Do you know how to buy a new motorbike in Vietnam? The answer is not so simple, and the info can be hard to get. So, let us tell you the different steps involved. 

ULTIMATE GUIDE TO KNOW HOW TO BUY A NEW MOTORBIKE IN VIETNAM. 

If you just want to go straight to the calculations, skip to Step 2. 

STEP 0: INITIAL CONSIDERATIONS TO BUY A NEW MOTORBIKE IN VIETNAM 

Before even thinking to buy a new motorbike in Vietnam, you need to make sure that you can. As a foreigner it is compulsory to have a Temporary Residence Card (TRC) to register a new motorbike. The issue with registering as a foreigner is that you obtain the infamous NN plates (nước ngoài) which overcomplicates transfers of ownership. To know more about that you may check this https://theextramile.co/buy-a-new-bike-in-hcmc/ 

What most foreigners do is simply registering in the name of a local friend. It simplifies a lot the transfer of ownership further on, you just need to make sure that the person whose name is registered remains reachable. So how to buy a motorbike in Vietnam? Lets get to it. 

STEP 1: UNDERSTANDING THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE OFFICIAL COMPANY, FRANCHISES, AND LICENSED SHOPS. 

A few things to understand about the new motorbikes market in Vietnam: 

• Official Company: They publish all the motorbikes’ information and recommended prices on their website. They do not retail themselves, so they do not control the final price to the customer. 

• Franchised shops: They follow the layout and shop presentation of one brand only. They control their pricing without obligation to follow the recommended price. 

• In a few cases the headquarters owns franchises to distribute the bikes for which they have full control of the pricing and policies. 

• Licensed shops may have more than 1 license, hence they distribute and service motorbikes of different brands. They have absolutely no control from the official companies.

EXAMPLE: YAMAHA VIETNAM AND YAMAHA TOWN

This is the website of Yamaha Vietnam official: https://yamaha-motor.com.vn/xe/

Website of Yamaha Vietnam 

See the popular Yamaha PG-1 above? It has a price advertised at 30,437,000 VND. This is called the price VAT, and it is not the final price to the consumer. 

Yamaha Vietnam owns Yamaha Town, a distributor you may find at this location: https://maps.app.goo.gl/qoFuAKcC8sNYyAeaA 

The Yamaha Town on the link given is owned by Yamaha Vietnam, hence the prices communicated on the website are valid. That will not be the case with the franchised or licensed Yamaha shops. 

THE FRANCHISED/LICENSED SHOPS: 

We will take for example a famous Yamaha franchise called Long Thành Đạt, this is their website: https://longthanhdat.com.vn/ 

Website of Yamaha Long Thanh Dat 

You may notice this Yamaha licensed shop is selling a Vespa Sprint, this happens with some both franchised and licensed shops in Vietnam. 

All these franchises and licensed shops may opt for different rules starting from the pricing. If you take a round and check each dealership you will notice that the prices given by salesmen differ in ranges usually from 1,000,000 VND to 3,000,000 VND of difference. Moreover, these prices may change frequently and then the dealer that was the cheapest one day may be the most expensive the following day.  

So, do not take a price you see published in one shop at one time for granted! 

Different shops of the same brand will have different prices at different times!

This is Suzuki World near the airport, owned by Suzuki Vietnam, hence the prices on the website do stand here as opposed to Suzuki licensed shops.  

STEP 2: UNDERSTANDING THE PRICE VAT 

THE BASIC: 

What the PG-1’s price of 30,437,000 VND is missing are the registration tax and licence plate. 

1. The registration tax varies based on the province of the registrant. Poorer provinces have lower taxes. 
2. The licence plate is paid after the registration tax. 

Before going further, we will compare with the price of Long Thanh Dat:

At Yamaha LTD, the PG-1 is sold at 30,000,000 VND before papers. There is a markup of 2,563,000 VND. 

A question you may ask is “why would they raise the price??” The answer is stock. If the motorbike is hot enough most dealerships will run out of stock quickly and will not restock for a month or more. The stock will run out faster for the most desired editions/colors, so unless you want to wait a month or more, you can just buy for a higher price. 

IMPORTANT: Regardless of a markup, the official VAT price remains 30,437,000 VND. That is the number you will see on your VAT invoice when purchasing even if you paid 33,000,000 VND.  

STEP 3: THE REGISTRATION FEES 

THE REGISTRATION TAX: 

The registration tax or lệ phí trước bạ in Vietnamese is 5% for Ho Chi Minh City and other major provinces/cities. 

In the case of the Yamaha PG-1, the registration tax is: 1,521,850 VND. 

Motorbike license plate registered to Ho Chi Minh City (59)

THE PRICE OF THE LICENSE PLATE: 

• 2,000,000đ for motorbikes with a price VAT from 15,000,000đ to 39,999,999đ 

• 4,000,000đ for motorbikes with a price VAT of 40,000,000đ or over. 

So, for our Yamaha PG-1, the prices of Yamaha Town owned by Yamaha Vietnam and the licensed shop Long Thanh Dat are: 

• Yamaha Town: 33,958,850 VND 

• LTD: 36,521,850 VND 

STEP 4 AND FINAL: THE “BLUE CARD”

Blue Cards used until end of 2020 versus the new registration certificates, I guess we should call them “yellow cards”?

On the day you get your license plate, the traffic police will give you an appointment to pick up the blue card (registration.) It usually takes around 2 weeks to get it, in the meantime you are provided with a paper that works as temporary registration proof. 

According to the Vietnamese law from January 2020 a license plate is required to circulate, so temporary plates are no longer valid. Once you get your license plate you may circulate even if you do not have the blue card yet. 

FINAL CONSIDERATIONS 

Does it sound easy enough? Maybe… 

This is a quick summary of the steps, but in reality the registration system in Vietnam is quite broken, tedious, and only getting more complicated with the years. In between these steps, there is a lot of waiting around and issues that the traffic police will communicate with a terrible attitude. A very common issue for example is the police’s system failing, resulting in wasted time and having to come back again, and again, and again… 

These are other additional details you may need to consider when buying new motorbikes: 

1. The payment methods will differ depending on the dealerships. Make sure to ask which ways you can pay first. 
2. There is a great inaccuracy of information given by dealerships on their hotlines, so do not fully trust the information you have until you meet a salesman face to face at the shop. 
3. Choose the official shops rather than licensed ones, it is highly recommended to avoid the licensed shops. 
4. The only reason for which licensed shops are a better choice is for imported bikes that are not distributed by the official and franchised dealerships. For example: the Honda ADV 160 or the very popular Honda XR 150. 
5. If you do not speak Vietnamese, get help from someone who does! You will regret getting lost in translation when buying a new motorbike. 
6. In between the steps of registration, you may need to count on some cash to pay a few expenses like the licence plate holder for example. 

At The Extra Mile we got enough experience to know how to make it faster and smooth on the customer. We don’t get surprises any longer. 

SO, DO YOU THINK YOU KNOW HOW TO BUY A NEW MOTORBIKE IN VIETNAM NOW? 

If you wish our support to buy a new motorbike, we will make it so much easier for you. Check our registration assistance service here for more details: https://theextramile.co/buy-a-new-bike-in-hcmc/