Tourists need a visa to enter Vietnam?

Yes, you need a visa to enter Vietnam, except citizens of a few countries with visa exemption: most Asian countries, Korea, Japan and Scandinavians (Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland).

Special Exemptions

• Citizens of Chile holding valid diplomatic or official passports required no visa to enter Vietnam for less than 60 days.
• APEC Business Travel Card (ABTC) holders economies may visit Vietnam for less than 60 days.
  
• Nationals of France with valid diplomatic or official passports may travel Vietnam for less than 90 days.

All other citizens are required to have a Vietnamese visa before departure or a pre-approved entry visa supplied before arrival in Vietnam by your Vietnam Immigration Office.

* How to get a visa to Vietnam

The process of getting a business visa or a tourist visa is generally the same. Most tourists get their visa through a Vietnamese Embassy or Consulate office in their country of residence or in their travels country before entering Vietnam.

For a tourist visa, you will need to submit:

• Entry permit form (which can vary from one Vietnamese embassies or consulate abroad to another).
• Two photos (usually 4cm x 6cm or 3 cm x 4 cm)
• Your original passport
• Visa fee

The form and the fee can vary by country, so please check directly the Vietnamese embassy or consulate to which you are applying.

A business visa usually also requires a letter of support from your sponsor agency or company in Vietnam. In person, the process usually takes 2-3 days, and by mail, the process usually takes 2-3 weeks, depending on the service you use, although times can vary considerably by embassy or consulate. If you are mailing, please note that you need to make arrangements to have your passport with visa returned to you

For assistance, you can process your visa through a travel agency or tour company in Vietnam, with an additional fee, although this is not usually necessary unless you need visa on arrival services.

* Vietnam visa on arrival

A fairly convenient visa on arrival process has recently been introduced, but this requires a prior application to Hanoi and is generally intended mostly for groups and citizens of countries without Vietnamese embassies.
What is a ‘Visa on Arrival ?’: this seems to be the easiest way to get your visa if you want to avoid the complicated procedures and bureaucracy. The entry visa will be stamped on your passport as you pass through our immigration checkpoint. Though it is valid only for 30 days, it can be extended once you are in Vietnam. This kind of visa is available for entering the country by air only.

* Vietnam visa extension

If you are now in Vietnam and would like to stay some more days out of your current visa duration, change visa type, renew or extend your visa, you should get to the Vietnam Immigration Department on your own at:

* In Hanoi: No. 40A Hang Bai Str., Hoan Kiem Dist., Hanoi
* In Da Nang: No. 7 Tran Quy Cap Str., Danang
* In Hochiminh City (Saigon): No. 254 Nguyen Trai Str., Dist.1, Hochiminh City

The extension or renewal of Vietnam visa is applied for all kinds of Visa to Vietnam, particularly as follows:

Tourist visa

Normally, tourist visa is available for a stay in Vietnam for a short time (say, one month). However, as Vietnam is now open and welcomes visitors worldwide, the staying time is offered more flexibility, such as 3 months, or six months. Moreover, you can also have it extended once for 30 days after your arrival in Vietnam.

Business visa

Business visas are usually valid for three or six months, or one year (possible with special permission), allowing multiple entries and the right to work in Vietnam. The easiest way to get this kind of visa is by renewing your tourist visa after you have arrived in Vietnam.

Student visa

A student visa is usually arranged after your arrival. It’s acceptable to enter Vietnam on a tourist visa, enroll in a Vietnamese language course and then apply at the immigration department for a change in your visa status.

For extending or renewing other types of visa to Vietnam (Diplomatic, Official visas), you have to refer to the Governmental agencies that issued Visa Invitation Letter for you, your own institution, and the Vietnam Immigration Dept in person.

Vietnam Visa Extension fee by the Vietnam Immigration Department:

For more information about Vietnam visa click here...