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The Ministry of Public Security has proposed prolonging the duration of e-visas granted to foreigners entering Vietnam from 30 days to a maximum of three months to help tourism recover.

The e-visa will be valid for single-entry or multiple entries, according to a draft amendment to The Law on Entry, Exit, Transit and Residence of Foreigners in Vietnam, for which the ministry is preparing to collect public opinions.

Vietnam currently offers a one-month single-entry e-visa to visitors from 80 countries and territories, including the U.S. and Australia.

Under the draft, the ministry also suggested extending the duration of stays for tourists from countries enjoying 15-day visa exemptions to 30 days.

Now, visitors from some European countries, Japan and South Korea, Vietnam's top tourism markets, are permitted to stay in the country for no more than 15 days without applying for a tourist visa.

The ministry said that since Vietnam reopened its borders in March last year, the number of foreign tourists has remained low, prompting tourism industry insiders to urge visa relaxations to save the tourism industry.

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh told a tourism conference that Vietnam will waive visas for more countries and extend the length of stay for foreign tourists to speed up the recovery of tourism.

Despite being one of the first Southeast Asian countries to fully reopen to international tourism post Covid, Vietnam received only 3.6 million foreign tourists last year, around 20% of the pre-pandemic figure.

This year, Vietnam aims to receive 8 million foreign visitors.

The public security ministry is seeking public feedback on the amended law, and the bill is set to be discussed at the fifth and sixth plenary session of the 15th-tenure National Assembly in May and October this year.

ExPenhMan wrote: ↑Wed Mar 22, 2023 3:38 pm This is going to disappoint a lot of expats waiting out in neighbouring countries, plus the RoW for the rumoured 90-day VN tourist visa.

Vietnam's planned easement of visa policy will continue to be talked to death. A more detailed story than the one above appeared on Viet Nam News today.

Here is the quote that makes reading the rest of the story moot:

The public security ministry is seeking public feedback on the amended law, and the bill is set to be discussed at the fifth and sixth plenary session of the 15th-tenure National Assembly in May and October this year.

Headline: Ministry proposes extending visa-free stay to 30 days, e-visa to 90 days


https://vietnamnews.vn/society/1501210/ ... -days.html

Guesst wrote: ↑Thu Mar 23, 2023 9:20 pm Does anyone have an inkling as to why they're taking so long about it? As this was the policy before COVID anyway right - 3 month or even 6 month tourist visa options, IIRC

I'm not sure who exactly stands to gain by preventing tourism from going back to *somewhere near* the pre-COVID levels?!

cabron wrote: ↑Thu Mar 23, 2023 10:30 pm

Guesst wrote: ↑Thu Mar 23, 2023 9:20 pm Does anyone have an inkling as to why they're taking so long about it? As this was the policy before COVID anyway right - 3 month or even 6 month tourist visa options, IIRC

I'm not sure who exactly stands to gain by preventing tourism from going back to *somewhere near* the pre-COVID levels?!

There is rumors in the high rank politician that they simply don't want to become another mass tourists destination like Thailand or Philippines.

KunKhmerSR wrote: ↑Fri Mar 24, 2023 11:19 am If this goes through Cambodia might as well close it's tourism industry. Instead of going through Cambodia from Thailand most people will just skip the $35 and bothersome visa process on arrival which makes you wait ages and having to present printed out documents like we still live in the age of fax machines.