In the trend of international economic integration, one of the important policies contributing to increasing opportunities to attract investment is regulations on house ownership of foreign organizations and individuals. The number of foreigners coming for working and living in Vietnam have been increasing, so the issue of settling down or owning a house in Vietnam is also raised. Vietnamese law has provisions allowing foreigners to own houses in Vietnam as well as the issue of inheritance of real estate assets of foreigners in Vietnam.
There is a case: Mr. A is a US citizen who is living and working in Vietnam, he currently owns a house in Vietnam, Mr. A has a wife and children of both foreign nationality and is currently living abroad. Mr. A wants to make a will for his wife and children abroad to enjoy the legacy in Vietnam. What are regulations for this case?
According to Articles 159.1(c) and 160.3 of Law on Housing 2014, the condition for a foreign individual to own a house in Vietnam is a foreign individual who is allowed to enter Vietnam and is not entitled to preferential rights, diplomatic and consular immunity as prescribed by law.
Although foreign individuals are allowed to own houses in Vietnam, their house ownership rights also have certain limitations compared to domestic organizations and individuals or Vietnamese citizens residing abroad. According to Article 159.2 of Law on Housing 2014, foreign individuals are allowed to own houses in Vietnam through purchase, lease purchase, donation, or inheritance of commercial housing including apartments and individual houses in housing construction investment projects, except for areas ensuring national defense and security as prescribed by the Government. According to Article 161.2 (a) of Law on Housing 2014, the ownership of houses by foreign individuals is limited for 50 years and the number of apartments is limited to no more than 30% of the number of apartments in a building (except for the case of extension or the case of marriage to a Vietnamese citizen or marriage to a Vietnamese residing abroad).
When a foreign individual owns a lawful house in Vietnam, the fact that they want to leave an inheritance to their relatives is also a legitimate reason and is protected by law. Article 609 of Civil Code 2015 indicates inheritance rights: “Individuals have the right to make a will to dispose of their property; leave their property to their heirs according to the law; inheritance under a will or law”.
Regarding the inheritance of houses of foreign individuals in Vietnam, Article 680.2 of the Civil Code 2015 stipulates: “The exercise of the inheritance right to real estates shall be determined according to laws of countries where such real estates are located”, which means that the inheritance of a house in Vietnam must comply with the provisions of Vietnamese laws.
In terms of content, Vietnam recognizes the right to inherit by a will of a beneficiary. The inheritance of housing is also subject to Law on Housing 2014. If heirs are not eligible to buy and own a house in Vietnam as prescribed in Article 159.2(b) of Law on Housing 2014, they are only entitled to enjoy the value of that house and cannot establish house ownership in Vietnam (Article 161.2(b) of Law on Housing 2014).
In terms of formality, foreigners who want to leave a residential estate in Vietnam to their relatives, their will also need to comply with the provisions of Articles 627 and 630 of Civil Code 2015, to ensure that their wills are valid. This will must be in writing and should be notarized. The will must be made in the condition that the testator is lucid while making the will; the content of the will does not violate the prohibition of the law (Vietnam) and is not contrary to social ethics. This will must also comply in terms of form such as it must not be abbreviated or written in symbols, if the will consist of many pages, each page must be numbered and signed or fingerprinted by the will of testator... The content of the will includes the following main contents as prescribed in Article 631 of Civil Code 2015: (i) date, month, and year of making the will; (ii) Full name and place of residence of the testator; (iii) Full name of the person, agency or organization entitled to the estate; (iv) Legacy and where it is located… and other contents. Those are the basic factors that need to be followed when foreigners make wills for relatives to receive an inheritance in Vietnam.
Although the matter of inheritance of houses by foreigners in Vietnam still has certain limitations, Vietnamese law has paid attention and provided a way to solve the legal problems of inheritance of houses for foreigners to ensure lawful rights and interests in property for foreign individuals living and working in Vietnam and their relatives.
ADK & Co Vietnam Lawyers Law Firm