The Vietnamese government wants to boost tourism in the country by (also) reviewing its visa policy. The possibility of expanding the country’s visa-free programme will be evaluated in the coming months. Moreover, the government is considering reintroducing the visa on arrival and offering a visa with a longer validity period.
New visas for foreign visitors
At the end of February, the Vietnamese prime minister announced the launch of a study on how to boost tourism. An important part of this research weighs up an hypothetical reform of the visa policy. Among other things, Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security has been commissioned to write a report on the possible impact of introducing new visas in collaboration with other ministries. The ministries will investigate the potential impact of new visas on Vietnam's attractiveness as a travel destination, and the possible implications for national security. Specifically, the introduction of the following visa types will be considered:
- several visas with validity periods of between 12 and 36 months;
- a visa on arrival (VOA).
The report should be ready by mid-2024.
Extending visa-free travel to Vietnam
Besides the introduction of new visa types, the enquiry committee will also look at the possible effects of expanding the visa-free travel programme. Currently, travellers from 13 different countries, including some European countries, are allowed to travel to Vietnam without a visa. On the one hand, the commitee will look at expanding the number of nationalities that are eligible for visa-free stays. This specifically involves 33 countries, including all countries within the European Union. The enquiry committee will also look at a visa waiver for travellers from countries with high tourism potential, such as India and China.
Vietnam is also going to study what the impact would be of extending the period travellers are allowed to stay in the country without a visa. Currently, travellers who are eligible for a visa-free stay are in most cases allowed to stay in Vietnam for a maximum of 45 days without a visa. An extension of the allowed length of stay to a period of 6 to 12 months will be considered. This would only apply to travellers from a few rich countries that spend above-average amounts of money during a stay in Vietnam.
Vietnam's current visa policy
The options will be examined extensively before they are actually introduced. Actual decisions are not expected to be made until the second half of 2024 at the earliest. For now, thus, travellers should still consider Vietnam's current visa policy. Almost all travellers have to apply for an e-visa before departure. The e-visa for Vietnam has a validity period of between 14 and 90 days and is available in a variant for a single trip (single-entry) and a variant for multiple trips within 90 days (multiple-entry). Visas with longer validity periods are issued only in exceptional situations.