Dependent Visas: Spouses and Children of Long-Stay Foreigners

When you obtain a long-stay Vietnamese visa — a work permit + LD, DTV, investor DT visa — your spouse and minor children can apply for dependent visas to accompany you. These are issued in the TT class, run on a parallel cycle to the primary visa, and can be converted into a TRC for residency benefits.

Rules current as of 2026-05-17. Confirm with the relevant Vietnamese embassy or the Provincial Immigration Department.

Who qualifies as a dependent

• Legal spouse of the primary visa holder (marriage must be legally recognised — Vietnamese or apostilled-foreign marriage certificate)
• Minor children under 18 — biological, adopted, or step-children with documented legal relationship
• Parents in some cases — for primary holders with substantial visa status (DT1, certain TRC categories); narrower than spouse/child

Same-sex spouses are a grey area in Vietnam: same-sex marriage is not legally recognised, so a foreign-issued same-sex marriage certificate may not be accepted as the basis for a TT dependent visa. Some same-sex couples successfully use other long-stay routes (each partner with their own DTV, for example). Confirm individually before relying on this.

Documents for the dependent visa

Document	Notes
Dependent's passport	6+ months validity
Photos	4×6 cm, white background
Marriage certificate (for spouse)	Vietnamese-issued or apostilled foreign certificate, sometimes registered with Vietnamese Department of Justice
Birth certificate (for child)	Apostilled and translated; shows both parents' names
Adoption decree (if relevant)	Apostilled foreign decree or Vietnamese adoption recognition
Primary visa holder's documents	Visa, TRC, work permit / investor / DTV evidence
Application form	NA1 (from outside) or NA5 (from inside Vietnam)
Sponsor letter	From the primary visa holder requesting dependent visa
Address registration	Form NA17, completed by landlord

For children's birth certificates: both parents' names must appear; single-parent or step-parent cases require additional documentation (custody order, deceased-parent certificate, etc.).

Validity

The dependent visa cannot exceed the primary holder's visa duration. Common scenarios:

Primary visa	Maximum dependent TT visa / TRC
LD work permit (2 years)	2 years
DT1 investor (10 years)	10 years (though TRC issued 5 years at a time)
DT3 investor (3 years)	3 years
DTV (5 years)	5 years — under recent guidance
TRC on marriage to Vietnamese (3 years)	Children covered for 3 years

When the primary visa is renewed, dependent visas are renewed in parallel — usually as a single dossier.

Process

1. Primary holder has their long-stay visa or TRC in place.
2. Dependent's documents (marriage cert, birth certs) are apostilled in the home country, translated and notarised in Vietnam if not already in Vietnamese.
3. Apply for the dependent visa:
   • From outside Vietnam: at a Vietnamese embassy or consulate.
   • From inside Vietnam: at the Provincial Immigration Department (PA61 HCMC, PA72 Hanoi).
4. For long-term stays, apply for the dependent's TRC (TRC) — runs on the same cycle as the primary's TRC.

Cost

• Dependent visa fee: ~$25–155 each, depending on duration
• TRC for dependent: $145–175 each, depending on duration
• Apostille / legalisation: $20–200 per document in home country
• Vietnamese translation/notarisation: ~$30–80 per document
• Immigration agent (optional): $200–800 per dependent if you use one

For a family of four (two adults, two children), realistic total professional fees can run $2,000–5,000 on top of government fees for the first cycle. Renewals are cheaper.

What the dependent visa lets the dependent do

• Reside in Vietnam for the validity period
• Multiple entry / exit during validity
• Enrol children in school — international schools generally accept dependent TT-class TRC as proof of residency
• Spouse access to non-work activities — gym memberships, banking, leases, etc.

What it does not do

• Authorise the spouse to take paid employment in Vietnam. For that, the spouse needs their own work permit sponsored by a Vietnamese employer, or their own DTV, or their own investor or marriage visa.
• Confer Vietnamese tax residency independently — that's based on the 183-day rule for each individual (tax residency).
• Provide automatic permanent residency — long-term residency follows the primary's pathway.

Children's school enrolment

International schools in HCMC, Hanoi, Đà Nẵng, and Hội An typically require:

• Dependent's TRC (or at minimum, valid TT visa)
• Birth certificate (apostilled, translated)
• Previous school transcripts (apostilled if from non-English-speaking country)
• Vaccination record
• Parents' visas/TRCs

Application timing is usually 3–6 months before the school year. International schools in HCMC and Hanoi run August/September starts; some international schools follow the British academic calendar.

When the spouse should consider their own primary visa instead

If your spouse:

• Plans to work in Vietnam → their own work permit or DTV
• Is married to a Vietnamese citizen (rather than to you) → marriage visa
• Has significant business investment → investor visa

The dependent route is for spouses and children who are not themselves taking long-term Vietnamese employment.

Common pitfalls

• Birth certificate without both parents' names. Some US states and other jurisdictions issue short-form birth certificates that omit one parent. Get the long-form certificate and apostille that one.
• Marriage registered abroad but not recognised in Vietnam. The marriage certificate should be apostilled AND registered ("note ghi chú kết hôn") at the Vietnamese Department of Justice for clean visa applications.
• Children turning 18 during a dependent visa cycle. The dependent class no longer applies; the child needs to convert to their own visa class (commonly student or work permit).
• Address registration form NA17 missing. Same trap as for the primary holder.