How do I get a temporary residence card (TRC) in Vietnam?

A temporary residence card replaces the visa cycle with a multi-year card and a stable status: you can open bank accounts more easily, convert a driving licence, register a lease in your name and leave and re-enter without new visas. The catch is that you cannot apply for it on your own. Every TRC rides on a sponsor and a qualifying visa category.

Step one: find your route

1. Employment (LD1, LD2). A Vietnamese employer, or an employer of record hiring you on behalf of a foreign company, obtains a work permit under Decree 219/2025 (10 working days once the file is complete, valid up to 2 years), then sponsors the LD visa and the card. Card validity: up to 2 years.
2. Investment (DT1 to DT4). Capital in a Vietnamese company sets the tier: DT4 under VND 3 billion gives a one-year visa but no card, DT3 from VND 3 to 50 billion gives a 3-year card, DT2 from VND 50 to 100 billion a 5-year card, and DT1 above VND 100 billion up to 10 years.
3. Family (TT). Spouses and children under 18 of a Vietnamese citizen, or of a foreigner who already holds a work permit or investor card, get a card of up to 3 years.
4. Other categories such as NG3, LV1, LV2 and DH (study) carry cards of up to 5 years but apply to diplomats, government projects and students.

Step two: enter on the right visa

The card is converted from a matching visa, so the sponsor first obtains the LD, DT or TT visa (or a visa change through the sponsor if you are already in Vietnam). Arriving on a tourist e-visa and hoping to switch is possible only if a sponsor drives the new application.

Step three: the dossier

The sponsor submits the application form, your passport (at least 13 months of validity remaining; corporate services firms recommend a year or more), two 2x3 cm photos, the work permit or investment certificate, proof of the sponsor's legal status, and your temporary residence declaration filed by your landlord. The Immigration Department issues the card in 5 working days from a complete file.

Costs and timing

Government fees are USD 145 for a card of up to 2 years and USD 155 for 2 to 5 years. Agents and law firms add their own service fees, and the work permit or investment step usually takes longer than the card itself. A realistic timeline from first document to card is one to three months.

If your work permit ends, the basis for the card ends too, and it should be returned or cancelled rather than used until expiry. The long-stay chapter of our Vietnam visas guide compares these routes for a remote worker.

Looking for the residence declaration your landlord files the day you move in, rather than the multi-year card described here? That is a different, smaller step, covered in our setting up in Vietnam guide.