Can foreigners apply for Vietnamese citizenship after living in Vietnam for over 3 years?

They said they had contacted Vietnam's Ministry of Justice but were told they needed a permanent resident card.

Lawyer Hoang Ha of the Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association replied that the person may apply for Vietnamese citizenship if the father referred to is their biological father and still holds Vietnamese citizenship.

However, before applying for naturalization, it is necessary to determine whether the person already has Vietnamese citizenship from birth.

Under Clause 2, Article 16 of the Law on Vietnamese Nationality, a person born to a Vietnamese citizen father or mother and a foreign citizen parent has Vietnamese nationality if the parents agreed to choose Vietnamese nationality when completing birth registration procedures at a competent Vietnamese authority.

If the person was born in Vietnam and the parents could not agree on which nationality to choose, the person has Vietnamese nationality.

If the person was registered as being born in Russia and holds Russian citizenship, their birth records, any registration of the birth with Vietnamese authorities, and the parents’ agreement on nationality should be examined.

If the records show that the person already has Vietnamese citizenship, the person should have their citizenship confirmed or complete civil-status registration.

If the person does not have Vietnamese citizenship, they may apply for naturalization under Clause 3, Article 19 of the Law on Vietnamese Nationality.

Since July 1, 2025, individuals with a biological parent who is a Vietnamese citizen are exempt from standard naturalization conditions. These include Vietnamese-language proficiency, current permanent resident status, at least five years of permanent residence, and financial self-sufficiency.

Therefore, living in Vietnam for more than three years is not sufficient to establish permanent residence and does not automatically confer Vietnamese citizenship.

However, if the person can prove that their father is their biological father and a Vietnamese citizen, they are exempt from the permanent-residence requirement.

Point d, Clause 1, Article 13 of Decree No. 191/2025/ND-CP also provides that applicants only need to submit a copy of their permanent resident card, except for those covered by Clause 3, Article 19.

The applicant should prepare a birth certificate or other valid documents proving the parent-child relationship, along with documents proving the father’s Vietnamese citizenship.

Documents issued by Russian authorities must be translated into Vietnamese and consularly legalized, unless an exemption applies.

The application should be submitted in person to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Justice.

If the receiving authority still requires a permanent resident card, the applicant should ask the authority to clarify whether their case falls under Clause 3, Article 19 and request a written explanation of the legal basis for the requirement.

If the Ministry of Justice’s guidance was issued before July 1, 2025, it may have been based on the previous regulations.

The granting of Vietnamese citizenship and permission to retain Russian citizenship are not automatic. The decision to grant Vietnamese citizenship falls under the authority of the State President of Vietnam, while retaining Russian citizenship must also comply with Russian law.