Vietnam relocation guide 2026

01The country in 30 seconds

Vietnam is warm, cheap, and full of good food. Russians get 45 days visa-free, or up to 90 days with an e-visa. There's no easy long-term residency path, so most people just keep renewing visas. Cost of living is low, especially outside the big city centres.

• Visa-free for 45 days, e-visa for up to 90 days
• No digital-nomad visa, but freelancing and remote work are common and mostly tolerated
• Russian bank cards don't work — bring cash or a non-Russian card
• Budget around $700-1,800/month, depending on your city and lifestyle

02Who it's for

Vietnam works well for people who want warm weather, cheap living, and a laid-back pace.

• You work remotely and your income comes from outside Vietnam.
• You want low living costs without giving up good food and fast internet.
• You like beach life or big-city energy — Vietnam has both.
• You don't mind doing visa runs every 45 days, or renewing an e-visa.
• You're okay learning a few local rules, like registering your address.
• You're not relying on a Russian bank card to pay for things.

Not for you if:

• You want an easy, clear path to long-term residency or citizenship.
• You need reliable public healthcare or fluent English everywhere you go.
• You want to avoid all legal grey areas around remote work.

03Entry & visa

Russian citizens can enter Vietnam visa-free for up to 45 days. This rule runs from March 15, 2025 to March 14, 2028, under Government Resolution 44/NQ-CP.

If you want to stay longer without leaving, apply for an e-visa instead. It's online, and it gives you up to 90 days.

• E-visa portal: evisa.gov.vn
• Single-entry e-visa: about $25
• Multiple-entry e-visa: about $50
• Processing time: about 3 business days

Your passport needs at least 6 months of validity left, plus a couple of blank pages.

You can't extend a 45-day visa-free stay from inside Vietnam. Most long-stayers do a "visa run": fly to Cambodia (sometimes Laos or Thailand) and come back to reset the clock.

04Residency & legalization

Vietnam doesn't have an easy long-term residency path for most foreigners. Here are the real options. The TRC (temporary residence card) length depends on the category — usually 1 to 5 years, and up to 10 years for the very largest investors.

• Work permit + TRC: a Vietnamese employer sponsors you. This TRC usually lasts 1-2 years and can be renewed.
• Investment visa (DT category): investing in a company starting around 3 billion VND (about $120,000) gets you a TRC for a few years. For much larger investments (capital over about 100 billion VND — a different scale entirely), the TRC can go up to 10 years.
• Marriage: marry a Vietnamese citizen, register it in Vietnam, and get a family TRC for up to 3 years, renewable.
• Program for top specialists and big investors: a narrow but real option, with a TRC up to 5 years.
• Retirement: there's no dedicated retirement visa. Most retirees just keep renewing e-visas or use business status.
• Buying property: this does NOT give you a visa or residency on its own.

05Work & taxes

Working remotely for a foreign employer is common in Vietnam. So is freelancing for foreign clients, if your income goes to a foreign bank account. Vietnam has no digital-nomad visa. But no law directly bans this kind of remote work either.

This sits in between clearly legal and clearly illegal. Tourist and e-visa rules technically say you can't "work" in Vietnam. In practice, checks target people who take a local job without a work permit — not people whose clients and income are abroad.

You become a Vietnam tax resident if:

• You stay 183+ days in a calendar year (or a rolling 12 months), or
• You have a registered address in Vietnam, including a rental contract.

Tax residents pay tax on worldwide income, at rates from 5% up to 35%, depending on income. From January 1, 2026, the tax-free personal allowance is 15.5 million VND/month (about $610), plus 6.2 million VND (about $244) per dependent.

Non-residents (under 183 days) pay a flat 20% tax, but only on income earned inside Vietnam.

Since January 1, 2026, small local businesses got a tax break: yearly revenue up to 500 million VND (about $20,000) pays no tax at all. This mostly applies to locally registered sole traders, not to remote workers earning money abroad.

06Banks, cards & money

Mir cards, and Russian-issued Visa or Mastercard, do not work in Vietnam. Don't count on them.

Some smaller banks sometimes open limited accounts for e-visa holders that can only receive money — but they may close the account after a couple of months if you don't get a TRC.

A full, normal account with no limits usually needs: a TRC or long-term visa, a police registration certificate, a local phone number, and sometimes a tax code.

MoMo and ZaloPay technically let you sign up with just a passport, but in practice they expect you to already have a Vietnamese bank account and a local SIM. Since 2026, they also ask you to scan your face or fingerprint to prove who you are, which makes signing up from scratch harder. VNPay is said to be a bit easier to use without a local bank account.

Until you sort out your status, plan on cash, a foreign (non-Russian) card, and international payment apps.

07Renting a place

Most people find a place through Facebook groups (like "Da Nang Expats" or "Hanoi Massive"), local agents, or sites like Chotot and Rever. In Da Nang, word of mouth in expat groups works well too.

Deposit: one month's rent is standard. Some landlords ask for two or three months.

Contract length: 6 or 12 months is normal for local-market flats. Short-term or month-to-month leases exist too, mostly in furnished, foreigner-oriented buildings — and they cost more.

08SIM card & internet

Three main carriers: Viettel (biggest, best rural coverage), Mobifone, and Vinaphone.

eSIM is the easiest option on arrival. You can get one from a local carrier, or a global provider like Airalo or Holafly, before you even land.

Prices:

• Physical prepaid SIM, 15-30 days, several GB/day: 60,000-200,000 VND (about $2-8)
• eSIM for travelers, 1 week to 1 month: about $5-11
• Monthly SIM plan for residents: around 150,000-160,000 VND (about $6/month)

Home broadband: entry-level fiber (~300 Mbps) costs about 190,000-195,000 VND/month (about $7.50-8). Faster 1 Gbps plans cost about 270,000-310,000 VND/month (about $11-12).

09Healthcare & insurance

Public hospitals are cheap but crowded, short on money and equipment, and mostly Vietnamese-only — not realistic for most foreigners. Public insurance (BHYT) is usually tied to a Vietnamese work contract, so most expats can't use it anyway.

Almost everyone uses private clinics and hospitals instead. Private insurance costs vary a lot by coverage level:

• Basic plan: about $25-50/month
• Mid-tier regional plan: about $50-100/month
• Full international plan: about $125-460+/month

The best private hospitals are in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi (FV Hospital, Vinmec, International SOS). Da Nang has good private clinics too (Vinmec Da Nang, Family Medical Practice), but serious cases are sometimes sent to HCMC or Hanoi.

10Transport

Grab is the easiest ride-hailing app. It takes foreign cards, so you don't need a Vietnamese bank account or the local language. Xanh SM (electric cars) is newer and growing fast, but you need cash or a local payment method — not foreign cards. "Be" is a smaller local app. All three also do bikes, food, and package delivery.

Da Nang has no metro. Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have a few metro lines. Ride-hailing and scooters are the normal way to get around almost everywhere.

Renting a scooter is common and often the best way to get around. To ride legally and be insured, you need an International Driving Permit (IDP) that covers motorcycles, plus your home-country motorcycle license. A Russian domestic license alone is not enough.

11Safety & important laws

Vietnam is generally safe, with low violent crime. The real risks for foreigners are traffic accidents and scams — not violence.

Common scams:

• Spiked drinks or cigarettes in bars, followed by robbery
• Romance or investment scams on dating apps and social media
• Bag-snatching by people on motorbikes
• Being asked to leave your passport as "collateral" for a rented motorbike — never do this. Leave a cash deposit or an ID copy instead.

You must register your address (tạm trú) within 12-24 hours of check-in — hotels usually do this automatically. If a private landlord doesn't file it, both of you can be fined.

Emergency numbers (24/7): ambulance 115, police 113, fire 114, search & rescue 112.

12How much money you need per month

Total: $700-1,800 per month per person

13Step-by-step moving plan

1. Check your passport has 6+ months of validity and a couple of blank pages.
2. Decide: 45-day visa-free entry, or a 90-day e-visa at evisa.gov.vn (about $25).
3. Book flights and your first week of housing.
4. Fly into Da Nang, Hanoi, or Ho Chi Minh City.
5. Make sure your hotel or landlord registers your tạm trú within 12-24 hours.
6. Find a longer-term flat through Facebook groups or a local agent, and sign a bilingual contract.
7. Get a local SIM or eSIM, then open a bank account if you're staying 90+ days.
8. Buy private health insurance and find a private clinic near you.
9. Plan your visa runs (every 45 days) or e-visa renewals for the long term.

14Useful links & Telegram

• Vietnam e-Visa portal
• Vietnam General Department of Taxation
• Numbeo — Cost of Living in Da Nang
• OSAC — Vietnam Security Report
• ASEAN Briefing — Vietnam's 183-Day Tax Rule

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