A person who holds foreign nationality can be deprived of the right to inherit assets in Vietnam, but only in a few specific situations, and never simply because of their nationality. Confusing "a restriction on how an asset is received" with "an actual loss of the right" leads many overseas Vietnamese and foreigners to give up midway, only to forfeit the share that should have been theirs.
As a foreign national, can you still inherit the estate your parents leave behind in Vietnam? If the estate is a house, can you be named on the title deed, or are you forced to "lose everything"? And if you live far away and have not returned for years to complete the formalities, is your share still intact? These questions worry many people, because the line between "a limit on the form in which assets are received" and "being deprived of the right to inherit" is easily blurred, while each leads to a completely different course of action. The article below analyses precisely when foreigners are truly deprived of, or lose, the right to inherit, and distinguishes those cases from situations that are merely a limit on the form of receipt, where you still preserve the value of the asset.
Foreign nationality does not automatically extinguish the right to inherit in Vietnam
The first point to make clear is that Vietnamese law does not strip a person of the right to inherit merely because that person holds foreign nationality. The right to leave an estate and the right to receive an inheritance are fundamental civil rights, guaranteed equally to every individual. In other words, a child who is a US, Australian or Korean national stands in the line of heirs of their parents in Vietnam just as a child holding Vietnamese nationality does.
For an estate with a foreign element, the first legal question is: which country's law applies? The Civil Code draws a clear distinction by type of asset. An estate consisting of movable property (cash, savings books, shares and the like) is governed by the law of the country of which the deceased held nationality; an estate consisting of immovable property is always governed by the law of the place where that property is located.
This means that for houses and land in Vietnam, whatever nationality you or the deceased hold, Vietnamese law is the law that determines how you receive that share. And this is precisely where most misunderstandings arise, because Vietnam's land and housing laws impose a limit specific to foreigners: a limit on how the asset is received, not on the right to inherit.
Before going further, it is necessary to distinguish three groups that are often lumped together, because their rights differ greatly. The first is Vietnamese people residing abroad who still hold Vietnamese nationality, whom land law treats as "individuals" on a par with people inside the country. The second is people of Vietnamese origin residing abroad, who have taken foreign nationality but have Vietnamese roots. The third is pure foreign individuals with no Vietnamese origin. The further one is from "Vietnamese origin", the stricter the limits on real estate become, yet the right to inherit belongs to all three groups.
Four grounds that genuinely cause a person to lose or be deprived of the right to inherit
When a person truly cannot receive an inheritance, the reason almost always lies in one of the four grounds below in the Civil Code. These grounds apply to every heir, including foreigners, regardless of nationality.
First, being disinherited by the testator. The testator has the right to designate heirs and to "deprive an heir of the right to inherit". If your father or mother leaves a valid will that disinherits you, in principle you do not receive a share under that will. However, this power to disinherit is not absolute, because the law still protects a group of the closest family members.
This means that if you are a minor child, or the father, mother, wife or husband of the deceased, or an adult child incapable of working, then even if the will gives you nothing, you are still entitled to at least two-thirds of a statutory share. This is a point that many people abroad do not know, and they are easily persuaded that "once disinherited, everything is lost".
Second, falling within the group not entitled to inherit because of one's own conduct. The law excludes those who have committed serious acts against the deceased or against the will.
The two cases seen most often in practice are a serious breach of the duty to support the deceased, and forging or concealing a will for personal gain. Note that even a person in these groups may still inherit if the deceased knew of that conduct but nonetheless allowed them to inherit under the will.
Third, renouncing the inheritance oneself. This is not a deprivation but a choice, though the consequence is the same: you no longer have that share. A renunciation must be made in writing, expressed before the time of estate division, and must not be intended to evade one's own property obligations toward others. People abroad sometimes sign a document "ceding their share" to relatives in Vietnam without fully foreseeing the consequences, thereby losing their rights unintentionally.
Fourth, allowing the limitation period for requesting division of the estate to lapse. This is the quietest "trap" for those living far away, and it is analysed in detail in the risks section below.
For real estate, foreigners are usually entitled only to the value, not to the title
Most of the fear that "foreigners are deprived of the right to inherit real estate" actually originates here, and it is essentially a misunderstanding. The law does not take away your right to inherit; it only limits the form in which you receive the asset when the estate is immovable property. You remain a lawful heir, but instead of being named on the Certificate, you receive the value of that share.
The root lies in the fact that the Land Law lists who is recognised as a "land user". That list includes domestic individuals and Vietnamese people residing abroad who are Vietnamese citizens, people of Vietnamese origin residing abroad, and foreign-invested economic organisations, but it does not include pure foreign individuals. Not being within the group of "land users", a foreign individual cannot be granted a Certificate of land use rights, even when inheriting lawfully.
This mechanism matters because it shows that you do not lose the asset at all. You are named as the transferring party or the donor of the inherited land, that is, you are able to realise your share as money or value. While the transfer has not yet taken place, the heir or their authorised representative files the inheritance documents with the land registration office to update the cadastral records, and may authorise another person to look after the land.
For housing, the logic is similar but governed by the Housing Law. A foreign individual may own housing only when the statutory conditions are met, namely being permitted to enter Vietnam, buying or receiving commercial housing in a project that is not within an area requiring assurance of national defence and security, and within quantitative limits (no more than 30% of the apartments in one apartment building, or no more than 250 separate houses in an area equivalent to one ward). If the housing you inherit falls outside these conditions, the consequence is likewise entitlement to the value.
The picture becomes clearer when the three groups of heirs are placed side by side, together with how each receives a real-estate share of the estate:
| Group of heirs | How they receive a real-estate share of the estate in Vietnam |
|---|---|
| Vietnamese people residing abroad who still hold Vietnamese nationality | May receive and be named on the Certificate, like a domestic individual |
| People of Vietnamese origin residing abroad who are permitted to enter Vietnam and are eligible to own housing | May receive the inheritance and be granted a Certificate for housing attached to residential land |
| Pure foreign individuals, or people of Vietnamese origin not eligible to own housing | Still inherit but receive only the value; may transfer or donate the land share, without being named on the title |
One notable exception is that a foreign individual married to a Vietnamese citizen living in Vietnam may own housing and hold the rights of an owner just like a Vietnamese citizen. Which group you fall into therefore depends not only on nationality, but also on origin, entry status and marital relationship. This is why every case must be examined on its own facts.
The procedure to avoid losing your inheritance while you are abroad
Understanding your rights correctly is only half the story; the other half is following the correct procedure so that those rights do not "slip away" along the way. For a person currently abroad, a sound process usually comprises the following steps:
- Determine the basis of the inheritance, that is, whether there is a valid will or distribution under the law, and review the line of heirs: who has been disinherited, who is entitled regardless of the content of the will, and whether anyone falls into the group not entitled to inherit.
- Prepare and legalise the personal documents issued abroad (birth certificate, marriage certificate, death certificate, passport): obtain consular legalisation and notarised translation in Vietnam before submission.
- Execute a declaration of inheritance or an agreement on the division of the estate at a notarial organisation, and carry out the public posting required by law.
- For real estate that you are not eligible to be named on: choose to transfer or donate the land share to an eligible person in order to receive the value, or agree for a co-heir who is eligible to take the asset in kind and then pay you the corresponding value.
- If you cannot return to Vietnam: execute a lawful power of attorney authorising a lawyer or representative to carry out the entire procedure on your behalf, dealing with the notary, the bank, the land registration office and the co-heirs.
- Complete the related tax and fee obligations; only then comes the step of transferring the value or inheritance funds abroad in accordance with foreign exchange regulations, which is a separate procedure to prepare early.
Mistakes that cause foreigners to genuinely lose their share of the inheritance
Ironically, most cases of losing a share of an inheritance in practice do not stem from the law itself, but from avoidable mistakes. Below are the situations DEDICA encounters most often.
Letting the limitation period lapse through prolonged delay. This is the most dangerous risk for those far away, because it is silent and irreversible.
Being omitted when domestic co-heirs declare the inheritance on their own. A very common scenario is that relatives in Vietnam proceed to declare the inheritance and "forget" the name of the heir living abroad. In that case you do not lose your right, but you must file a lawsuit seeking re-division of the estate because the declaration omitted an heir, a process far more time-consuming than taking part from the outset.
Mistaking "entitled only to the value" for "losing everything". Many foreigners, on hearing that they cannot be named on the title deed, abandon the real-estate share or let others dispose of it entirely. As analysed above, you still have a right to the corresponding value; giving up here means voluntarily forfeiting a real asset.
Documents issued abroad that have not been consularly legalised. A birth certificate, marriage certificate or death certificate issued by a foreign authority, if not consularly legalised and translated with notarisation, will be refused by the notarial organisation and the registration office, stalling the file, sometimes for months, and increasing the risk of reaching the limitation period.
Believing that "being disinherited in the will is the end of your share". Many clients recount that family members told them they "have no share" because they are a child living abroad or a child of a different spouse. If you are the wife, husband, father, mother, or a minor child (or an adult child incapable of working) of the deceased, you are still protected by the minimum of two-thirds of a statutory share, regardless of what the will says.
Inadvertently falling into the group not entitled to inherit. Conduct such as a serious breach of the duty to support, or altering, concealing or forging a will for gain, can cause the heir themselves to be excluded. This is a conduct-based risk, entirely within each person's control.
DEDICA's role when foreigners inherit assets in Vietnam
Given the particular position of clients who are abroad and find it hard to return to Vietnam, DEDICA advises from the outset on an overall strategy: determining which group of heirs you belong to, what types of assets make up the estate, and the shortest path for you actually to receive the value of your share. We guide the preparation and consular legalisation of documents from abroad, and review the will and the line of heirs to detect early any risks of disinheritance, omission or limitation.
When you cannot be present in Vietnam, DEDICA acts under a power of attorney to declare the inheritance at a notarial organisation, to work with banks, the land registration office and co-heirs; to negotiate where there is a dispute and to take part in court proceedings where a lawsuit for re-division of the estate becomes necessary; and to accompany you through the enforcement stage and devise a plan to transfer the value of the assets to you abroad lawfully.
Conclusion
Foreigners are not deprived of the right to inherit assets in Vietnam merely because of nationality. A person truly loses or is deprived of the right to inherit only in four cases: (1) being disinherited in a valid will, although the wife, husband, father, mother and minor children, or adult children incapable of working, are still protected by a minimum of two-thirds of a share; (2) falling within the group not entitled to inherit because of their own conduct; (3) voluntarily renouncing the inheritance; and (4) allowing the limitation period for requesting division to lapse, being 30 years for immovable property and 10 years for movable property. For real estate in particular, a foreign individual usually cannot be named on the Certificate, but this is a limit on the form of receipt, not a loss of the right: you still receive the value through transferring or donating the land share. The most important action is to act early, including preparing and legalising documents, and, if you cannot return to Vietnam, authorising a lawyer to handle matters from the document-review stage in order to avoid reaching the limitation period and being omitted.
Every cross-border inheritance file differs in nationality, origin, type of asset and the state of the documents, and it is precisely those differences that determine whether you receive the asset in kind or only its value. DEDICA Law Firm reviews your specific case, identifies which group you belong to, and builds a roadmap for you to receive your share of the inheritance, even when you cannot be present in Vietnam. Contact DEDICA for a lawyer's advice on your particular situation before the limitation period, or an omitted step, takes away the share of the assets that should be yours.
This article is for reference only, based on the law in force at the time of writing. Each case has its own facts; please consult a DEDICA lawyer for precise advice on your situation.
