No. Vietnam's immigration law has no retirement visa category. The amendments that took effect on July 1, 2026 added two new visa codes, and neither is for retirees.
So if you came here looking for a Vietnam retirement visa, look for a route instead: family ties to a Vietnamese citizen, Vietnamese origin, an investment, or a visitor's eVisa or visa-free stay. Each has its own legal ceiling, from 45 days per visa-free entry up to permanent residence for some family members, and the golden visa in the headlines is still only a proposal.
No Retirement Visa: What the 2026 Law Says
Vietnamese visas are sorted by purpose. The Law on Entry, Exit, Transit and Residence of Foreigners gives each purpose a code: investors (ĐT1 to ĐT4, often written DT), workers (LĐ1 and LĐ2), tourists (DL), family members (TT), visiting relatives or other purposes (VR), the eVisa (EV) and more. Count them and you get 29 codes. Not one is for retirees, so there's no retirement form to fill in and no pension threshold to meet.
The list did change in 2026. Law 118/2025/QH15, passed on December 10, 2025 and in force since July 1, 2026, added UĐ1 for high-quality digital-technology workers and UĐ2 for their spouses and children under 18, each valid for up to 5 years. Those are the only two new codes, and neither is about retiring.
Long-Stay Routes at a Glance
Here's each route with its legal maximum. These are ceilings; the document you're issued can be shorter.
| Route | Who Qualifies | How Long It Lasts | The Catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| eVisa (EV) | Any nationality | Up to 90 days | Your stay ends on its end date |
| Visa-free entry | 24 listed nationalities, including the UK | 45 days per entry | Tourism only for 12 of the 24 |
| TT visa | Parent, spouse or child of a Vietnamese citizen | Up to 1 year | Needs a sponsor in Vietnam |
| TT temporary residence card | The same family, once living in Vietnam | Up to 3 years | Must end 30 days before your passport |
| Visa exemption certificate | Overseas Vietnamese, and foreign spouses and children of Vietnamese citizens or overseas Vietnamese | Up to 5 years | 6 months per entry |
| ĐT1 or ĐT2 investor visa | VND 50 billion or more, or a priority sector (ĐT1) | Up to 5 years | Proof of a real investment |
| ĐT3 investor visa | VND 3 billion to under 50 billion | Up to 3 years | Lowest tier that leads to a card |
| ĐT4 investor visa | Under VND 3 billion | Up to 1 year | No residence card |
| Permanent residence | Parent, spouse or child sponsored by a Vietnamese citizen, after 3 years' residence | Permanent | Lawful housing, stable income, up to 6 months to decide |
Of the routes in that table, only TT and ĐT1 to ĐT3 lead to a temporary residence card. The eVisa, visa-free entry and ĐT4 don't, however many times you repeat them.
Family Ties: The Longest Road the Law Opens
If you're married to a Vietnamese citizen, you're in the strongest position a non-investor can be in. The TT visa is for a foreigner who is the parent, spouse or child of a Vietnamese citizen, or the spouse or child under 18 of some long-term visa holders. Note the word parent: if your adult son or daughter is a Vietnamese citizen, the TT category covers you too.
A TT visa can be valid for up to 1 year, and the government fee for a multiple-entry visa of over 180 days to 1 year is $135. Since July 1, 2026, the law makes temporary residence cards available to foreigners residing in Vietnam who fall within the categories for codes including TT. A TT card can run up to 3 years and must end at least 30 days before your passport does, so renew a passport that's close to expiry first. A card of over 2 years and up to 5 carries a $155 government fee.
You can be considered for permanent residence if your Vietnamese spouse, parent or child, living permanently in Vietnam, sponsors you after 3 years of continuous temporary residence, and you have lawful accommodation and a stable income. The Minister of Public Security has 4 months from a complete file to decide, plus up to 2 more if extra checks are needed. The permanent residence card costs $100.
The 5-Year Exemption Certificate: For Vietnamese Families
The so-called 5-year visa isn't a visa. It's a visa exemption certificate under Decree 82/2015/ND-CP, open to overseas Vietnamese and to foreign spouses and children of Vietnamese citizens or of overseas Vietnamese. With no family tie, it isn't available, whatever a website says. The decree covers spouses and children, not parents: if it's your son or daughter who is the Vietnamese citizen, TT is your route.
The certificate lasts up to 5 years and must end at least 6 months before your passport expires. It's for visiting family or handling personal matters, and each entry earns a 6-month stay. Going past that needs a sponsor in Vietnam, a legitimate reason and an extension of up to 6 more months. That's 6 calendar months, not the 180 days some sites quote, and the gap matters because overstay fines start on the first day over.
For anyone pricing a "5-year visa," the government fee for the certificate is $10. What it doesn't give a retiree is residence: it's a series of 6-month stays, and certificate holders aren't on the list of categories that can get a temporary residence card. The spouse or child of a Vietnamese citizen who wants a card goes through TT.
Investor Visas: What Each Tier Actually Buys
Investor visas are graded by the capital you contribute to a business in Vietnam, and every tier needs papers proving the investment under the Law on Investment. The law sets the tiers in dong, so convert them at the rate on the day you plan:
- ĐT1: VND 100 billion or more, or investment in a sector or area the government prioritizes. Visa up to 5 years.
- ĐT2: VND 50 billion to under 100 billion. Visa up to 5 years.
- ĐT3: VND 3 billion to under 50 billion. Visa up to 3 years.
- ĐT4: under VND 3 billion. Visa up to 1 year.
Here's what the brochures leave out. ĐT4 is the small-investor tier some sites pitch to retirees, and the residence card list in force since July 1, 2026 covers ĐT1, ĐT2 and ĐT3 but not ĐT4. ĐT3 is the lowest tier that leads to a card, and a ĐT3 card runs up to 3 years. At the top, ĐT1 cards can now run up to 10 years. Investor visas run through a sponsor rather than an online form, and our guide to how sponsored business and work visas work explains that side.
⚠️ A small investment doesn't buy residence. Put in under VND 3 billion and you hold a ĐT4: a visa of up to 1 year and no residence card at the end of it. If someone sells you a ĐT4 setup as a retirement plan, ask them to show you where the law lists ĐT4 for a card. It doesn't.
Golden Visas and Special Cards: Proposals Aren't Law
In February 2024, the Prime Minister's Directive 08/CT-TTg asked the Ministry of Public Security to study a pilot of multiple-entry visas of 12 to 36 months, aimed partly at retirees with high spending potential. In 2025, Vietnam's Tourism Advisory Board proposed a "golden visa" of 5 to 10 years to the Prime Minister. A study instruction and a proposal aren't law, and neither appears in the visa categories in force as this guide goes out.
Then there's the special visa exemption card, created by Decree 221/2025/ND-CP. It's real, valid for up to 5 years with a 90-day stay per entry. It's narrow, though, built for guests of top leaders, scientists, digital-technology talent, and investors and executives from the world's 100 largest companies by market value. Retirees aren't one of its groups.
⚠️ Nobody can sell you a golden visa. As of October 15, 2026, Vietnam hasn't adopted one, so anyone taking money for one is selling a proposal.
American, British and Australian Retirees: Passport First
British citizens get 45 days visa-free for any purpose under a resolution that runs until March 14, 2028, though British National (Overseas) passports aren't covered. For a longer stay, the UK government's travel advice points to an embassy visa or an eVisa that allows a 90-day stay and multiple entries. Switching from visa-free to an eVisa means leaving Vietnam and coming back in on it. Our page on visa-free entry and eVisa rules for UK citizens has the rest.
Americans can live in Vietnam for years on the same routes as everyone else, such as family ties or investment; without one, you're a visitor. Americans and Australians aren't on Vietnam's visa exemption list, so you need a visa from day one. The eVisa covers up to 90 days at a time, and Australians will find the details in eVisa rules for Australian citizens. The Vietnamese Embassy in Washington says US citizens can be granted multiple-entry visas of up to 1 year. Its application form marks every length over 3 months "with an approval only," which means a sponsor in Vietnam applies first. And check the code: a tourist (DL) visa valid for more than 30 days earns a 30-day stay per entry, and the rest takes an extension.
For Americans, Social Security isn't the obstacle it once was. The US Social Security Administration lifted its Vietnam payment restrictions after assurances received in May 2015 and can pay current benefits to US citizens living there. Questions go to the SSA Federal Benefits Unit in Manila, not the embassy in Hanoi. For the visa side, see Vietnam eVisa rules for US citizens.
Living There: Sponsors, Police Registration and the Purpose Rule
Staying past whatever you entered on takes a sponsor. A foreigner in Vietnam who wants a longer stay or a new visa has to ask a sponsoring agency, organization or individual to file, and Vietnam Immigration takes up to 5 working days to decide. The Ministry of Public Security takes those files only from a registered organization or a Vietnamese citizen relative: a grandparent, parent, spouse, child or sibling. That's why a Vietnamese spouse can file for you and a retiree on their own can't. The government fee for an extension is $10. We don't handle extensions.
Wherever you sleep, someone has to tell the police. The law makes whoever runs your accommodation, private homes included, declare you to the local police within 12 hours on paper, or 24 hours in remote areas. Hotels handle this, but a private landlord on a long lease may not, so ask how and when they'll register you before you sign. Our guide to living and working in Vietnam covers more of the settling-in paperwork.
Your activities also have to match why you came. The eVisa application form reminds applicants that activities in Vietnam must match the purpose of entry, and that foreigners residing lawfully can combine tourism, family visits and medical treatment without asking permission. Straying outside your purpose is fined: VND 20 to 25 million for activities that don't match it, and VND 15 to 20 million for working without permission.
⚠️ Count your own days. Overstay under 16 days and the fine is VND 500,000 to 2,000,000, and at 16 days or more you can also be deported. Anyone deported in the past 3 years can be refused entry. Check the date stamped in your passport before you leave border control.
The eVisa's Honest Role: Your Scouting Trip
Before you sign a lease or move money, spend a season there on an eVisa. It can be valid for up to 90 days, and you can choose single or multiple entry. With an eVisa, you can stay until the end date on the eVisa.
Multiple entry is the version a scout wants, because a few days across a border don't cost you the visa. It doesn't add days either. Your stay equals the eVisa's validity, so leaving and coming back resets nothing. When it runs out, the next eVisa is a fresh application, issued to people outside Vietnam and used on your next entry.
The Vietnam Immigration fee for a multiple-entry eVisa is $50, and you can apply yourself at evisa.gov.vn. Our 3-month multiple-entry eVisa prices list it at $104 per applicant with the stamp fee included, and the other $54 pays for us to check every field before we file it with Vietnam Immigration. By law, Immigration has 3 working days to decide once it has the complete application and fee. Our Normal tier delivers in 5 to 10 business days. Processing times are set by Vietnam Immigration, so give yourself one to two weeks and the speed tiers stop mattering.
Vietnam Visa by BDA is a private company. We're not affiliated with the Vietnamese government, and we don't handle residence cards, extensions or sponsored visas.
A Few Parting Notes
If you have a Vietnamese spouse, parent or child, start with TT. If you have Vietnamese roots, or you're the spouse or child of a Vietnamese citizen, ask about the certificate too. If neither applies, treat investment as a business decision first, because a visa is a poor reason to make one.
Recheck the rules before each trip. Vietnam's visa-free decisions are time-limited and get renewed or replaced. The July 1, 2026 amendments show the categories themselves can move. And keep your passport well ahead of any visa: an eVisa has to end at least 30 days before your passport expires.