How to get visa for tourists to Vietnam | Vietnam visa exemption

Vietnam has been becoming more and more popular among foreign travelers thanks to its favorable weather and wonderful Vietnam’s landscapes. As such, the number of tourists visiting Vietnam recently has increased by a significant number. And Vietnam visa becomes an important document to be prepared to visit and stay in the countries except for those under Vietnam visa exemption.

Vietnam Visa requirement

Type of Visa

• Tourist visa: single entry for one (1) month stay
• Business visa: multiple entry for one (1) month or three (3) months stay

Getting Vietnam visa

You may have two options for Vietnam visa application:

• Directly applying at Vietnam Consulates or Vietnam Embassies in your own country
• Apply online for visa approval letter and then get visa on arrival at Vietnam airports.

General documents needed for applying Visa to Vietnam in both ways:

• Passport valid for at least six (6) months beyond the completion of the trip.
• Two (2) of 4cm x 6cm passport photos

We recommend that you obtain your entry visa by having a valid passport stamped prior to your departure by applying to any one of the Vietnam Embassies or Consulates worldwide.

Getting visa to Vietnam for tourists

Vietnam visa Exemptions

​Most visitors will need a visa to enter the country Vietnam, with a few exceptions for citizen of these below countries:

• ASEAN including Laos, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Philippines, Cambodia, Myanmar and Indonesia to stay for not more than 30 days
• Scandinavian including Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Russian Federation to stay for not more than 15 days
• Japanese and South Korean to stay for not more than 15 days.
• Citizens of five European countries consisting of UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy to stay for not more than 15 days
• Visit Phu Quoc island: the foreigner, the Vietnam foreign passports who enter, exit and residence in Phu Quoc island are exempt from visa for temporary stay (not exceeding 30 days). In case of foreigners who come to Vietnam by an international gate (including road, air and sea), stay in the transit area at the gate, and then forwarded to Phu Quoc island is also exempt from visa requirements in accordance with this.

The Vietnamese Government issued a new Law No. 47/2014/QH13 dated June 16, 2014 on entry, exit, transit, and residence of foreigners in Vietnam. And the law has provided a big change relating to entry and exit of foreigners to Vietnam with Vietnam visa exemption. Article 20 of this law says:

“Any foreigner that enters Vietnam and is unilaterally granted visa-free entry must have a passport that is still valid for at least 06 months, and the entry date must be at least 30 days from the previous exit;”

It means that if you enter Vietnam under visa exemption, it’s 30 days after exiting Vietnam, you can enter Vietnam again if you still want to enter Vietnam under Vietnam visa exemption. And in case you want to come back Vietnam sooner, you must apply for a Vietnam visa. This law will take effect from January 1, 2015.

Getting visa to Vietnam for tourists

Apply for a Visa to Vietnam at an Embassy

Vietnamese visa is a kind of travel documents granted by Vietnamese competent authorities, providing permission to travel to and enter Vietnam. Applying for a visa at an Embassy, you will have visa already stamped onto your passport before your departure to Vietnam by any means of transport (air, train, boat, road).

To have an Approval letter from Vietnam Department of Immigration, kindly send to booking@vietnampleasetour.com the following personal data at least three (3) weeks before travel to Vietnam

• Your full name exactly as it appears in your passport
• Your title (Mr./Mrs./Ms.)
• Passport number, date of issue and expiry date
• Date and place of birth
• Occupation and nationality
• Arrival / departure date and flight information
• Purpose of visit (Vacation/ Business/ Visit family)
• Single entry or multiple entries
• The city at which a Vietnam embassy or consulate is located, where you plan to get the visa

After receiving your information and payment (will be advised upon receipt of your information. Our service fees do not include the stamping fee), Vietpear Travel – Branch in Sai Gon will process the visa immediately, you can expect the process to take 5 working days for tourists and 7 days for overseas Vietnamese. Copy of the Approval letter will be emailed to you as an attachment. You will then have to proceed to the nearest Vietnam Embassy or Consulate to obtain your visa.

Required documents to apply for a visa

• Original pasport with a validity of at least 6 months
• Copy of the Approval letter
• Completed application form, the visa application form may vary from embassy to embassy, so you need to take the form from the embassy where you will get the visa.
• Two (2) passport sized photo of 4×6 cm
• Stamping fee submitted directly to the Embassy or Consulate (the stamping fee depends on the Embassy and type of visa required).

Getting visa to Vietnam for tourists

Getting Vietnam visa on arrival

Landing Vietnam visa (or Vietnam visa on arrival) is most likely the legally easiest way to obtain your visa to Vietnam. Instead of applying visa through Vietnam Embassy, all you need to do now is just to send us details of your passport and flight, then get a visa approval letter online beforehand and pick up full visa at Vietnam international airport upon arrival.

Holders of Vietnam Visa on Arrival are allowed to enter Vietnam by air only through any of the 5 international airports of Vietnam:

• Noi Bai in Ha Noi
• Cat Bi in Hai Phong
• Da Nang in Da Nang
• Cam Ranh in Khanh Hoa
• Tan Son Nhat in Ho Chi Minh City

You need to have what is called an Approval Letter from Vietnam Department of Immigration to be able to get a stamp at airports. Vietpearl Travel – Branch in Sai Gon will do this for you with processing time as follows:

• 2 working days for normal service
• 1 working day for urgent service
• 2- 4 working hours for super urgent service

To have an Approval letter from Vietnam Department of Immigration, kindly send to booking@vietnampleasetour.com the following personal data at least two (2) weeks before travel to Vietnam

• Your full name exactly as it appears in your passport
• Your title (Mr./Mrs./Ms.)
• Passport number, date of issue and expiry date
• Date and place of birth
• Occupation and nationality
• Arrival / departure date and flight information
• Purpose of visit (Vacation/ Business/ Visit family)
• Single entry or multiple entries
• Port of arrival (by air only)

After receiving your information and payment, Vietpear Travel – Branch in Sai Gon will process the visa immediately. Upon receiving the Approval Letter from Vietnam Department of Immigration, We will send it to you right away by email. Kindly print it out and hold it to board your flight. Stamping procedure will be done when you arrive in Vietnam.

To get a visa stamp at airports, please come to the Arrival Counter and apply

• A copy of the Approval letter from Vietnam Department of Immigration
• A simple visa application form to be filled in (form is available at Arrival counter)
• Two passport-sized photos 4x6cm
• Cash for stamping fee (if have)

Put all above mentioned things along with your passport in a package, then show them to Immigration officer at Vietnam arrival airports.

Stamping fee is the fee you pay directly to Immigration Officers in cash (at Immigration Desk/ Counter) at your arrival airport in Vietnam to have visa stamped onto your passport. The fee is collected by Immigration Officers and compulsory for all those who use visa on arrival method. The Stamping fee can be paid in USD and other. But USD is highly recommended to avoid any unexpected unbalanced exchange rates applied at the airport.

Please contact to Vietpearl Travel – Branch in Sai Gon at here for your assitance.