Foreigners fully possess the right to make a will to dispose of their assets in Vietnam. However, many wills, despite being written with utmost care, are rejected during notarization, declared partially invalid, or ultimately leave loved ones with a monetary sum instead of the intended house. Just a few details regarding testamentary capacity, form, and asset types can determine whether your final wishes will materialize.
As a foreign national, can you make a will in Vietnam exactly like a Vietnamese citizen? Is a will drafted in English, Korean, or Chinese recognized here, and who qualifies as a valid witness? If you leave an apartment purchased in Vietnam to a child living abroad, will they receive the actual property or just its monetary value? These are questions many only ask when it is too late. This article analyzes the right to make a will, the applicable laws, procedural requirements, and often-overlooked limitations, ensuring your will effectively protects those you wish to provide for.
The Right to Make a Will and Applicable Laws for Foreigners
Vietnamese law does not deprive a person of the right to make a will simply because they hold a foreign nationality. A foreign individual with legal assets in Vietnam has the right to draft a will to dispose of that estate. The real question is not whether you can make a will, but which country's laws will govern each aspect of it.
The Civil Code 2015 clearly delineates this issue for inheritance involving foreign elements. Testamentary capacity—meaning whether you are of legal age and possess a sound mind to make a will—is determined by the laws of the country of your nationality. Meanwhile, the form of the will is governed by the laws of the country where you draft it. Therefore, if you make a will within Vietnam, the document must comply with the formal requirements of Vietnamese law.
For real estate assets, the law imposes a specific principle. The exercise of inheritance rights over real estate always follows the laws of the country where the property is located, regardless of the deceased's nationality.
What does this mean for you? For assets like bank accounts, shares, or other movable property, the inheritance division is guided by your home country's laws. But for a house or apartment located in Vietnam, all matters related to executing inheritance rights must adhere to Vietnamese law, regardless of where your will is made. This is why a will drafted in Vietnam, conforming to Vietnamese formal requirements, is usually the safest option for domestic real estate assets.
Legal Forms and Procedures for Making a Will in Vietnam
The Civil Code 2015 mandates that a will must primarily be made in writing; an oral will is only permitted when drafting a written one is impossible. Written wills are categorized into four types, with increasing levels of strictness.
For foreigners, a notarized will at a notary practice organization is generally the safest choice. The notary public will verify the testator's capacity, retain a copy of the will, and grant it high evidentiary value should disputes arise later. The procedure for making a notarized will typically involves the following steps:
- Prepare personal identification documents such as a passport, visa, or temporary residence card, along with documents proving ownership of the disposed assets (e.g., an apartment's Certificate of Ownership). Documents issued overseas must be consular legalized and translated into Vietnamese with notarization.
- Visit a notary practice organization and personally declare the will's contents before a notary public. The testator must personally sign or sign and fingerprint; authorizing another person to draft it on your behalf is strictly prohibited.
- If you are not proficient in Vietnamese, a qualified interpreter must be present. If you cannot read, hear, or sign the document yourself, eligible witnesses are required.
- The notary public records, cross-checks, and certifies the will. You may request the notary office to safe-keep the will to prevent loss or unauthorized alterations.
The requirement to personally sign without proxy authorization is a point foreigners abroad often misunderstand. While you can hire a lawyer to prepare the entire dossier, the law strictly requires the testator to perform the act of making the will personally.
Crucial Limitations When the Estate Includes Real Estate in Vietnam
This is where many wills drafted by foreigners fail to fulfill their intended purpose. Your right to make a will is one matter, but whether the heir receives the actual property depends entirely on their eligibility to own such assets in Vietnam.
Regarding housing, foreign individuals can only own properties through specific methods—primarily purchasing, lease-purchasing, receiving as a gift, or inheriting commercial housing within approved projects—subject to quantitative caps. In a single condominium building, foreigners cannot own more than 30% of the total units; for individual houses, they cannot own more than 250 properties within an area equivalent to a ward. Furthermore, foreign ownership is typically restricted to a 50-year term, renewable once.
Regarding land, current laws do not list foreign individuals among the recognized groups of land users. In other words, foreigners cannot fundamentally hold land use rights under their names in Vietnam, but may only own the house attached to the land for the aforementioned term. Therefore, a will leaving land use rights to a foreigner is difficult to execute in terms of directly transferring the title to them.
The practical consequence is this: if a will leaves a house to an heir who is ineligible for ownership, that heir will only receive the monetary value of the house, not the title itself.
For land use rights, when all heirs are foreigners or overseas Vietnamese who are ineligible to own housing attached to residential land use rights, they will not be issued a certificate of ownership. However, they are entitled to transfer or gift the inherited land rights to realize the asset's value.
Another limitation stems directly from the Civil Code and applies even when the will is perfectly clear. Certain immediate family members of the testator are still entitled to a statutory minimum share of the estate, regardless of the will's contents.
Because the execution of inheritance rights for real estate in Vietnam adheres strictly to Vietnamese law, this group of compulsory heirs may be protected even if your will omits them. When structuring your will, you should account for their shares in advance to prevent unintended legal adjustments later.
Common Mistakes That Invalidate a Will
Most risks associated with foreigners' wills arise not from overly strict laws, but from misunderstandings and complacency. Below are recurring scenarios observed in practice.
The most common misconception is assuming that holding foreign citizenship completely bars one from leaving assets in Vietnam, leading many to abandon the idea of drafting a will altogether. The reality is the opposite: you retain the right to make a will and can legally own housing in Vietnam. The issue is not about prohibition, but about structuring the asset transfer so the heir receives it entirely, either in kind or in value.
A second mistake is drafting a will exclusively in a foreign language and presenting it for notarization without a certified translation or an interpreter. Under such circumstances, the notary office will refuse the application, or a self-drafted will risks facing severe validity disputes. Similarly, asking the intended beneficiary to act as a witness exposes the will to the imminent risk of invalidation.
The third mistake pertains to the type of asset. Many write wills leaving land use rights directly to a foreign child, whereas the child is ineligible to hold land titles in Vietnam. Consequently, the heir receives only the monetary equivalent, coupled with complex transfer procedures, instead of the physical house the testator envisioned. Anticipating this during the drafting phase spares the family from disputes and prolonged delays.
Two remaining risks are subtle but frequent. First, personal documents issued abroad lack consular legalization and notarized translations, leading to rejection by notaries or registries. Second, neglecting compulsory statutory heirs results in the estate being partially redistributed precisely when the family believed everything was settled.
The Role of DEDICA When Foreigners Make a Will in Vietnam
Drafting a will for a foreigner is rarely just about writing a document. It requires coordinating the laws of your nationality, the formal requirements of Vietnamese law, and strict ownership limitations applied to specific asset classes. DEDICA assists clients in comprehensively reviewing their assets in Vietnam, identifying which can be transferred in kind and which must be realized in value, thereby designing a testamentary strategy that ensures overseas heirs genuinely receive their rightful shares. We handle the preparation and consular legalization of necessary documents, arrange notarization with qualified interpreters, and meticulously scrutinize the form to prevent the will's invalidation.
Equally important, DEDICA remains by your side in the subsequent stages when the will takes effect. We represent heirs in declaring the estate, dealing with banks and registration authorities, and providing legal counsel on transferring the asset's value abroad legally. Through this comprehensive approach, the intentions you embed in your will today will not merely remain on paper, but will securely reach the exact individuals you wish to protect.
Conclusion
To establish a truly effective will in Vietnam as a foreigner, four critical factors must be clarified. First, your testamentary capacity is evaluated under your home country's laws, but a will drafted in Vietnam must follow Vietnamese formal requirements; therefore, domestic real estate wills are most secure when drafted and notarized locally. Second, prioritize a notarized will, declare and sign it personally, secure an interpreter if your Vietnamese is limited, and strictly avoid using beneficiaries as witnesses. Third, pre-assess asset types: housing is subject to quantitative and tenure caps, and foreigners fundamentally cannot hold land titles, meaning ineligible heirs will only receive the monetary value. Fourth, reserve the statutory shares for compulsory heirs and ensure all foreign-issued documents are properly consular legalized. Addressing these four points from the outset guarantees your will is neither rejected nor nullified, saving your family from having to start over during a difficult time.
If you are a foreign national owning a house, apartment, bank account, or capital contribution in Vietnam and wish to make a will ensuring your loved ones inherit precisely according to your wishes, contact DEDICA Law Firm. Our lawyers will audit your assets, advise on strategies aligned with your nationality and circumstances, and arrange valid notarization of your will, even if you are in Vietnam for a short period.
