Hon Hieu Van Le, AC was born in Quảng Trị, South Vietnam, on 1 January 1954.
He was raised and educated in Đà Nẵng, and attended Dalat University. In November 1977, he fled the new communist regime in Vietnam and arrived by boat in Darwin, Northern Territory, as a refugee, with his wife Lan and about 40 other people.
After arriving in Australia, the Hon Hieu Van Le, AC attended the University of Adelaide, receiving a Master of Business Administration and an Economics degree. He was a Senior Investigator and Manager with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission from the early 1990s until his retirement in 2009.
He is also a member of the Australian Society of Certified Practising Accountants (CPA) and a Fellow Member of the Financial Services Institute of Australasia (Finsia). The Hon Hieu Van Le, AC was the 35th Governor of South Australia, in office from 1 September 2014 to 31 August 2021. He also served as the State’s Lieutenant Governor from 2007 to 2014 and as the Chair of the South Australian Multicultural and Ethnic Affairs Commission (SAMEAC) from 2006 to 2009. The Hon Hieu Van Le, AC is the first person of Asian heritage appointed a State Governor in Australia, and first person of Vietnamese background appointed to a Vice-Regal position anywhere in the world.
