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Tourist Visa

[Vietnam Visa 2025] – A Complete Guide On Vietnam Tourist Visa Application Procedure For South Africans 2025

Vietnam has been famous for many attractions and unique cuisine for a long time. Besides, applying for a visa to this country is very simple and easy. This is the reason that attracts a large number of South African tourists to the tourist destinations of Hanoi, Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh in particular and Vietnam in general. Recently, there has been information that Vietnam has opened an electronic visa for South African citizens to attract tourists, making it easier for South Africans to get Vietnam visas. So, can South Africans actually apply for Vietnam e-visa? What are the ways for South African citizens to apply for a Vietnam tourist visa? What are the procedures and documents to prepare? Vietnamimmigration will answer these questions as well as complete instructions for Vietnam travel procedures updated in  in the following article.

  1. Changes in Vietnam tourist visa policies for South Africans

The Immigration Department of Vietnam has issued an official notice from February 2019 on the increase in the number of countries that can apply for an electronic Vietnam tourist visa from 44 countries to 80 countries and 2 territories. Accordingly, 34 countries have been added to the list of possible electronic visa applications to Vietnam. However, there is no South Africa on this list. As such, the information that South Africans can apply for electronic visas to Vietnam is completely incorrect. Until now, South African citizens can only apply for a visa at the Vietnamese embassy in South Africa or apply for a visa upon arrival in Vietnam.

Many people mistake the term e-visa and visa on arrival because in order to get a visa on arrival, South African citizens must also apply for an approval letter online. This approval letter is used to obtain the visa at the airport, and is also applied on the website, so many people misunderstand that this is an electronic visa. But no, the visa on arrival is an airport visa. To get it, you have to go through 2 steps, including 1 step for online approval letter and 1 step for getting visa at the airport.

Don’t misunderstand visa on arrival and Evisa

Up to now, South African citizens coming to Vietnam should note the changes in the policy of granting Vietnamese tourist visas to South Africans as follows:

  • The maximum stay for a Vietnam tourist visa for South African citizens is 3 months. When applying for a visa, South African citizens can choose a visa that is valid for 1-month entry or 3-month entry.
  • South African citizens can apply for entry once or more times depending on the travel schedule to Vietnam.
  • In case the passport validity is not enough 6 months or not enough 2 blank pages, South African citizens may be denied entry at the airport, even if they have applied for a visa before.
  • South African citizens must go to the Vietnamese embassy in South Africa to apply for a visa before coming to Vietnam, or online “approval letter” to get a visa on arrival at the airport. Without both of these documents (visa and approval letter), you will be denied boarding.
  1. Prepare necessary documents to apply for Vietnam tourist visa – How to apply for Vietnam tourist visa

The Vietnam visa application for South African citizens has not changed much. South African citizens still have 2 ways to apply for a Vietnam visa:

a/ Apply for a visa at the Vietnamese embassy

The Vietnamese Embassy in South Africa is the place where South Africans can apply visa to Vietnam. You can come here to apply. The documents you need to prepare are:

  • Original passport, note that the passport must be valid for more than 6 months and at least 2 blank pages.
  • Visa application form: you can download the online form, fill out all the information in the application, then print it out.
  • 2 photo 3X4cm with white background taken in the last 6 months
  • In addition, you also need a return flight ticket, hotel booking, the detailed trip schedule.

b/ Apply for approval letter online

Visa on arrival is the most popular type of visa for South Africans today, because there is no need to go to the administrative office to submit. People wishing to travel to Vietnam only need to obtain a letter of approval online and then print it out, coming to Vietnam airport to receive the visa.

South African citizens apply for a letter of approval extremely easily, without having to prepare any documents at all. Just go to the website of the travel agency appointed by the Vietnam Immigration Department to fill out the online visa application. Within 2 working days, the approval letter will be sent to the visa applicant’s email.

Upon arrival at the airport for entry, the visa applicant bring the approval letter, with a passport and two 3×4 cm photos, and submit to the Immigration Department staff. Immigration staff will check and issue visa at the airport.

applying vietnam visa online will help you to simplify the documents

  1. Things that South African citizens should keep in mind when applying for Vietnam Tourist Visa online

  • Vietnam tourist visa has many types. Depending on your travel plan in Vietnam, you should choose the most suitable one.
  • If you apply for your letter of approval online, you should choose a company that has a good price and high trust. Each company will have a different price, sometimes the difference is too much. You should check the price carefully before deciding on applying for a specific company, otherwise you will lose a big amount of money. You can refer to the price here and compare with other companies. https://www.vietnamimmigration.com/vietnam-visa-fees/
  • Although the ability to pass Vietnam visa is very high, there are still cases of being refused. To minimize risks, you should use the service of a provider with a visa refund policy when being refused. At the same time, these companies will also help you for free when you want to apply for a visa again or change the itinerary for any reason.

Above are the experiences and guidelines for Vietnam tourist visa application for South Africans which we have summarized, hope it helps you for your visa application process. If you have any questions about Vietnam visa or information related to Vietnam tourism, you can email us anytime: info@vietnamimmigration.com

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