Vietnam launches e-visas for visitors from 40 countries

Vietnam launches e-visas for visitors from 40 countries. Nationals of eligible countries will be able to apply for a 30-day single-entry e-visa starting February 1.

The Vietnamese government has announced a two-year pilot plan to launch an electronic visa system for foreign tourists visiting the country.

Under a government directive released in late January, citizens from 40 countries will be eligible to apply for the e-visas starting on February 1^st 2017.

To apply for e-visas, foreign citizens can access the websites http://www.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn or http://www.immigration.gov.vn

Procedure

Applicants are required to complete a form available on two separate websites (one in Vietnamese and the other in English) run by the Ministry of Public Security. They will receive an application code and will be asked to pay a non-refundable fee online. It will take three working days for tourists to find out if their applications have been approved or not, according to the directive. Successful applicants will be able to print off their e-visas to present when they arrive.

Entrance gate

Visitors can touch down at any of Vietnam's eight international airports, including Tan Son Nhat in Ho Chi Minh City, Noi Bai in Hanoi and Da Nang in the central region. They can also arrive via land at 13 international border gates, and via sea at seven ports across the country.

Note: Apart from visa exemptions for tourists from the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), Vietnam offers 15-day visa exemptions for visitors from the U.K., France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Russia, Japan, South Korea, Denmark, Norway, Poland, Sweden and Belarus.

List of countries whose citizens are eligible to apply for e-visas to Vietnam