Tet, the Lunar New Year, is the most important event of the Vietnamese year, and for foreign residents it means two things at once: a beautiful season of family visits, flowers and food, and a stretch of one to two weeks when much of the country closes, cities empty and services slow down. The official public holiday lasts several days and usually becomes a week or more once weekends are joined. Taking part well means planning practical life around the closures and joining the social side through small, well-judged gestures: greetings, lucky money for children, and gifts for people who help you through the year.
Tet falls in late January or February, on the first day of the first lunar month, so the date moves each year. The weeks before it are busy, the days around it are quiet, and the weeks after it slowly return to normal as people come back from their home provinces. This guide is written for people who live in Vietnam and will meet Tet every year, not for visitors on a short trip.
What Tet means to Vietnamese families
At its heart Tet is a family reunion. Millions of people who work in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and other cities travel back to the provinces where their parents and grandparents live. Houses are cleaned and repaired, debts are settled where possible, and families prepare traditional food such as bánh chưng in the north or bánh tét in the south, both sticky rice cakes wrapped in leaves, along with pickled vegetables, braised pork and candied fruit.
The days before New Year's Eve include honouring ancestors with offerings at the family altar and, a week earlier, seeing off the Kitchen Gods on the twenty-third day of the last lunar month, when many families release live carp into lakes and rivers. On the first days of the new year, people visit relatives in a set order, often the father's side first, then the mother's side, then teachers and friends. Everything said and done in the first days is believed to set the tone for the year, so arguments, sweeping out the house and talk of misfortune are avoided.
For a foreign resident, understanding this explains a lot of behaviour in the run-up to Tet: why your building's cleaner suddenly wants to finish early, why a contractor insists on completing a job before the holiday or not at all, and why everyone seems to be wishing each other health and prosperity well before the date.
How the Tet season affects daily life
The pattern below is typical of the big cities. Smaller towns and tourist areas differ, so ask neighbours and your building manager what to expect locally.
| Period | What usually happens | What residents should plan |
|---|---|---|
| Three to four weeks before | Year-end parties at work, rising traffic, shopping and gift markets | Book any travel, finish repairs, renew documents that may expire during the holiday |
| The last week of the old year | Offices wind down, deliveries slow, flower markets open, prices of some goods rise | Stock up on household basics and medicines; settle rent and bills early if your landlord travels |
| New Year's Eve and the first three days | Cities very quiet, most small shops and markets closed, families visiting each other | Expect limited food options and services; supermarkets and chain stores may keep short hours |
| The rest of the first week | Gradual reopening, people still travelling back | Government offices and many businesses reopen after the official break ends |
| Two to three weeks after | Festive mood continues, many people visit pagodas and temples in the first month | Allow extra time for paperwork and repairs as backlogs clear |
Immigration and other government offices close for the official holiday. If your visa, residence card or work permit expires in January or February, start the renewal well before Tet rather than relying on the first days afterwards, when queues are long.
Lucky money: who gives, who receives
Giving lì xì, lucky money in small red or decorated envelopes, is the most visible Tet custom. Adults give envelopes to children, and working adults often give to their elderly parents. Employers commonly give envelopes to staff at the first day back at work, and many people give to those who serve them through the year, such as a building guard, a cleaner or a regular delivery rider.
There is no fixed amount, and the meaning lies in the gesture and the fresh, new-looking notes rather than the value. Amounts vary with closeness, the giver's means and local habits, and people avoid making a show of it. As a foreign resident, a sensible approach is to prepare a small stack of envelopes before Tet, ask a Vietnamese friend or colleague what feels normal in your circle, and give to children of neighbours and friends you visit, plus staff who look after your home or building.
Give and receive envelopes with both hands, along with a short wish such as Chúc mừng năm mới (Happy New Year) or wishes for health and success in school for children. It is polite not to open the envelope in front of the giver. If you receive one as an adult, it is a warm sign of inclusion, not a payment.
Food, markets and the pre-Tet rush
The fortnight before Tet is the busiest shopping period of the year. Markets add stalls selling dried bamboo shoots, glutinous rice, mung beans, banana leaves, candied ginger and coconut, and flower markets spring up on pavements and riverbanks. Supermarkets stack gift baskets near the entrance and stay crowded late into the evening. If you shop at a local market, the vendors you know will be busier than usual but often more generous too, slipping in an extra handful of herbs or a few kumquats.
Traditional dishes are prepared in large quantities so that families can eat without cooking during the first days. Many households still wrap their own rice cakes, sometimes boiling them overnight in a large pot, although more and more buy them ready-made. If neighbours offer you a cake or a plate of food, accept it gratefully and, if you can, return the plate later with something from your own kitchen.
For residents, the practical point is that fresh food becomes harder to find for a few days once the holiday starts. Buying staples a couple of days before New Year's Eve, rather than on the last afternoon, avoids the worst crowds and the price rises that come with them.
Customs a resident is likely to meet
The first visitor. The first person to enter a home after midnight on New Year's Eve, xông đất, is believed to influence the household's luck. Families often choose this person in advance. Unless you are invited for that role, avoid being the first to drop by a Vietnamese home on the first morning.
Wishes in every conversation. During the first weeks, greetings include wishes for health, peace, prosperity and success. A few memorised phrases, used warmly, go a long way with neighbours and colleagues.
Flowers and trees. Peach blossom branches dominate in the north, yellow apricot blossom in the south, and kumquat trees in pots everywhere. Many residents buy a small tree or branch for their own home as a gesture of joining in.
Things people avoid. Sweeping out the house on the first days, lending money, breaking things and arguing are traditionally avoided at the start of the year. Nobody expects a foreigner to know all of these, but staying calm and cheerful is appreciated.
Year-end gifts. Gift baskets of tea, wine, sweets, dried fruit and other treats are exchanged before Tet between families, colleagues and business partners. A modest basket for your landlord or a neighbour who has helped you is well received.
A practical Tet checklist for residents
Tet is easy to enjoy once the practical side is handled. This list covers what long-term residents usually sort out each year.
- Check the official holiday dates as soon as they are announced and confirm your employer's schedule.
- Review the expiry dates of your visa, residence card, work permit and passport, and start any renewal early.
- Book flights, trains or buses early if you plan to travel; seats around Tet sell out and fares rise.
- Buy food, drinking water, medicines and household supplies for the closed days, and withdraw some cash in small notes.
- Arrange with your landlord how rent and any repairs will be handled while they are away.
- Prepare lucky money envelopes and small gifts for the people you plan to visit or thank.
- Ask your building manager about security, rubbish collection and parking during the holiday.
Many foreign residents also use Tet to travel abroad or to quieter parts of Vietnam. Others stay in the city and enjoy streets that are calmer than at any other time of the year. Both choices are common, and neither is seen as rude.
Taking part without overstepping
Invitations to a Vietnamese family's Tet gathering are a genuine honour. Dress neatly, bring a gift such as fruit, tea or sweets, greet the oldest members of the family first, and expect to eat and drink more than planned. If there is a family altar, you will not be expected to do anything, though a respectful pause is welcome if your hosts invite it.
Neighbours and colleagues will often ask whether you celebrate Tet in your own country and how. Questions like these are friendly curiosity, and sharing your own traditions is an easy way to connect. The worst approach is to treat Tet only as an inconvenience: complaining publicly about closures, noise or traffic in the weeks before the festival comes across badly.
For people married into a Vietnamese family, Tet is often the most demanding time of the year, with visits to many relatives over several days. Your partner is the best guide to what is expected, which branches of the family come first and what gifts are appropriate. Our guide to Vietnamese etiquette covers the everyday habits that underlie all of these visits.
Câu hỏi thường gặp
When is Tet in Vietnam?
Tet falls on the first day of the first month of the lunar calendar, which is usually between late January and mid-February. The exact date changes each year, and the government announces the official public holiday dates in advance. Check your employer's schedule and plan around the whole week, not just the main days.
Is everything closed during Tet in Vietnam?
Not everything, but much of daily life pauses. Many small shops, markets, street food stalls and family-run services close for several days. Supermarkets, chain stores, hotels and some restaurants stay open with reduced hours, and hospitals keep emergency services running. Stock up beforehand.
How much lucky money should I give at Tet?
There is no fixed amount. The gesture and fresh notes matter more than the value, and amounts depend on closeness and local habits. Ask a Vietnamese friend or colleague in your own circle what feels normal, and keep envelopes for children modest and consistent.
Can I renew my visa during Tet?
Immigration offices close for the official holiday, and queues are long just before and after it. If your visa or residence card expires around Tet, begin the process several weeks early and confirm the timing with the immigration authorities or your sponsor rather than relying on the days after the holiday.
Should I give my landlord a gift at Tet?
It is not required, but a modest gift basket, a box of tea or a card with good wishes is a warm gesture, especially if your landlord has been helpful. Hand it over before the holiday with a short greeting. Staff in your building may appreciate a small envelope as well.
What should I say to wish someone a happy Tet?
The most common phrase is Chuc mung nam moi, meaning happy new year. Adding wishes for good health, peace or success is natural. Even a slightly imperfect pronunciation, said with a smile and a nod, is warmly received by neighbours and colleagues.