Vietnam extends visa exemptions for tourists from Western Europe
By Bui Hong Nhung July 1, 2016 | 11:41 am GMT+7
On June 30, the Vietnamese government issued a decree extending visa exemptions for tourists from the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain and Italy, reported the Vietnam News Agency.

One year ago, the government issued a decree allowing visitors from the five countries to stay in Vietnam for no longer than 15 days without a visa, but it expired on June 30 this year.

The Vietnamese government has decided to extend it until June 30, 2017. The exemption duration remains unchanged at 15 days.

Data from the General Statistics Office show that since Vietnam applied the decree, the number of visitors from Western Europe has shown signs of growth. As of May, Vietnam had welcomed 697,200 visitors from those countries, up 13.9 percent on-year, with Italian tourists rising by 30.1 percent, followed by the U.K. at 23.3 percent and Spain at 22.4 percent.
http://e.vnexpress.net/news/news/vietna ... 29068.html

More European tourists to Vietnam thanks to visa exemption
Updated at Saturday, 13 Aug 2016, 10:39

Vietnam welcomed 5.55 million international visitors in the January-July period, a 24% year-on-year increase, according to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT).
The country's tourism sector recorded a strong growth in tourist arrivals from Italy, Spain, the UK, Germany and France during the reviewed time as the Government on June 30 issued the resolution to extend the visa exemption for citizens from these five Western European countries.
Citizens from the five European countries are allowed to enter and stay in Vietnam for up to 15 days without a visa.

According to the General Statistics Office (GSO), 846,300 foreign tourists came to Vietnam in July, up 41.2% over the same month last year.
The stastics pointed out that Italian tourist arrivals in the period rose by 30.5% year-on-year to 27,425; Spain up 24.2% to 22,835; the UK up 23.4% to 147,673; Germany up 17.5% to 97,421 and France up 13.2% to 142,214.
In July alone, the number from Italy was 3,026, Spain 4,797, the UK 19,365, Germany 10,550 and France 18,193, representing year-on-year growth of 32.7%, 30.4%, 15.7%, 21.2% and 9.5%.
http://hanoitimes.com.vn/travel/attract ... exemption/

Update: Vietnam visa for US Citizens from August 30, 2016.

As I read on https://www.vietnam-visa.com/, all US passport holders to Vietnam from August 30, 2016 must apply for 1-year visa. This type of visa is the single option for US citizens now. Other types are not available for US citizens any more.

Therefore, if US citizens use visa on arrival to Vietnam, they now must pay US$135 as stamping fee at Vietnam airport to get visa stamped.

Visa on arrival cost for holders of passport of other countries remained unchanged. For details, I recommend you check https://www.vietnam-visa.com/vietnam-visa-fees.

Just a FYI:

A friend of mine [American] got the one-year VN tourist visa in Savannakhet, Laos for $200 but didn't have to pay a stamping fee upon arrival.

The problem is that it's not a true one-year visa. Apparently, you have the choice of exiting the country after 3 months and returning OR paying more ca$h for the privilege of staying beyond 3 months.

My friend's date stamp was one year though, but he went back to Thailand after about 6 weeks and will presumably return later. So, not sure if he could have stayed for a year or not.

American expats living in VN are now advised to get the one-year BUSINESS visa as apparently it's a true one-year visa with no renewals required.

Last update 16:50 | 04/11/2016
Vietnam to pilot electronic visa in 2017

Vietnam will pilot granting electronic visas for foreign tourists in 2017 and 2018, announced the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism(VNAT) at a press conference in Hanoi on November 4.

Accordingly, procedures for applying and payment will be done online. It will take 3 days to process application for an e-visa valid for 30 days. The visa does not require letters of guarantee or invitation.

VNAT Director Nguyen Van Tuan stated that the move reflects the Government’s efforts to stimulate tourism.

It will facilitate the application for a Vietnamese visa of foreign tourists, he noted, adding that the tourism sector is still looking forwards to the implementation of more favourable policies, particularly in waiving visa for foreign visitors.

He pointed to the fact that Thailand has scrapped visa requirement for 58 countries; the Philippines, 168 countries; Malaysia, 158 countries; and Indonesia, 169 countries.

This means most barriers between these Asian nations and their key tourist markets have been already removed, Tuan said.

Also at the press conference, the VNAT debuted its official English site on tourism information for foreign visitors to Vietnam at http://www.vietnamtourism.vn

http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/travel ... -2017.html

Posted today on facebook.

Good news for Scandanavians who want to visit Vietnam.

Vietnam extends visa waiver for nationals of 8 countries
Updated: 14:21’ - 20/12/2019
Vietnam will extend visa waivers for citizens of Russia, Japan, South Korea, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Belarus until December 31, 2022, the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism has announced.

A resolution passed at the Government regular meeting for November said citizens of these eight countries need not apply for a visa regardless of passport type if the duration of their stay does not exceed 15 days.

The visa exemption for these countries, first introduced in 2015, would have expired at the end of this year.

Russia, South Korea and Japan are top source markets for Vietnam’s tourism sector, according to the tourism administration.
http://vietnamlawmagazine.vn/vietnam-ex ... 16985.html