The Amended Law on Vietnamese Nationality 2025 (“Law on Nationality 2025”) and Decree No. 191/2025/ND-CP officially took effect on 01 July 2025, marking an important change in Vietnam’s nationality policy. The new regulations not only clarify the conditions for naturalization but also expand opportunities for people of Vietnamese origin and foreigners who wish to establish long-term ties with Vietnam.
In this article, BLawyers Vietnam summarizes new highlights in the conditions for naturalization under Vietnamese law after 01 July 2025, helping individuals who want to acquire Vietnamese nationality have a clearer and more complete view of the current nationality policy.
1. Two conditions for naturalization in Vietnam
According to the Law on Nationality 2025, the conditions for naturalization as a Vietnamese citizen for foreigners and stateless persons are supplemented as follows:
- Foreigners and stateless persons must have full civil act capacity according to the provisions of Vietnamese law, except in the case of minors applying for naturalization in Vietnam under their father or mother, or minors whose father or mother is a Vietnamese citizen;
- Foreigners and stateless persons must be permanently residing in Vietnam and have been permanently residing in Vietnam for 05 years or more up to the time of applying for Vietnamese nationality. Accordingly, the period of permanent residence in Vietnam of a person applying for Vietnamese nationality is calculated from the date he/she is granted a Permanent Residence Card.
2. Cases exempted from general conditions for naturalization in Vietnam:
2.1. Case of individuals whose spouse or biological child is a Vietnamese citizen
According to the Law on Nationality 2025, when having a wife, or husband, or biological child who is a Vietnamese citizen, a foreigner or a stateless person can be naturalized as a Vietnamese citizen without having to meet the following conditions:
- Having sufficient Vietnamese language proficiency to integrate into the Vietnamese community;
- Permanently residing in Vietnam for 05 years or more up to the time of application for Vietnamese nationality;
- Being able to secure a living in Vietnam.
Accordingly, the Law on Nationality 2025 separates the case of having a wife, or husband, or biological child who is a Vietnamese citizen from other special cases, to stipulate exemptions from some conditions for acquiring Vietnamese nationality.
2.2. Other cases
In addition to the conditions in Item 2.1 above, foreigners or stateless persons are also exempted from the condition of permanent residence in Vietnam if they carry out the naturalization procedure in one of the following cases:
- Having a biological father or mother or paternal grandfather and grandmother or maternal grandfather and grandmother who are Vietnamese citizens;
- Having made special contributions to the cause of building and defending Vietnam;
- Being beneficial to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, as defined in one of the following two specific cases:
- People with outstanding talents in the fields of science, technology, innovation, digital transformation, economics, law, culture, society, arts, sports, health, education or other fields whose talents have been confirmed by a ministerial-level state management authority or have received international awards, medals, and there is evidence that such person will make positive, long-term contributions to the development of the above fields in Vietnam;
- Entrepreneurs and investors who are individuals conducting business and investment activities in Vietnam and have been confirmed by a ministerial-level state management authority that they will make positive and long-term contributions to the development of Vietnam. This is a new case added under Decree No. 191/2025/ND-CP.
- Being a minor applying for naturalization in Vietnam under the father or mother. This is a new case added under the Law on Nationality 2025.
3. Naturalization in Vietnam with retention of foreign nationality
After 01 July 2025, regulations on retaining foreign nationality when naturalizing in Vietnam will be specifically regulated in the Law on Nationality 2025, instead of being regulated in guiding documents like Decree No. 16/2020/ND-CP. Accordingly, people applying for Vietnamese nationality who fall into one of the cases in Item 2.1 and Item 2.2 may retain foreign nationality if they meet the following conditions and are permitted by the President of Vietnam:
- Retaining foreign nationality in accordance with the laws of that country; and
- Not using foreign nationality to harm the legitimate rights and interests of agencies, organizations and individuals, or to infringe upon the security, national interests, social order and safety of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
From this, it can be seen that some conditions that applicants for naturalization previously had to meet to retain foreign nationality when naturalizing in Vietnam have been omitted, specifically:
- Being qualified for conditions for naturalization in Vietnam according to the provisions of the Law on Vietnamese Nationality;
- Having made special contributions to the cause of building and defending Vietnam and naturalizing while retaining foreign nationality that are beneficial to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; and
- Renunciation of foreign nationality that results in the person’s rights abroad being affected.
The above is not official advice from BLawyers Vietnam. If you have any questions or suggestions about the above, please contact us at info@blawyersvn.com. BLawyers Vietnam would love to hear from you.
Date: 05 August 2025
Writer: Thai Bui
