Vietnam considers introducing visas on arrival and increasing the duration of stay

Prime Minister Phum Minh Chinh has asked relevant authorities to consider introducing a visa-on-arrival and multiple-entry visa system for long-term stays of foreign tourists to boost the tourism industry. The plan is to further reform administrative procedures, use scientific and technological progressive methods and introduce automated solutions for foreign nationals to safely arrive, reside and travel in Vietnam. It is to research and propose online entry and exit procedures using facial recognition technology (FaceID) and electronic passports (e-Passports), which will facilitate and speed up tourist travel. In addition, the issue of visas on arrival will be considered, to be decided in the second quarter of 2024.

The Ministry of Public Security will work together with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other relevant agencies to explore and propose special conditions such as conditional exit and entry for some traditional, potential and highly developed markets with high tourist expenditures and long stays in Vietnam's key tourist areas and regions with modern and comfortable transportation infrastructure.

Other policies to be explored include expanding the list of countries for which Vietnam offers visa-free entry. Currently, citizens of 13 countries - Japan, South Korea, Russia, Denmark, the UK, Norway, Finland, Sweden, France, Belarus, Italy, Germany and Spain - can arrive in Vietnam without visas for up to 45 days.  Starting from August 2023, Vietnam will provide electronic visas for citizens of all countries, allowing them to stay for up to 90 days with the possibility of multiple entries, instead of the previous 30 days. The Tourism Board has studied criteria to add to the list of countries that can benefit from visa-free travel to Vietnam. Such criteria include a large number of potential tourists, high spending ability and more. As a result, 33 new countries have been exempted from visa requirements, including the 20 remaining EU countries (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia) and other countries such as the US, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Switzerland, Israel, South Africa, Turkey, Brazil, Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.