Ha Tien Vietnam No Visa Needed

[lekatai]

A short while ago,without any official announcement that I'm aware of,the Vietnamese Government declared that the Ha Tien border area (which for a while now has been called a "Special Economic Zone") could be entered from Cambodia without needing a Vietnamese visa.The visa free entry only applies to the area between the border and Ha Tien town,the town itself,and the Mui Nai beach area.It applies to nationals of any country,and is valid for up to 15 days.You must enter and leave Vietnam at the Prek Chak/Xa Xia border crossing,and are specifically told that you cannot travel further into Vietnam.There is no charge,apart from a 1USD "health certificate" It's especially useful for people who live in Sihanoukville,Kampot, and Kep as there is a huge market in Ha Tien,and prices are much cheaper than Cambodia (everything from beer,fresh fruit/ vegetables and seafood to clothing)When re-entering Cambodia you can get a new Cambodian visa at the Prek Chak Cambodian border post.Also people holidaying on the Cambodian coast can now come here for a holiday.Ha Tien is a quiet provincial town,with quite a few tourist sights,dozens of cheap hotels,and some beautiful scenery.And ,no I don't work for the Ha Tien tourist board (if there even is one) I just live here

[tombkk]

Great info, thanks a lot.

[DaWizz]

Anybody gone to Saigon with this Pass and tried to fly out?

[lekatai]

No,you cannot do that,as I said in the original posting,you must enter and leave Vietnam at the Xa Xia/Prek Chak border crossing,which is the one between Kep and Ha Tien.You are warned at the border that you must not travel further into Vietnam,and whilst it is true that there are no further checks when travelling in Vietnam,you must show your passport when staying in a hotel,and the details(as in Thailand) are passed to the Immigration authorities by the hotel.You would certainly not be permitted to depart from another border crossing or airport.

[ARGUSEYE]

Hi!

Certainly good news... Instead of going for a one - month Cambodian visa extention I could just hop over the border to Ha Tien, spend a couple of days there and apply for a new Cambodian VOA upon return!

Has anybody experience how much the Khmer immigration try to charge above the 20 Dollar visa fee??

[NanLaew]

Anybody gone to Saigon with this Pass and tried to fly out?

Did you even read the OP?

Let me guess... regular Thai overstayer, possible Cambodian expat 'businessman' with a dodgy background back home.

[lekatai]

Hi!

Certainly good news... Instead of going for a one - month Cambodian visa extention I could just hop over the border to Ha Tien, spend a couple of days there and apply for a new Cambodian VOA upon return!

Has anybody experience how much the Khmer immigration try to charge above the 20 Dollar visa fee??

The Cambodian immigration guys at this border are not nearly as greedy as at some other crossings and have even been known to accept 20USD,although they usually want up to 25USD,I have never heard of anyone being charged more than that.There is the usual 1USD "health certificate".It's usually a very quiet border,but when I came through earlier today,it was quite busy,because of "Tet" The Vietnamese side is also quite efficient,sometimes a little slow,but friendly,and the only charge to come here is the Vietnamese equivalent "health certificate" also 1USD.There are loads of hotels in Ha Tien,from 5USD for a fan room to 12USD for an A/C room,and food/drink prices are cheaper than Cambodia