Vietnam Property 50-Year Ownership Explained: The 30% Quota, Renewal and Freehold Conversion (2026)
Under the Housing Law 2023 (in force since 1 August 2024), a foreigner can buy a home only from the developer or from another foreign owner, never from a Vietnamese owner (Art. 17(2)). Foreigners together may own at most 30% of the apartments in any one building and at most 250 landed houses in any ward-sized area of 10,000 planned residents (Art. 19; Decree 95/2024/ND-CP Art. 5). A foreign individual holds the home for up to 50 years from the date the Pink Book is issued; if still eligible, the owner can extend the term once, for up to 50 more years counted from the end of the first term, by applying to the provincial People's Committee at least 3 months before expiry (Art. 20; Decree 95 Art. 6). A home bought from a foreign owner is owned for the remaining term, can still be renewed if it has not been renewed yet, and can still be resold to a Vietnamese buyer, after which it becomes long-term (permanent) ownership. The number of units foreigners can still own in each building is published on the provincial housing agency's portal (in Ho Chi Minh, the Department of Construction, So Xay dung), and the seller must check it before signing (Decree 95 Art. 7).
- Apartment quota: foreigners together may own at most 30% of the apartments in one apartment building (Art. 19(1)). Decree 95 counts this as 30% of the apartments for residential use in that building; where a building has several units or blocks on a shared podium, the 30% applies to each unit or block (Art. 5(2)(a)). The cap is per building, not per project. (Housing Law 2023 (Law 27/2023/QH15) Art. 19(1), Official Gazette Cong bao 37+38 of 08-01-2024 via vanban.chinhphu.vn docid=209627, in force since 01-08-2024 under Law 43/2024/QH15 Art. 2; Decree 95/2024/ND-CP (24-07-2024, effective 01-08-2024, vanban.chinhphu.vn docid=210761) Art. 5(2)(a), text read on the vcci.com.vn full-text mirror because the official PDF is an image scan)
- Landed-house quota: at most 250 villas or townhouses may be foreign-owned in an area whose population equals one ward, set at 10,000 people under approved planning; where that area has two or more housing projects, the 250 covers all of them together (Decree 95 Art. 5(1), Art. 5(2)(b)). Art. 19(2) adds that where such an area has several apartment buildings, or for landed houses along one street, foreign ownership stays within the Art. 19(1) numbers. (Housing Law 2023 Art. 19(1)-(2); Decree 95/2024/ND-CP Art. 5(1), Art. 5(2)(b))
- Who can buy, and from whom: a foreign individual who is allowed to enter Vietnam and is not entitled to diplomatic or consular privileges and immunities (Art. 17(1)(c), Art. 18(3)) may, in projects outside defence and security areas, buy or lease-buy commercial housing from the project developer (official SPA), buy or lease-buy it from a foreign organisation or individual that already owns it (sale contract with that owner), or receive commercial housing in a project by gift or inheritance (Art. 16(1), Art. 17(2)(b)-(c)). Art. 17(2) lists no route to buy from a Vietnamese owner. (Housing Law 2023 Art. 16(1), Art. 17(1)(c), Art. 17(2)(b)-(c), Art. 18(3))
- Term: a foreign individual owns the home for the term agreed in the transaction, but for no more than 50 years from the date the Certificate (Pink Book) is issued. The term is written on the Certificate and may be extended once, for up to 50 years (Art. 20(2)(c)), counted from the end of the first term written on the Certificate (Decree 95 Art. 6(2)(b)). A foreigner married to a Vietnamese citizen living in Vietnam owns with the rights of a Vietnamese citizen, so the 50-year cap does not apply (Art. 20(2)(c), second paragraph). The home may be sold or given to any eligible person and may be leased, but before leasing the owner must notify the local housing authority in writing and pay tax on the rent (Art. 21(2)(a)). Once the home is sold to a Vietnamese national (or a domestic organisation or an overseas Vietnamese), the 50-year term no longer applies: the buyer holds it with the full rights of a Vietnamese owner under Art. 10(1), with no ownership term, which is what the site calls permanent ownership (Art. 20(2)(dd), second paragraph). (Housing Law 2023 Art. 20(2)(c), Art. 20(2)(dd), Art. 21(2)(a), Art. 10(1); Decree 95/2024/ND-CP Art. 6(2)(b). 'Permanent ownership' is the site's wording, not a statutory term)
- Renewal procedure: at least 3 months before expiry, the owner files one dossier (an application on Form 01 of Appendix I; a certified copy of the Certificate, or a copy presented with the original for comparison; and a copy of a valid passport bearing a Vietnam entry stamp, or an equivalent entry document) with the provincial People's Committee where the home is located, in person, by post or online. Within 30 days of receiving a valid dossier, the Committee either approves in writing a single extension of up to 50 years counted from the end of the first term, provided the owner still meets the Housing Law eligibility conditions, or refuses in writing with reasons. Within 15 days of receiving the approval, the owner files it with the land-registration dossier so the new term is recorded on the Certificate (Decree 95 Art. 6(1)-(2)). No extension is granted to a person who has been ordered to leave Vietnam or deported (Art. 6(3)). Before the term ends, the owner may sell or give the home to an eligible person; if the term passes with no sale or gift, the home becomes public property (Art. 20(2)(dd)). (Decree 95/2024/ND-CP Art. 6(1), Art. 6(2)(a)-(c), Art. 6(3); Housing Law 2023 Art. 20(2)(dd))
- How to check the remaining quota: once the Ministries of National Defence and Public Security notify the defence and security areas, the provincial People's Committee decides the list of projects where foreigners may own homes, publishes it on its portal and sends it to the provincial housing agency to post (Art. 16(2); Decree 95 Art. 4(2)-(3)). Within 7 working days of that posting, the provincial housing agency (in Ho Chi Minh, the Department of Construction, So Xay dung) must post the number of homes foreigners may own in each project and in each apartment building, and the number in each project already bought or lease-bought by foreigners or certified to them (Art. 4(4), Art. 7(1)). Before signing, the developer or seller must check that portal and may sell only within the published number; within 3 working days of signing it reports the buyer's name and the address of the home sold, the agency posts this within 3 working days, and the certificate-issuing authority checks the posted data before issuing a Certificate (Art. 7(2)). A sale, lease-purchase or gift that exceeds the Art. 19 numbers, or that is made in a project not open to foreign ownership, has no legal validity and gets no Certificate, and the seller must compensate the buyer (Art. 7(3)). (Housing Law 2023 Art. 16(2); Decree 95/2024/ND-CP Art. 4(2)-(4), Art. 7(1)-(3))
- Ho Chi Minh list: the Ho Chi Minh People's Committee announced its third 2025 release, 23 projects, on 2 October 2025, taking the total to 88; 5 more projects on 14 January 2026 made 93; 24 more on 5 March 2026 made 117; and the 11th release, 4 projects announced on 12 August 2026, took the total to 148. Being listed does not mean quota remains in a given building; the Department of Construction portal shows the numbers. (Ho Chi Minh Press Centre ttbc-hcm.gov.vn: 02-10-2025 (23 projects, third batch 2025, 88 total, posted on the Department of Construction portal under Decree 95 Art. 7(1)); 14-01-2026 (5 projects, 93 total); 05-03-2026 (24 projects, fifth release, 117 total); press digest 12-08-2026 citing Dan Tri (4 projects, 11th release, 148 total); nhadautu.vn 14-08-2026 (148 total). Press figures, not law)
Where the rules come from
Foreign ownership of homes is governed by the Housing Law 2023 (Law No. 27/2023/QH15, in force since 1 August 2024) together with the Land Law 2024 (Law No. 31/2024/QH15), with Decree 95/2024/ND-CP as the implementing decree. The Housing Law replaced the 2014 law that much English-language commentary still quotes. The two provisions that matter to a foreign buyer are Article 19, which says who may own and how much, and Article 20, which says for how long. If you only read one thing before buying, read those two. The wider picture — eligibility, payment, the buying steps — is in can foreigners buy property in Vietnam.
How the 30% quota works (Article 19)
In any single apartment building, foreign individuals and organisations may collectively own no more than 30% of the units. The ceiling attaches to the building, not to the project: a development of five towers has five separate quotas, and the tower closest to the river or the metro typically fills its foreign share first while the others still have room. Developers track this against the foreign-eligible inventory and stop selling foreign-eligible units in a building once the line is reached — so a unit that is "available" for a Vietnamese buyer may already be unavailable to you. This is why the first written question to any developer is the remaining foreign quota in the specific building you are looking at. Our pre-deposit checklist has the exact wording to ask for.
Landed houses follow a different cap
Villas and townhouses are limited under Article 19 by a different measure: no more than 250 landed houses owned by foreigners within any one ward-level administrative unit, and only inside commercial housing projects that are open to foreign ownership. Two consequences follow. A landed home in a project that is not foreign-eligible cannot be owned by you at all, however it is marketed; and the check you need for a villa is at ward level, not building level, so the answer comes from a different register than the apartment quota. Do not let an agent apply the 30% figure to a villa — it is the wrong rule.
The 50-year term (Article 20)
A foreign owner holds the home for 50 years counted from the date of the ownership certificate, not from the date of the SPA or the handover — and Article 20 provides for one renewal on application before expiry. Two things are widely misread. The term is not a cliff at which the home reverts to anyone: the renewal exists, and long before expiry most owners will have sold. And the certificate date is what starts the clock, which is one more reason to care whether the developer can actually deliver the pink book on time — see what happens when handover comes without a certificate. For expiry, renewal and inheritance mechanics in detail, read the 50-year clock.
Resale, and the freehold conversion
You may resell or lease the home freely. Who you sell to changes what the buyer gets. Sell to a Vietnamese citizen and the title converts to permanent ownership — the term disappears — which is why the domestic market is your natural exit and why the 50-year term does not dent your resale price the way many foreigners fear. Sell to another eligible foreigner and, subject to the building still having quota, they take over the remaining years, which should be reflected in the price; they can still renew the term if it has not been renewed yet, and can still resell to a Vietnamese buyer, after which it becomes long-term (permanent) ownership. Buying second-hand from a foreign owner? Ask how many years are left on the certificate, not how many were granted.
Quota and term, side by side
The two rules answer two different questions — whether you can buy at all, and what you hold once you have:
- Article 19 — quota: 30% of the apartments in a building; 250 landed houses per ward. Answers "is this unit available to a foreigner?"
- Article 20 — term: 50 years from the certificate date, one renewal. Answers "what do I hold, and for how long?"
- Apartment vs landed house: different caps (per building vs per ward) — never apply the 30% figure to a villa.
- Sale to a Vietnamese citizen: permanent ownership. Sale to a foreigner: remaining years only.
- Land: never owned by anyone under the Land Law 2024; a foreigner holds no land-use right, only the home.
Pre-deposit steps: three questions to put in writing
Every rule above turns into a question the developer can answer on paper:
- How many foreign-eligible units remain in this specific building under the 30% cap, as of today?
- Is this project — and for a villa, this ward — open to foreign ownership, and can you show the document that says so?
- What is the expected ownership-certificate date, since the 50-year term under Article 20 runs from it and not from handover?
Sources
Housing Law 2023, Law No. 27/2023/QH15 (effective 1 August 2024): Article 19 — eligible foreign owners and the 30%-per-building / 250-per-ward limits; Article 20 — the 50-year term, its single renewal and conversion to permanent ownership on sale to a Vietnamese citizen. Land Law 2024, Law No. 31/2024/QH15 — the land-use-right regime. Decree 95/2024/ND-CP — implementing decree. Building-level quota figures are held by the developer and must be confirmed in writing for the specific building.
Frequently asked
What happens at the end of the 50 years?
Article 20 of the Housing Law 2023 allows one renewal on application before expiry. In practice most foreign owners sell first — and a sale to a Vietnamese citizen converts the title to permanent ownership, ending the term entirely.
Is the 30% quota per project or per building?
Per building. A project with several towers has a separate 30% cap in each, so one tower can be full while the next still has room. Always ask for the remaining quota of the specific building.
Does the 30% quota apply to villas?
No. Landed houses fall under a different ceiling in Article 19 — no more than 250 foreign-owned landed houses in any one ward-level area, and only in projects open to foreign ownership.
When does the 50-year term start?
From the date on the ownership certificate (pink book), not from the SPA or the handover. That is why the certificate delivery date matters as much as the handover date.
Can I rent out my apartment?
Yes. A foreign owner may lease the home freely; the practical and tax side is covered in the guide on renting out from abroad.
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