reader Posted August 21, 2020 Posted August 21, 2020 NOTE -- Although the following article was published this month, Vietnam currently remains closed to international tourists. From US News and World Report Consider retirement overseas in this exotic and affordable country A long-favored destination among backpackers and adventure tourists, Vietnam offers staggeringly beautiful landscapes, a colorful local culture and an extremely low cost of living. Retirees considering moving overseas to Vietnam need to be adventuresome and comfortable with dramatic culture shock. If you are open to exotic new experiences, Vietnam could be your chance to enjoy a rich, vibrant retirement on a tiny budget. Vietnam is one of the most affordable places in the world to live well. A couple can live here comfortably on a budget of $1,000 per month or less. Health care, in particular, is a fraction of the cost of comparable care in the United States. Vietnam doesn't make things straightforward when it comes to visas and residency. Even to visit as a tourist, you'll need to fill out an application for a visa before arriving in the country. You can apply for a one- or three-month tourist visa and extend this up to two times before you have to leave the country to renew it. You could also apply for a business or investor visa, which could allow you to remain in the country full time indefinitely. Vietnamese is an extremely difficult language to learn. It has 11 vowels, as opposed to English's five, and subtle differences in pronunciation result in drastically different meanings. English is most commonly spoken in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, but even in these cities it's mostly the younger generation and those working in the tourism industry with English-language skills. Outside major cities you'll meet very few English speakers. As a result, the language difference can be the greatest challenge of living in Vietnam as an expat retiree. The government owns all land in Vietnam, and foreigners are restricted from owning land. The best you can do is to lease land from the government for a maximum of 50 years. Foreigners can purchase property in certain condo developments in bigger cities. Most expats and retirees prefer to bypass the complications of property ownership completely and rent. Depending where in the country you choose to base yourself, you can rent for as little as $350 per month. Vietnam has both public and private health care systems. Most expats and retirees opt to use the private facilities, where the quality of care is high and the staff includes internationally trained doctors. The most prestigious hospital group in Vietnam is Hoan My Medical Corporation, with hospitals and clinics across the country. City International Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City is the biggest international hospital, where a quarter of the patients are foreigners and most of the medical staff speaks English. Prices for health care in Vietnam are among the most affordable in the world. For example, at City International Hospital you'll pay $17 for a basic consultation, $4 for a blood test and less than $10 for an X-ray. Costs can be so low that it can make sense to pay for care out of pocket. However, private hospitals generally cater to expats with international health insurance. Continues at https://money.usnews.com/money/retirement/baby-boomers/articles/how-to-retire-in-vietnam eurasian and vinapu 2 Quote
Guest Posted August 21, 2020 Posted August 21, 2020 The article does rather leave open a few questions on "how to retire in Vietnam". They don't mention any retirement visa, so presumably there isn't one. So it's either visa runs or an investor visa. Checking on another site, they mention various tiers of investment visa from VND 100 billion down to VND 3 billion. The smaller figure is £98,500. Actually, that might be perfectly reasonable if it's permitted to put that money in an index fund, or investment trust. I'm not sure what rules apply in Vietnam, but in other countries, it's often necessary to invest in a genuine business to qualify. That part seems quite critical, as if intending to "retire", there's a big difference to putting part of your retirement fund in a diversified investment trust and actually having to get off your butt and find a business opportunity. Then make sure the business doesn't lose all the money. At best, this is semi-retirement. Quote
TMax Posted November 3, 2020 Posted November 3, 2020 They definitely need some form of longer term visa / retirement visa, that could attract a lot of people seeking an alternative to Thailand. Love Vietnam but longing for that long term visa reader 1 Quote
