Yes, and the student situation is usually the easier one. Foreign students registered at Vietnamese universities are residents by definition — the question is only which route to the licence fits what they already hold.
If you hold a motorbike licence from home
Students with a valid national licence including a motorbike category exchange it under Circular 12/2025/TT-BCA. The residence condition — at least three months — is normally satisfied by the temporary residence record, and students living in university dormitories should confirm with the dormitory administration and the local police that their residence period is properly recorded. The translation and certification requirements for the licence are the same as for any other applicant.
If you hold no motorbike licence
The A1 test route is open from age 18: training course, theory paper, practical circuit. The exam is in Vietnamese only, so students with limited Vietnamese usually enrol through a centre experienced with foreign candidates — some universities’ international offices can point to one. The state fees are modest and the licence has no expiry.
The licence-free option students overlook
Students under 18, and riders of any age who prefer the lightest legal option, can ride the licence-free categories: mopeds and licence-free electrics from 16, pedal e-bikes under the pedal-bike rules. For campus-and-market radius riding, this is often the pragmatic answer for the first semester while the licence paperwork catches up.
Practical notes
The student visa itself is not the licence document — the residence record is. Students planning multi-year stays should complete the exchange early, because rental shops, insurance and checkpoints all interact more smoothly with a Vietnamese card than with an IDP plus explanation. And the points system applies once the Vietnamese licence exists: student riders accumulate deductions like everyone else.
Information, not legal advice. Verified against Circular 12/2025/TT-BCA and Law 36/2024/QH15 on 2026-09-22.