Removing obstacles for overseas Vietnamese and naturalized players.

Vietnamese expatriate and naturalized players will have more opportunities to play for the Vietnamese national team in the near future, after many bottlenecks have been amended in the Vietnamese Nationality Law.

With the additions and amendments to the Law on Nationality, Kevin Pham Ba (left) will soon have Vietnamese citizenship - Photo: NAM DINH FC

On June 24th, the National Assembly voted to approve the Law amending and supplementing several articles of the Vietnamese Nationality Law, which will take effect from July 1st, 2025. For Vietnamese football, the notable changes lie in the issue of Vietnamese citizenship (for overseas Vietnamese players) and the conditions for obtaining Vietnamese citizenship (for foreign players).

Vietnamese players living abroad will soon obtain citizenship.

According to the old regulations in Article 21 of the Vietnamese Nationality Law, those applying for Vietnamese citizenship submitted their applications to the Department of Justice in their place of residence. This was the biggest bottleneck that made it very difficult for overseas Vietnamese players to obtain Vietnamese citizenship.

Specifically, this refers to the case of goalkeeper Nguyen Filip, who took nearly 10 years to obtain Vietnamese citizenship. This Vietnamese-Czech player had his citizenship application rejected multiple times because he had never resided in Vietnam as required by regulations. Only when he returned to Vietnam to play for Hanoi Police FC in June 2023 was Nguyen Filip given the opportunity to apply for citizenship, and he obtained Vietnamese citizenship on December 6, 2023.

According to the amended Article 21, applicants for Vietnamese citizenship must submit their applications to the Department of Justice if residing in Vietnam, or to the Vietnamese diplomatic mission in the host country if residing abroad.

The second bottleneck of the previous Vietnamese Nationality Law was that those applying for Vietnamese citizenship had to provide documents proving their Vietnamese citizenship and had to renounce their foreign citizenship. This is also the situation that goalkeeper Patrik Le Giang and many other Vietnamese expatriate players are facing.

Patrik Lê Giang returned to Vietnam to play in 2023 as a Vietnamese expatriate player without Vietnamese citizenship. His father is Vietnamese and his mother is Slovakian. Patrik's father no longer possesses his Vietnamese ID card or birth certificate proving his Vietnamese citizenship.

Therefore, Patrik must apply for Vietnamese citizenship this year as a foreigner. However, Patrik wants to retain his Slovak citizenship, while his residency in Vietnam has not yet reached the required five years. Similarly, Kevin Pham Ba, a right-back currently playing for Nam Dinh FC, is in a similar situation.

According to the amended Article 13, "Vietnamese citizens residing abroad who have not lost their Vietnamese citizenship but do not have documents proving their Vietnamese citizenship as prescribed may request confirmation of their Vietnamese citizenship from the Vietnamese representative agency abroad."

Therefore, coach Phung Thanh Phuong (Ho Chi Minh City FC) enthusiastically said: "The amendments and additions to the Law on Nationality are advantageous for overseas Vietnamese players in general and Patrik Le Giang in particular in our team. This will allow the Vietnamese national team to utilize this source of high-quality overseas Vietnamese players."

Striker Nguyen Xuan Son has been granted Vietnamese citizenship after 5 years of residing in Vietnam - Photo: HOANG TUNG

Opportunities for foreign players

Article 19, as amended and supplemented, also contains very favorable provisions for both overseas Vietnamese and foreign players, aiming to attract high-quality talent. Specifically, those applying for Vietnamese citizenship whose biological father or mother or paternal and maternal grandparents are Vietnamese citizens; who have made exceptional contributions to the building and protection of the Vietnamese Fatherland; or who are beneficial to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, may be granted Vietnamese citizenship without having to meet the following conditions:

Having sufficient Vietnamese language skills to integrate into the Vietnamese community, being a permanent resident in Vietnam, having resided in Vietnam for 5 years or more at the time of applying for Vietnamese citizenship, and being able to secure a livelihood in Vietnam.

At the same time, these individuals may retain their foreign citizenship if they meet two conditions: they have a relative who is a Vietnamese citizen and they are granted permission by the President of Vietnam. These individuals can submit their applications to Vietnamese diplomatic missions abroad if they reside overseas.

Another advantage is that Vietnamese expatriate players or foreign players who acquire Vietnamese citizenship can choose a Vietnamese name or use their original name to ensure international integration, instead of being required to have a Vietnamese name according to the previous Citizenship Law.

Specifically, Clause 4 of Article 19 and Clause 4 of Article 23 have been amended and supplemented to allow individuals applying for Vietnamese citizenship/restoration of Vietnamese citizenship while simultaneously retaining their foreign citizenship to choose a combined name of Vietnamese and foreign names, ensuring convenience for them when living and working in the countries where they hold citizenship.

For Vietnamese players living abroad, obtaining citizenship early would allow them to quickly join the national team if selected by coach Kim Sang Sik. However, for foreign players, they must still comply with FIFA regulations if they want to play for the Vietnamese national team – requiring them to reside in Vietnam continuously for 5 years.

Overseas Vietnamese are excited.

Pierre Hung, a FIFA player agent in France, was quite pleased to hear about the amendments and additions to Vietnam's Citizenship Law, which will take effect from July 1st. "That's good news for Vietnamese football. Vietnamese players living abroad are and will be hoping for the opportunity to return and play for the Vietnamese national team or in the V-League," he said.

Pierre Hung was the person who assisted and facilitated Quang Hai in completing the procedures to join Pau FC. He also helped two Vietnamese-French players return to play in the V-League: Cao Pendant Quang Vinh (Hanoi Police) and Kevin Pham Ba (Nam Dinh).

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NGUYEN KHOI - QUANG THINH

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/go-vuong-cho-viet-kieu-and-cau-thu-nhap-tich-20250626115608411.htm