Left property in dad’s will. What next?

Normally the deeds of the property are in the name of the Vietnamese person. It’s only recently that  foreigners have been allowed to buy apartments on a 50 year lease, my understanding is they are not permitted to buy a house or land. I would seek out a reputable lawyer , but they are far and few between .  Sorry that I can not be of any further assistance .

The house is in  Hanoi or UK??

The wife will steal the property - dont give her the death certificate.

hi Angelina,

in Vietnam, unless there is a prenuptial agreement, ownership of a house that is acquired after marriage will be common property. If one spouse has passed away, the other will manage the common property unless another person has been designated to do so.

I expect your dad would've asked his wife to register ownership of the house under her name. This is because generally, except for certain development projects, foreigners cannot be registered as house owners here

If you've been designated in your dad's will, from what you described, i believe there a chance that you're entitled to a portion of the house that he bequeathed to you under his will. If i were you, i would not let it go so easily as this portion may be quite large. Keeping the house won't benefit you because you cannot own it as foreigner. I guess you also have no intention to use or live in the house. It makes sense to sell it so you may be entitled to a part of the proceeds from the sale based on your dad's will.

Your dad's will can be recognized in Vietnam if it was made in accordance with the laws of his nationality at the time he created the will. You may check with the lawyer of your country to double check this

If his wife is asking for the death certificate, i guess she is looking to sell it. if you want to go after your portion, you should avoid letting her take control the process without any input from you. Instead, you may either authorise her to sell the house on your behalf (and transfer the proceeds) or arrange for both you and his wife to jointly appoint someone to handle the sale to make sure you get your fair share based on your dad's will.

Feel free to message me if you need more info and i can see what i can do and point you in the right direction

Thank you so much. I need to talk to my siblings and I’ll get back to you.

You need to lawyer-up. And don't be cheap, you will need a lawyer who has more "power" than the wife's lawyer. Power meaning good government connections because of the way things are 'facilitated'. Of course they will favor the Vietnamese party.

Angelina67 wrote:

I have t mentioned anything to her yet but she is asking for the death certificate.

It is not crystal clear from your statements but can we assume that your father died in the UK?  If he died in VN, I don't see how there would be any obstacle to his wife in obtaining a death certificate.  I wouldn't suggest it to her but perhaps she could obtain a death certificate through the British Embassy.

Seconding Gobot's views. you should be represented by a lawyer in Vietnam.

As immediate step, try to get details of the house. Check if you have the below which your dad may have kept in his files:

- a copy of the Land Use Right Certificate/Red Book (Giấy chứng nhận quyền sử dụng đất, quyền sở hữu nhà ở và tài sản gắn liền với đất), which is the equivalent to a title document in Vietnam

- a copy of the house sale contract

If you have any or both of these, send them and a copy of your dad's will to the lawyer for an initial look through.