The core distinction: the right to inherit (always present) and the right to hold title (conditional under Article 44 of the Land Law 2024). The majority of overseas Vietnamese holding foreign citizenship and permitted to enter Vietnam satisfy the conditions for holding title to residential housing attached to residential land. Where the condition is not met, you still receive the monetary value — you do not lose the asset.

Two things to do now: (a) while your parents are still alive — prepare documents proving family relationship and Vietnamese origin, and have a will drawn up if needed; (b) when your parents pass away — contact a lawyer in Vietnam as soon as possible, execute a consularized power of attorney, and carry out the estate declaration promptly.

Do not let the 30-year limitation period pass. Do not let siblings in Vietnam declare the estate before you know about it. Do not wait until it is too late before looking for a Vietnamese birth certificate.

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Are you an overseas Vietnamese person who needs specific advice on an inheritance file in Vietnam?

Call MBA., Esq. Lê Bình Phương directly: 0966 45 45 45

(Remote consultation available by phone/Zalo for clients abroad.)

See also: Who is Lawyer Lê Bình Phương?

Analysis by MBA., Esq. Lê Bình Phương.

Note: This article reflects the law as at 15 May 2026. The Law on Housing 2023 (Law No. 27/2023/QH15) also contains provisions concerning the right of persons of Vietnamese origin settled abroad to own housing — when applying these rules to a specific file, please verify the latest implementing instruments at the time of the procedure.