Although many state- and union-level politicians, including Aung San Suu Kyi and Win Myint, were placed under house arrest during the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état on 1 February, Henry Van Thio remained in his office under the Constitution of Myanmar.

[8] He made his first public appearance at the National Defence and Security Council Meeting on 31 July.

On 9 August, the NLD released a press statement expelling Van Thio from the party.

When his wife gained a scholarship to study theology at the University of Otago, the family moved to New Zealand to live in the Dunedin suburb of North East Valley in 2011.

[11][10] He is a devout Christian, making him the first non-Buddhist to hold the office of the Vice President of Myanmar.