{
  "id": "policy/tam-tru-registration-required",
  "signature": "AI tells a foreigner staying with a Vietnamese friend, family, or in a private homestay/Airbnb that temporary residence (tam tru) registration with police is only a hotel front-desk formality",
  "signature_zh": "",
  "regex": "(vietnam.*(tam tru|tạm trú)|vietnam.*temporary residence.*register|homestay.*vietnam.*police|staying.*friend.*vietnam.*police)",
  "domain": "policy",
  "category": "administrative_barrier",
  "subcategory": null,
  "root_cause": "Under Article 33 of Law No. 47/2014/QH13, any foreigner staying anywhere in Vietnam - a hotel, a private home, a homestay, or with a friend - must have the stay declared to local commune/ward police within 12 hours (24 hours in remote/mountainous areas). The duty falls on the person or establishment managing the accommodation, not the foreign guest. Since Decree 282/2025/ND-CP (effective 15 December 2025), fines for undeclared foreign guests are tiered by headcount: 3-5 million VND for 1-3 undeclared foreigners, up to 15-20 million VND for 9 or more, replacing the earlier flat fine under Decree 144/2021/ND-CP.",
  "root_cause_type": "generic",
  "root_cause_zh": "",
  "versions": [
    {
      "version": "any",
      "introduced": null,
      "deprecated": null,
      "removed": null,
      "behavior_change": null,
      "status": "active"
    }
  ],
  "os_specific": {},
  "dead_ends": [
    {
      "action": "Assume tam tru registration is only required when staying in a licensed hotel, and skip it when staying with a Vietnamese friend, family, or in a private homestay/Airbnb",
      "why_fails": "Article 33 of Law No. 47/2014/QH13 (Law on Entry, Exit, Transit and Residence of Foreigners in Vietnam) covers any place a foreigner stays, including private homes. Vietnam's Ministry of Public Security confirms the declaration duty applies there too, including in subletting cases, with a 12-hour deadline in normal areas (24 hours in remote/mountainous areas).",
      "fail_rate": 0.7,
      "condition": "Staying in private accommodation rather than a licensed hotel",
      "sources": [
        "https://bocongan.gov.vn/chinh-sach-phap-luat/chi-tiet-cau-hoi/2f8d8fa0-b835-4bb9-8fe0-4cd7c3a0ca0f"
      ]
    },
    {
      "action": "Assume the foreign guest, rather than the Vietnamese host or homeowner, is the one legally responsible for filing the tam tru declaration",
      "why_fails": "Vietnamese law places the declaration duty on the person or establishment directly managing the accommodation - the host - not the visiting foreigner. A host who fails to register a private guest is the one who faces the administrative fine.",
      "fail_rate": 0.5,
      "condition": "Staying in a private home rather than a commercial hotel",
      "sources": [
        "https://azvlaw.vn/en/temporary-residence-registration-vietnam/"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "workarounds": [
    {
      "action": "Have the host declare the stay to the local commune/ward police within 12 hours of arrival (24 hours in remote/mountainous areas), either online via the provincial immigration portal or in person using Form NA17 with a copy of the guest's passport",
      "success_rate": 0.85,
      "how": "Procedure follows Circular No. 53/2016/TT-BCA (Ministry of Public Security): submit online through the province's immigration portal (e.g. Hanoi's) or bring Form NA17 plus a passport copy to the commune/ward police station.",
      "condition": "",
      "sources": [
        "https://azvlaw.vn/en/temporary-residence-registration-vietnam/"
      ]
    },
    {
      "action": "If unsure whether a private host actually filed the registration, ask to see the police confirmation or receipt - liability and the size of any fine both depend on it, and since Decree 282/2025/ND-CP the fine scales with how many undeclared foreigners are found at one address",
      "success_rate": 0.6,
      "how": "Decree 282/2025/ND-CP (Article 21, effective 15 December 2025) sets tiered fines: 3-5 million VND for 1-3 undeclared foreigners at an address, 10-15 million for 4-8, and 15-20 million for 9 or more.",
      "condition": "Uncertain whether the host has already registered the stay",
      "sources": [
        "https://congan.quangngai.gov.vn/danh-muc-san-pham/-tin-tuc-su-kien/tim-hieu-phap-luat/nghi-dinh-282-2025-nd-cp-tang-muc-phat-doi-voi-vi-pham-lien-quan-den-linh-vuc-quan-ly-xuat-nhap-canh.html"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "workarounds_zh": [],
  "transition_graph": {
    "leads_to": [],
    "preceded_by": [],
    "frequently_confused_with": [
      "visa/evisa-required-in-advance/vn"
    ]
  },
  "official_doc_url": null,
  "official_doc_section": null,
  "error_code": null,
  "verification_tier": "ai_generated",
  "confidence": 0.8,
  "fix_success_rate": 0.85,
  "resolvable": "true",
  "first_seen": "2026-08-27",
  "last_confirmed": "2026-08-27",
  "last_updated": "2026-08-27",
  "evidence_count": 3,
  "tags": [],
  "locale": "en",
  "aliases": [
    "policy/tam-tru-registration-required/vn"
  ]
}