The investor visa Vietnam regime allocates entry and residence rights by the amount of capital an individual has contributed to a Vietnamese company. The tiers matter commercially: they determine whether a founder receives a ten-year residence card or a one-year one, and whether family members can be sponsored on matching terms.
This guide explains the tiers, the evidence that supports each, and how founders should hold their interest to qualify.
Investor Visa Vietnam: How the Tiers Work
The investor symbols are tiered by capital contributed to a Vietnamese enterprise. The top tier applies to very substantial contributions and supports the longest visa and residence card. Successively lower tiers support shorter terms, with the lowest tier granting a visa of up to twelve months and no long residence card.
The tier is assessed on the individual’s own contribution, not the company’s charter capital. A founder holding a minority interest in a well-capitalised company may sit in a lower tier than expected, which is a structuring point rather than an administrative one.
Investor Visa Vietnam: Direct Versus Indirect Holding
The regime looks at capital contributed by the individual to the Vietnamese enterprise. Where a founder holds through an offshore holding company, the contribution is made by that company and the individual is not a capital-contributing member of the Vietnamese entity.
The practical answer for founders who want the residence benefit is to hold a direct slice personally alongside the corporate holding, sized to reach the intended tier. Groups that decide this after incorporation face a capital increase and an amendment filing. See our note on total investment capital.
Investor Visa Vietnam: Evidencing the Contribution
The evidence is the enterprise registration certificate showing the individual as owner or member with the contributed amount, together with bank confirmation that the contribution moved through the direct investment capital account.
Committed but unpaid capital does not qualify. Immigration authorities have become considerably more rigorous on this point, and applications supported only by the registration certificate are commonly returned for bank evidence. Our guide to the DICA account explains the payment route.
Investor Visa Vietnam: Work Permit Interaction
An owner or capital-contributing member whose contribution meets the prescribed threshold is exempt from the work permit requirement under Decree 219/2025/ND-CP, but the employer must still obtain written confirmation of the exemption.
Where the founder’s contribution falls below the threshold, a work permit is required for any executive role, and the residence card then follows the permit rather than the investor tier. This is the main reason founders should model the tier and the exemption threshold together. See our note on work permit exemptions.
Investor Visa Vietnam: Residence Card and Family
Holders of qualifying investor symbols may apply for a temporary residence card with validity matched to the tier, and may sponsor a spouse and children under eighteen on dependant cards of matching term.
Dependants may not work on that status. Where both spouses will work, each needs their own basis. Our guide to the temporary residence card covers the application.
Investor Visa Vietnam: Maintaining Status
The status depends on the underlying shareholding continuing to exist. A share transfer, a capital reduction or a dissolution ends the basis for the visa and card, and the card must be surrendered.
Founders planning a partial exit should therefore sequence the immigration position alongside the transaction, retaining a qualifying holding or moving onto a work permit basis before completion. Our guide to share transfers by foreign investors sets out the approvals involved.
15 Things to Prepare Before Setting Up an FDI Company in Vietnam
A four-page pre-filing checklist covering structure and market access, capital and the DICA account, licensing and legalisation, work permits, and tax. Current to July 2026, including Decree 96/2026/ND-CP, Decree 219/2025/ND-CP and Decree 236/2025/ND-CP.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a passive investor route?
The regime is built around contribution to a Vietnamese enterprise rather than passive asset ownership. Property purchase alone does not confer investor status.
Can the tier be upgraded later?
Yes, by increasing the contribution and amending the enterprise registration certificate, then reapplying.
How long does the visa take?
Approval letters are typically issued within a week of a complete application, with the residence card following separately.
Does an investor visa lead to permanent residence?
Permanent residence is a separate regime with its own criteria. Long-term investor cards are renewable rather than a formal path.
Structure Your Founder Status
IVLF Advisors sizes the personal holding to reach the intended tier, evidences the contribution, files the visa, exemption confirmation and residence card, and protects status through later transactions. See also our foreign investment practice and the Vietnam Immigration Department. Contact our team.
This article is provided for general information only and does not constitute legal advice for any specific case. Regulations may change – please consult a qualified professional before acting. Should further analysis be required, please contact one of our lawyers below.
