Inheritance & Gifting Rules for Foreign Owners in Vietnam

Buying a branded residence like Grand Marina Saigon in Ba Son, District 1 is rarely just about today. Many foreign buyers ask: "If I pass away, can my children keep the apartment? Can I gift it to my spouse or parents?" This is an important but often under-explained part of the buying journey. Below is a general guide to how inheritance and gifting work for an apartment held in a foreigner's name in Vietnam.

Can a foreigner leave their apartment as an inheritance or gift?

Yes — Vietnamese law lets foreign owners transfer, lease, bequeath and gift their apartment, but whether the recipient keeps ownership depends on that person's own eligibility.

At Grand Marina Saigon, foreigners own units on a 50-year tenure, renewable under Vietnamese law, within a cap of 30% of the units in any single building. The rights to transfer, lease and bequeath sit within the basic bundle of ownership rights. In other words, the apartment is a lawful asset that can be passed on — the real question is not "is it allowed", but whether the heir or recipient is eligible to hold the title going forward.

Do heirs keep ownership, or must they sell?

An heir who is eligible to own housing in Vietnam can hold the title and keep the apartment; an heir who is not eligible only receives the monetary value after the unit is sold or transferred.

This is the key distinction. Whether an heir can keep the unit depends on whether they fall within the groups allowed to own residential property in Vietnam:

• Vietnamese citizens (including eligible overseas Vietnamese): can hold the title and continue ownership normally.
• Eligible foreigners (permitted to enter Vietnam, not covered by diplomatic immunity): can hold the title within the remaining 50-year tenure and subject to the 30%-per-building cap.
• People not eligible to own: cannot be named on the title, but are still entitled to the corresponding value — usually realised by selling or transferring the unit to an eligible party and receiving the proceeds.

So an ineligible heir does not simply lose everything; they still receive the asset's value, just as cash rather than as ownership of the apartment. To know which group a specific heir belongs to, review their legal status and nationality before making any plan.

If you are weighing which product type is easier to pass on to relatives, see Officetel vs Apartment for Foreign Buyers to understand the differences in tenure and ownership rights.

How is the remaining 50-year tenure counted?

An heir inherits the remaining balance of the original owner's 50-year tenure — the clock is not reset to a fresh 50 years from the date of inheritance.

A foreigner's ownership term at Grand Marina runs from the date the Certificate (pink book) was issued for that unit, not from when the inheritance arises. The illustrative example below makes this easier to picture:

The figures above only illustrate the counting method and are not the actual numbers for any specific unit. As the term nears its end, renewal is handled under Vietnamese law as it stands at that time. Note that Vietnamese buyers at the project receive a long-term pink book with full rights to use, transfer, lease and inherit — so in many families, having a Vietnamese-citizen relative hold the title is another route worth discussing with a lawyer.

A will or a lifetime gift: which to choose?

A will names your heirs clearly upon death, while a gift transfers ownership immediately during your lifetime — each has different procedures, timing and costs.

The two common ways to pass on an apartment in Vietnam are:

• Making a will: you keep ownership until you pass away; the will should be clear and legally valid (usually notarised) to avoid disputes among co-heirs.
• A gift (deed of gift): transfers ownership while you are alive, must be notarised and registered for the title change; the recipient must be eligible to own housing in Vietnam to be named on the title.

Both routes involve notarisation, registration of the change, and possible financial obligations (fees, charges and taxes depending on the case). Because foreign-related files usually need document translation and legalisation, you should work with a notary and a lawyer experienced in foreigner transactions. The title-transfer flow broadly mirrors the steps in Buying Grand Marina as a Foreigner: Step-by-Step, differing only in the basis of transfer (inheritance or gift instead of a sale).

Taxes, fees and moving money abroad

Inheriting or gifting real estate can trigger taxes, notarisation fees and registration charges, and if an heir sells the unit and wants to repatriate the proceeds, foreign-exchange rules apply.

A few items to keep in mind at a general level:

• Tax obligations linked to inheriting or gifting real estate (rates and exemptions depend on the family relationship and the rules in force).
• Notarisation fees for the contract and the registration fee for the title change (the property registration fee is around 0.5% as a reference).
• If the unit is later sold, personal income tax on the transfer plus transaction fees.

Repatriating sale proceeds is its own topic with a specific banking process — you can read Can Foreigners Get a Mortgage in Vietnam? for the wider financial picture of ownership. Because branded residences tend to hold high value with good liquidity in the secondary market, heirs usually have several options: keep it to live in, keep it to lease, or resell. As a market reference from firms such as Knight Frank and Savills (2023–2025), branded residences are typically priced 25–35% above comparable non-branded products — this is a market reference, not a promise of results; actual value depends on the project, timing and policy.

Why plan for succession right from purchase?

Planning early helps avoid disputes, shortens processing time and ensures your relatives receive the asset according to your wishes.

For a high-value asset like a Grand Marina unit, naming your heirs clearly, keeping complete documents (pink book, sale contract, notarised translations) and understanding each relative's eligibility to hold a title in advance will make the future transfer far smoother. This is also why many buyers study the branded segment carefully — see What are branded residences? for why this type of asset is often held and passed down across generations. Any case-specific questions should be answered with a lawyer, and you can also review the project FAQ.