Temporary Residence Card ??? What is it good for ????

The biggest plus is no visa runs or stamping at immigration.
Easier to open a bank account.
Marriage TRC now allows you to work here without a work permit.
If you stay here long term its less hassle but more costly. I just did mine yesterday, 200usd for 3-years, dirt cheap for peace of mind.

findvietnam wrote:

Hello Every Body
  I hope your guy is winning !!!     my joke

What are the rules , thoughts and reasons to get a Temporary Residence Card for Vietnam ????

Can you work ??
Health care options ??
More hassle less hassle ??
I am just asking , I am staying on a 5 year tourist visa , married a local , .

I was just wondering,

Thanks Tom

In my case, I had also long term visa in Vietnam, But sometimes I could not apply Visa for some countries in Vietnamese without TRC. for that benefits, I applied for TRC and now I can use my TRC to get done things what I want without bringing my passport. Definitely, you cannot work with TRC.

Contem talk wrote:

findvietnam wrote:

Hello Every Body
  I hope your guy is winning !!!     my joke

What are the rules , thoughts and reasons to get a Temporary Residence Card for Vietnam ????

Can you work ??
Health care options ??
More hassle less hassle ??
I am just asking , I am staying on a 5 year tourist visa , married a local , .

I was just wondering,

Thanks Tom

In my case, I had also long term visa in Vietnam, But sometimes I could not apply Visa for some countries in Vietnamese without TRC. for that benefits, I applied for TRC and now I can use my TRC to get done things what I want without bringing my passport. Definitely, you cannot work with TRC.

The laws are changing which allows those on spousal TRC's to be able to work.

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.p … 08#4966010

findvietnam wrote:

Hello Every Body
  I hope your guy is winning !!!     my joke

What are the rules , thoughts and reasons to get a Temporary Residence Card for Vietnam ????

Can you work ??
Health care options ??
More hassle less hassle ??
I am just asking , I am staying on a 5 year tourist visa , married a local , .

I was just wondering,

Thanks Tom

VEC od 5 year visa still requiresborder exits (when they are open) TRC doesnt require this

Married to a local makee you exempt from a work permit, this is a fairly new change so you might find most employers are unaware

findvietnam wrote:

What are the rules , thoughts and reasons to get a Temporary Residence Card for Vietnam ????

Can you work ??
Health care options ??
More hassle less hassle ??
I am just asking , I am staying on a 5 year tourist visa , married a local , .

First, your "5 year tourist visa" is not a visa (Thị Thực in Vietnamese) because it's a visa exemption (Miễn Thị Thực in Vietnamese -  miễn means exempt from).  You're also not a tourist because tourists are short term stayers while you have the rights to stay here long term -- due to your being related to a Vietnamese by birth/marriage, or due to your Vietnamese roots.

If you're not a tourist, what are you then?  There's not an official name for you and me and other people like us.  In English, we're simply VEC holders, and the government calls us "người được miễn thị thực"  (people who are exempted from having a visa).

Second, in re TRC: 

- Yes, you can work. 
- Yes, you can buy health care, but you can also buy health care as a VEC holder.
- Less hassle because you don't need to visit Immigration for a $10 stamp once a year (the first 6 months) and you don't need to exit the country the other once a year (the second 6 months).  This less hassle aspect is offset by the higher cost of the TRC.

Third, reason to get a TRC: You don't want to take a trip out of the country once a year.
Reason not to get a TRC: Shorter duration (3 years TRC vs 5 year VEC) and relatively higher cost.

Fourth, I'm skipping the first part of your question ('what are the rules') because as you said, you were just asking.  If or when you decide to get a TRC, we'll talk about the rules then.

If you have a TRC you don't have to carry your passport around to go to the: bank, post office etc.; also, you're not using up your passport pages with visas and stamps. It's basically official ID for everything except Immigration procedures.

cruisemonkey wrote:

If you have a TRC you don't have to carry your passport around to go to the: bank, post office etc.; also, you're not using up your passport pages with visas and stamps. It's basically official ID for everything except Immigration procedures.

I didn't know this.  That might make it worthwhile when I come back.  For now VEC is better because I will be coming and going frequently.  Even when I retire we were planning on 6 month stretches in VN and US and five years is better than three, plus the lower cost.  But I'm not going to worry about something five years from now.  I'll have to get one new VEC or TRC before we officially come back but the laws could easily change again by then.

colinoscapee wrote:

Contem talk wrote:

findvietnam wrote:

Hello Every Body
  I hope your guy is winning !!!     my joke

What are the rules , thoughts and reasons to get a Temporary Residence Card for Vietnam ????

Can you work ??
Health care options ??
More hassle less hassle ??
I am just asking , I am staying on a 5 year tourist visa , married a local , .

I was just wondering,

Thanks Tom

In my case, I had also long term visa in Vietnam, But sometimes I could not apply Visa for some countries in Vietnamese without TRC. for that benefits, I applied for TRC and now I can use my TRC to get done things what I want without bringing my passport. Definitely, you cannot work with TRC.

The laws are changing which allows those on spousal TRC's to be able to work.

Oh Thank you for your info, last year TRC holder cannot work and i haven't update with new law.

Hi colinoscapee,
You state that you did a TRC for $200. Is this correct?
I'm thinking of applying for a TRC and a HCMC agent has quoted me US$1600 for 3 years.
If yours was in fact $200, did you do it yourself or use an agent?
More info would be appreciated.

Hi Honem, I did it in July by myself, around 185$ and it's easy to do it by yourself ( if you meet the conditions for obtaining the card of course) and it's 3 years valid.

Same here does it yourself .. much cheaper, from memory I paid 3.1 million VND back in June

Depends on personal circumstances what documents your require.

honem wrote:

Hi colinoscapee,
You state that you did a TRC for $200. Is this correct?
I'm thinking of applying for a TRC and a HCMC agent has quoted me US$1600 for 3 years.
If yours was in fact $200, did you do it yourself or use an agent?
More info would be appreciated.

The one they are quoting 1600 USD is done under the table, not legal. If you are married it's a spousal TRC and easy to do. I did hear that immigration in Saigon has increased the price since covid, best to contact immigration and ask.

VEC .... the visa that's not a visa? :-)

yet, as has been pointed out, they still fill up your passport and make you jump through hoops :-(

so, other things aside the TRC costs more yet is almost half the length of VEC  ... the short(er) length is definitely odd logic given the TRC name/purpose

200$ for a TRC, fine. I reextend my LD TRC 4 times, can't remember how much I paid but know that I had to go to the Immigration Office to pick-up the card. Makes a lot of sens to me that they want to verify that they are actually giving the card to the right person.
So, did you have to show up to Immigration to get that card? Was it a LD one (different TRC types, different prices??)?
Is an overpriced TRC possible as soon as you are not requested t o show up to pick it up? Any idea, thanks to share.
This question now because getting a new WP and TRC 'LD Type" I'm requesting to pay some 20tr for TRC but their is no mention of showing up at Immigration to retrieve that card...
See my point? Just came to my mind reading yr post, thanks! FB absolutly usless is this respect! Cheers Alain

You will find the over priced TRC via an agent is a fee for them or someone they know being your sponsor along with fees for them going to the immigration office for you.

Depending on your status, it is cheaper and easier to do yourself. If you are married to a local they become your sponsor so you don't have to pay am agent to act as your sponsor.

colinoscapee wrote:

The biggest plus is no visa runs or stamping at immigration.
Easier to open a bank account.
Marriage TRC now allows you to work here without a work permit.
If you stay here long term its less hassle but more costly. I just did mine yesterday, 200usd for 3-years, dirt cheap for peace of mind.

Did you do it yourself or use an agent, as 200usd is cheap.

mauriceb wrote:

colinoscapee wrote:

The biggest plus is no visa runs or stamping at immigration.
Easier to open a bank account.
Marriage TRC now allows you to work here without a work permit.
If you stay here long term its less hassle but more costly. I just did mine yesterday, 200usd for 3-years, dirt cheap for peace of mind.

Did you do it yourself or use an agent, as 200usd is cheap.

Do it yourself, its easy. The previous one was only 150 usd.

Thanks

myvietnam wrote:

VEC .... the visa that's not a visa? :-)

yet, as has been pointed out, they still fill up your passport and make you jump through hoops :-(

so, other things aside the TRC costs more yet is almost half the length of VEC  ... the short(er) length is definitely odd logic given the TRC name/purpose

   I'm pretty sure every country in the world is going to stamp your coming and going dates in your passport.
It's been a breeze for me at the immigration counter, no hoop-jumping, just show my passport and TRC card, receive a deathly stare, and I'm done. 

myvietnam wrote:

VEC .... the visa that's not a visa? :-)

yet, as has been pointed out, they still fill up your passport and make you jump through hoops :-(

No, VEC is not a visa.  The name clearly states that.

What hoops?  Pay $10 fee ($60 if an agent do it for you), hand over the passport, receive the passport back with the glued-in VEC 4 days later. 

We travel very often so the fact that the passport is filled up has nothing to do with the VEC.  People who don't travel as often as we do only need one in-country stamp (free, requires 5 minutes at Immigration) and one exit/entry stamp a year.  It's not a hoop either and only a bother if you do not travel out of the country at all for the entire 5 years living in VN.

i am not sure my experience matches yours.

i have a five year spousal visa exemption

yet it seems we still have to go to border every six months and pay for Cambodia visa and then pay for six month VN visa

the govt/police in Soc Trang did it once for us early this year - but said they would only do it once as a favour, not again

and earlier, some company in Saigon did it for us in emergency because we were (a few days) late, and cost something over d5mill - and they said they could only do once too!

so what am i missing/misunderstanding here?

VEC is a good thing to have but yes you still have to do border runs adding cost and more importantly using up passport pages.

You are entitled to apply for a spousal TRC, your wife becoming your sponsor. The process can easily be done yourself for 3.1illion VND, it takes a week and can be collected from the immigration office in HCM

Once complete the TRC can be used for identification purposes in Vietnam and means domestic flights no longer need your passport.

Also, spousal TRC holders are work permit exempt..

myvietnam wrote:

i am not sure my experience matches yours.

i have a five year spousal visa exemption

yet it seems we still have to go to border every six months and pay for Cambodia visa and then pay for six month VN visa

the govt/police in Soc Trang did it once for us early this year - but said they would only do it once as a favour, not again

and earlier, some company in Saigon did it for us in emergency because we were (a few days) late, and cost something over d5mill - and they said they could only do once too!

so what am i missing/misunderstanding here?

Yeah, something is wrong there.  My wife did my 6 month renewal at immigration in HCMC for me.  I wasn't even present and it cost $10USD.  It might be another case of provinces operating as they see fit regardless of the laws or rules.

The way I understood it is that you can do it once but then have to go out for the next one.  After that you can repeat, one at immigration, next one out of country.  I have also "heard" that they may do it more than once.  Not sure if that is a COVID thing or real.

myvietnam wrote:

i am not sure my experience matches yours.

i have a five year spousal visa exemption

yet it seems we still have to go to border every six months and pay for Cambodia visa and then pay for six month VN visa

so what am i missing/misunderstanding here?

It's a bit difficult to explain, so let me give you an example:

if your 6-month stay expires in Jan, you can get an extension stamp at Immigration office in Saigon.  Your new expiration is now July. 

In July, you'll need exit/entry stamps, that's when you do a border run or take a short holiday somewhere.

On the following expiration date, you can get an extension stamp at Immigration in Saigon again.  Then the next expiration date, you'll need exit/entry stamps again.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

I don't know about Soc Trang, but that's the rule and it's being practiced at least in Saigon, Hanoi, and Ba Ria-Vung Tau.

SteinNebraska wrote:

Yeah, something is wrong there.  My wife did my 6 month renewal at immigration in HCMC for me.  I wasn't even present and it cost $10USD.  It might be another case of provinces operating as they see fit regardless of the laws or rules.

The way I understood it is that you can do it once but then have to go out for the next one.  After that you can repeat, one at immigration, next one out of country.  I have also "heard" that they may do it more than once.  Not sure if that is a COVID thing or real.

During Covid, they have the options to do it every 6 months or ask you to pay for a tourist visa on the alternate expiration date.  After Covid, it'll be back to the way it's always been done. 

I had lengthy Q&A sessions with Immigration offices in Saigon and BR-VT a few months ago.  Both places gave me the same answer.  In Saigon, the answer came from two people, a person behind the counter and another in the office of new visa.  In BR-VT, it came from the officer who handled our VECs.

Hopefuly I'm on my last check in.  My current stamp expires March 29 and we are planning to move to US mid-March, depending on COVID.  Doesn' look great for that, though.  For the next five years or so I'll be just visiting 3-4 times a year for work so no issues there.

SteinNebraska wrote:

My current stamp expires March 29 and we are planning to move to US mid-March, depending on COVID.  Doesn' look great for that, though.

May I ask why you think you won't be able to move back to the States before or by mid March?  If you fly with Korean Air, for instance, you can transit in Seoul without problem (transit time should be more than 3 hours due to medical check), land in NY (only 3 day quarantine), then rent a car and drive home.

Ciambella wrote:

May I ask why you think you won't be able to move back to the States before or by mid March?  If you fly with Korean Air, for instance, you can transit in Seoul without problem (transit time should be more than 3 hours due to medical check), land in NY (only 3 day quarantine), then rent a car and drive home.

Oh, I'm confident I can get there.  It's more of a quality of life thing from living under COVID restrictions and also an appeasing my wife thing.  She has what I would assume is a somewhat universal Asian fear or paranoia or maybe simply an aversion to viruses like this.  I'm not saying she's paranoid about it...wait...yeah, maybe I am.  OK, OK, she's sure we are going to die. LOL.

Seriously, I don't HAVE to leave.  I can just as easily tell my company I'm staying for a few more months.  It would actually be better if we went in June, both for finishing the school year and also being married for two years which gives them 10 year permanent green cards but it wasn't in the cards when they scheduled our interview for Nov 2.  We PROBABLY can get the visas reissued for a later date.  It will cost about $1000 with new health checks and visa fees but there's no guarantee they will reissue it.  It's possible that it will just expire as an unused visa and we have to start all over again.  Plus, I'm just ready to go home.

We are going to reassess after TET.  If we are OK with going, we will go.  If we aren't I'll pursue getting an extension.  If they won't grant it we will be forced to go.  We can go as late as April 15.

Ciambella wrote:

I had lengthy Q&A sessions with Immigration offices in Saigon and BR-VT a few months ago.  Both places gave me the same answer.  In Saigon, the answer came from two people, a person behind the counter and another in the office of new visa.  In BR-VT, it came from the officer who handled our VECs.

As I reported in the VEC thread, entry stamp extensions in Thu Dau Mot are the rule there.

Travelfar wrote:

As I reported in the VEC thread, entry stamp extensions in Thu Dau Mot are the rule there.

Excellent experience.

many thanks for your comments

Thanks everyone for your replies.
I (jokingly) suggested to my Vietnamese friends that I get a marriage visa.
They all thought it was a good idea (misery likes company?) but told me that in the long run the cost of a TRC is far less than keeping a Vietnamese woman.

HI AGAIN.

this is slightly off-topic, but now we have virus visa issue, how does this play?

as i understood it, now govt will renew visa w/o border run.

however, at the moment, we have someone at police making difficulties about family book which is hard to comprehend reasoning/logic; but different person the week before (just) wanted some letter/form from police from previous residence TP Soc Trang

as is often the case i believe, different stories depending on who you speak to (most of which are just illogical or contradict what their own forms say).

but the end result is  - no visa (renewal)!

(to remind you of bg: i am on a 5yr spousal visa)

so what to do?

(we have some contact in HCM, but we haven't spoken to them yet)

kr

myvietnam wrote:

however, at the moment, we have someone at police making difficulties about family book which is hard to comprehend reasoning/logic; but different person the week before (just) wanted some letter/form from police from previous residence TP Soc Trang

but the end result is  - no visa (renewal)!

(to remind you of bg: i am on a 5yr spousal visa)

You're allowed to extend your VEC (it's a Visa Exemption Certificate, so technically, it's not a "spousal visa") without leaving the country the same way as it was before Covid.  You'll need to show that you're registered with UBND (ward police), also the same way as it was before Covid.  If you don't have the official registration for some reason, then you need a letter from your sponsor with whom you reside and that letter must be stamped by UBND.   

By law, your landlord or sponsor must submit a new registration with UBND every 6 months to match the 6-month stamp on your passport.  Our current landlord has been doing that since we moved into his property almost 3 years ago.

From what you said, "a different person wanted some letter/form from police from previous residence TP Soc Trang", I'm thinking you're probably not registered at your current UBND, ergo, Immigration needs a document from your previous residence.  It makes perfect sense that your stay is not extendable without it.

Ciambella wrote:

myvietnam wrote:

however, at the moment, we have someone at police making difficulties about family book which is hard to comprehend reasoning/logic; but different person the week before (just) wanted some letter/form from police from previous residence TP Soc Trang

but the end result is  - no visa (renewal)!

(to remind you of bg: i am on a 5yr spousal visa)

You're allowed to extend your VEC (it's a Visa Exemption Certificate, so technically, it's not a "spousal visa") without leaving the country the same way as it was before Covid.  You'll need to show that you're registered with UBND (ward police), also the same way as it was before Covid.  If you don't have the official registration for some reason, then you need a letter from your sponsor with whom you reside and that letter must be stamped by UBND.   

By law, your landlord or sponsor must submit a new registration with UBND every 6 months to match the 6-month stamp on your passport.  Our current landlord has been doing that since we moved into his property almost 3 years ago.

From what you said, "a different person wanted some letter/form from police from previous residence TP Soc Trang", I'm thinking you're probably not registered at your current UBND, ergo, Immigration needs a document from your previous residence.  It makes perfect sense that your stay is not extendable without it.

Ciambella as always knows all, And as usual she has worked out your predicament i think. What she hasn't told you and am sure she knows, you or your land lord (you pay in the end) need to go pay the police to turn a blind eye to your non- registration .
I have a Vietnamese wife (a lawyer) and because i hate corruption and in general the systems here in Vietnam which is designed to make every thing more complicated and slow every thing down, She wont tell me how much she pays the police, and other government authorities ,she knows i get angry and give them a piece of my mind (even though most don't speak English). To me there is nothing worse than handing money over to a grinning official to do something perfectly legal , i feel like punching them ,especially as my wife tells me they laugh with friends and call us foreigners "big chickens" ,Ask your Vietnam friends how insulting that is in Vietnamese. The only satisfaction i get is knowing they are doing their country and subsequently themselves a lot of Harm.
I have an expat Norwegian friend here who refuses to pay bribes,  he manages a multi million dollar business here employing 200 people and he finds working here very frustrating and wants to move back to Indonesia, Corrupt there too , but less time consuming and he finds the people are easier to work with.   I wonder if  the sensors will tear this apart!.

Ciambella wrote:

myvietnam wrote:

however, at the moment, we have someone at police making difficulties about family book which is hard to comprehend reasoning/logic; but different person the week before (just) wanted some letter/form from police from previous residence TP Soc Trang

but the end result is  - no visa (renewal)!

(to remind you of bg: i am on a 5yr spousal visa)

You're allowed to extend your VEC (it's a Visa Exemption Certificate, so technically, it's not a "spousal visa") without leaving the country the same way as it was before Covid.  You'll need to show that you're registered with UBND (ward police), also the same way as it was before Covid.  If you don't have the official registration for some reason, then you need a letter from your sponsor with whom you reside and that letter must be stamped by UBND.   

By law, your landlord or sponsor must submit a new registration with UBND every 6 months to match the 6-month stamp on your passport.  Our current landlord has been doing that since we moved into his property almost 3 years ago.

From what you said, "a different person wanted some letter/form from police from previous residence TP Soc Trang", I'm thinking you're probably not registered at your current UBND, ergo, Immigration needs a document from your previous residence.  It makes perfect sense that your stay is not extendable without it.

Hi Ciambella , By the way how much is the going rate currently to pay police to extend your VEC , similar to  you, my six months is up on the 21st February 2020 and i am flying to Hanoi again as my registered address (apartment i built for my wife's family and myself) is in Hanoi, Last time my wife paid  i think 800,000vnd ,but we hadn't registered for 12 years as we travel and leave the country about every four Months. What is the going rate to pay the police, six months later when i am totally legal this time having been stamped six Months ago?. My Wife is Vietnamese ,but unusually poor at bargaining.

Keith+Phuong wrote:

Hi Ciambella , By the way how much is the going rate currently to pay police to extend your VEC , similar to  you, my six months is up on the 21st February 2020 and i am flying to Hanoi again as my registered address (apartment i built for my wife's family and myself) is in Hanoi, Last time my wife paid  i think 800,000vnd ,but we hadn't registered for 12 years as we travel and leave the country about every four Months. What is the going rate to pay the police, six months later when i am totally legal this time having been stamped six Months ago?. My Wife is Vietnamese ,but unusually poor at bargaining.

- If you mean paying your local ward to extend your registration, then the answer is no, you do not pay. Your wife should not hint at the possibility of an offer either.

Every 6 months, my landlord (who is also my nephew) takes the tenant registration book and everyone’s passport to the ward to have a stamp; he has been doing that for 7 years without greasing any palm.  If your wife doesn’t have the tenant registration book because she's not running an apartment rental and you’re the only foreigner in the house, then she only needs to take the last copy of your registration to show your continuation of stay.

BTW, even if you’re out of the country every 4 months and stay in the country only one month, you still have to register for the month of your stay.

- If you mean paying Immigration office to extend your 6-month VEC stay, then the fee is 230K.  You may have to buy the form for 3k or 6k (I don't remember the exact amount) but that's the total.  You do not pay anyone else.

hi there

thank you for comments

however that doesn't seem to be quite it.

when we first moved to CT, we registered w police straight away.

CT say they don't care about CT Police paper we have, and are saying they want letter from ST to prove we lived there a year, and, as well, they 'complain' we don't have CT Family Book

(we have Family Book for Long Phu but can't get one in CT because we don't own a house here)

(make me feel like we are in Catch 22 :-()

it seems to me that CT Immig are being both incompetent/wrong and nasty w it.

it is apparently widely recognized that CT Immig is completely useless/hopeless

======

another issue is COST: last time when we extended six months @ Soc Trang govt, it cost around d1.7m (~$A100). 

and (now) recommended agents in Saigon are asking $US160 for 6 months (and $US450 for 3 years)

so what is with this mention i see elsewhere of $US10???!!!

that would be an extremely welcome saving (seeing we only have the pension)

======

rapid advice and/or recommendations would be very welcome as my wife is getting increasingly anxious

(at the moment we would get the 3yr exension)

kind regards