Any Problems With Getting a Visa on Arrival (VOA) in Vietnam?

[luv4get]

How long are you going for

[humqdpf]

There is absolutely no problem getting a visa for 14 days on arrival for tourist's at Hanoi no letter needed, very polite and friendly at immi . This is a trial period which going to be reviewed in June this year. Have just done this a few weeks ago. Have good time.

And this 14 day visa waiver works for ALL nationalities, does it?

It is absolutely important that you do your homework before going for the plane to Vietnam. Check whether your country has the Visa exemption - call your local Vietnamese embassy, if possible.

[inbangkok]

There is absolutely no problem getting a visa for 14 days on arrival for tourist's at Hanoi no letter needed, very polite and friendly at immi . This is a trial period which going to be reviewed in June this year. Have just done this a few weeks ago. Have good time.

And this 14 day visa waiver works for ALL nationalities, does it?

It is absolutely important that you do your homework before going for the plane to Vietnam. Check whether your country has the Visa exemption - call your local Vietnamese embassy, if possible.

No, not all nationalities qualify.....

[John9]

I don't know of Candian Passport but As British Passport holder I went last November and got Visa @ Hanoi Airport for 15 Days on Arrival. No forms to fill in or photos required. It was very quick and was out of Airport within 15/20 minutes of Baggage arrival. All the best for your journey.

[mcfish]

https://vietnamvisa.govt.vn/apply-online/

As a (french) frequent traveller to VN I can attest that there is absolutely no problem if you follow the procedure (see website above).

By the way, depending on your nationality, if you are staying less than 15 days and hold a valid return ticket you need no visa at all, not even an immigration form.Just proceed to immigration when you arrive, they scan your passport and give you 15 days max, easy and free. You cannot come back to VN on the same exemption scheme less than 1 month after the last exit though, if you need to do so then you will need a visa.

What nationality? Can you provide a link. I Googled pretty extensively and as an ozzie I need the visa

[pauleddy]

In June 2014 it was proposed to extend the visa exemption for tourists from the European Union, the United States, Canada, Australia, Hong Kong and Taiwan.^[3] In August 2014 Ministry of Tourism proposed to Government to extend the visa exemption for tourists from France, Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and India.^[4] In September 2014 the proposed list was further shortened to Australia, France, Germany, India and the UK.^[5] In April 2015 the travel association submitted a proposal to the Government to add Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Germany, France, Spain, United Kingdom, Brazil, India, Ukraine, Latvia and Estonia to the list of visa exempt nationalities, however the process is expected to take a long time.^[6] In May 2015 it was proposed to extend the visa exemption period to 30 days for all countries if they are guaranteed by a travel agency and to add France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, India and Canada to the visa exemption list.^[7]

In June 2015 the Vietnam Tourism Association proposed visa-free access for all foreign tourists.^[8] It was announced that citizens of the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Spain might be given visa-free access from 1 July 2015 and that citizens of Australia, New Zealand and Canada might be given visa-free access from 1 July 2016.^[9] On 18 June 2015, the Prime Minister of Vietnam approved the visa waiver for several European countries. As of 1 July 2015, visitors travelling to Vietnam with passports issued by France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom do not require a visa, subject to the conditions listed below the table above. This visa waiver is set to expire after one year.^[10]

(wikipedia)

(The "might" for UK, France etc from 2015 turned into a "will". I have no reason to suspect that Canada will be different from 2016, but like all good little boy scouts I would always check. The reason for all of this? Vietnam is on the UP. The Dong is monopoly money. A nice meal cost us 2 million Dong. The "slacking" of communism means that VN wants to get your dollars and pounds. So, stop all the red-tape for short-time visas...)

[DividendGuy]

Hello Everyone.

Thanks for all of your comments and replies. I have decided to get my visa here in Bangkok before going to Hanoi. I didn't want this forum to turn negative and I can see that there is still some problems or nervousness with some people about getting the visa letter and getting the VOA on arrival in Hanoi. For myself, I am not fully comfortable after reading all the comments that it is as simple as posted so, I will just go with getting the visa here in Bangkok. Again, thanks for taking the time to comment.

[bill1369]

A number of posters have mentioned paying $25 US. Does VN Immigration take all types of currency or only USD? Thanks

[inbangkok]

A number of posters have mentioned paying $25 US. Does VN Immigration take all types of currency or only USD? Thanks

USD

[NanLaew]

A number of posters have mentioned paying $25 US. Does VN Immigration take all types of currency or only USD? Thanks

USD

Personal experience. HCMC Saigon airport insists on US$ ONLY. Offering other currencies will simply get you pushed repeatedly to the back of the queue before they will accept anything else. That can take hours.

The staff at Hanoi accepted my visa-on-arrival payment with a mixture of S$, A$ and some Malaysian Ringgits. I was sh!tting myself as I only realized I had forgotten to bring US$ after I took off from BKK and based on what I had seen at Saigon, I was going to have a very hard time.

Hanoi is a much more pleasant visa issuing process than Saigon although there's no seats for those waiting for their visas. Saigon has loads of seats but the rudest and most unhelpful staff.

[DividendGuy]

Hello Everyone.

As a Canadian, I am still required to have a visa in order to visit Vietnam, but the rules are changing and this might be different from July 2016 onward. I did research this before I posted, and I wanted to know if it was as simple and easy as stated on the websites to get a VOA instead of going to the Vietnamese consulate here in Bangkok. Getting a visa at the consulate is a PITA because of the small waiting room and too many people trying to get a visa there, but it can be done, although you have to make two trips.Thanks for your comments.

[mcfish]

Hello Everyone.

As a Canadian, I am still required to have a visa in order to visit Vietnam, but the rules are changing and this might be different from July 2016 onward. I did research this before I posted, and I wanted to know if it was as simple and easy as stated on the websites to get a VOA instead of going to the Vietnamese consulate here in Bangkok. Getting a visa at the consulate is a PITA because of the small waiting room and too many people trying to get a visa there, but it can be done, although you have to make two trips.Thanks for your comments.

Just did it today in Saigon. Just remember don't go to passport control but just before it you can get the visa. Took about 30 minutes but I had the forms downloaded and filled out