HCMC I Breakfast Talk I The 10 Expat Mistakes

Savings, tax, life insurance, real estate, inheritance: an overview of the common wealth management pitfalls faced by expatriates.

HCMC I Breakfast Talk I The 10 Expat Mistakes

Date: Tuesday, September 23, 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM Speaker: Anthony, Consultant & Director for Vietnam and neighboring countries – Equance

Event Overview

Living abroad calls for a thorough rethink of your financial, tax and wealth management setup. Between local specificities, French regulations that continue to apply, and solutions that are often little known to expatriates, it is easy to make costly mistakes — or to miss valuable opportunities. This Breakfast Talk offers a practical breakdown of the 10 most common pitfalls faced by French expatriates in Vietnam, whether newly arrived or long-term residents. A pragmatic exchange designed to help each participant secure their personal and family situation.

Who Should Attend

This session is aimed at newcomers to Vietnam as well as expatriates who have been living in the country for several years and wish to review their financial, tax and wealth management situation.

What You Will Learn

• Identify the most common financial and tax mistakes made by expatriates, and how to avoid them.
• Understand the risks related to local savings, currency exposure, and the choice of life insurance wrapper.
• Discover wealth management solutions accessible only during expatriation.
• Anticipate legal and family-related issues (marital property regime, international will, inheritance).
• Leave with concrete steps to better structure and secure your personal situation.

Session Program

1. Local savings – Saving in a VND account paying 7% interest: a bad idea?
2. Regular savings plans – Why banks restrict credit access.
3. Ignoring currency risk – Your living budget is in VND, your retirement will be in EUR.
4. Choosing the right wrapper – French life insurance: the risks; Luxembourg life insurance: the advantages.
5. Choosing real estate – 2026 DPE (energy performance rating) and LMNP: the 2025 reform.
6. Investing without a structure – Expatriation is a unique opportunity to access solutions unavailable in France.
7. Neglected family structure – Marital property regime, international law and international will.
8. Failing to plan inheritance – Inheritance planning cannot be improvised; it is built over time.
9. Forgotten provident coverage – CFE (French expatriate healthcare fund) or first-euro coverage?
10. Poorly organized financial flows – Regular transfers that quietly lose 2 to 5% per year.

Topics covered: Savings · Currency risk · Life insurance · Real estate · Expat solutions · Family structure · Inheritance · Provident coverage

About the Speaker

Anthony is Consultant and Director for Vietnam and neighboring countries at Equance, an international private wealth management group serving more than 12,000 clients worldwide, with over €1 billion in assets under management. Anthony joined Equance three years ago and has more than 10 years of experience in the wealth management industry.

An event organized by the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Vietnam (CCIFV).

Event Location