DN LEGAL: DECREE (NO. 99) WHICH SETS OUT THE GUIDELINES TO IMPLEMENT THE HOUSING LAW

1. Conditions that foreigners need to satisfy to own residential houses in Vietnam Decree 99 requires a foreigner to satisfy the following conditions to own houses in Vietnam: 

(i) Having his/her valid passport affixed with an entry stamp by the immigration authority of Vietnam; and

(ii) Not being in the category of people entitled to preferential treatment or diplomatic immunity in accordance with the Ordinance on Preferential Treatment Rights and Immunities Applicable to Representative Diplomatic
Offices, Foreign Consulates and Representative Offices of International Organisations in Vietnam.

2. Where foreigners can purchase residential houses in Vietnam

Decree 99 sets out the following procedures to determine where in Vietnam foreigners are allowed to own residential houses:

(i) The Ministry of National Defense (“MOND”) and the Ministry of Public Security (“MOPS”) will work to fix specifically the national defense and security areas in each locality and send a written notice thereof to the provincial People’s Committees;

(ii) On that basis, each provincial People’s Committee (“PC”) will instruct its Department of Construction (“DOC”) to fix specifically a list of investment projects for construction of commercial residential houses within areas where foreign organisations and individuals are not permitted to own residential houses;

(iii) The Ministry of Construction (“MOC”) will also provide specific guidelines on the method for determining the number of residential houses which a foreign organisation or individual is permitted to own;

(iv) Pursuant to the notice of the MOND and the MOPS, the instructions by the PC and the guidelines provided by the MOC, the DOC will publish the 2 following information on its website: (a) The list of investment projects for construction of residential housing in the locality within areas in which foreign organisations and individuals are not permitted to own residential housing; (b) The number of residential houses (comprising apartments in apartment buildings and individual residential houses) which foreign organisations and individuals are permitted to own in each investment project for construction of residential housing not in the category prescribed in sub-clause (a) above; and the number of apartments in each apartment building and the number of individual residential houses in each project which foreign organisations and individuals are permitted to own; (c) The number of residential houses which foreign organisations and individuals have already purchased or hire purchased and/or for which they have been issued with title documents in each investment project for construction of residential housing.

Based on the above information, a foreigner can decide where he or she may purchase homes.

It is not clear whether any action has been taken by the relevant authorities on the above matters.

We will keep you posted of any new development.

Decree No. 99/2015/ND-CP dated 20 October 2015, valid 10 December 2015

DN Legal, 23 November 2015 (www.daonguyenlegal.com)