[Vietnam Visa 2025] All Issues You Should Know About Visa On Arrival | Documents, Fees, Processing Time, Procedures, Ways To Apply

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A visa on arrival is a very familiar term for those who travel regularly. This is one of the types of visas issued to replace the traditional visa application method through Vietnamese representation offices in host countries. So how to apply for a visa upon arrival in Vietnam? How to get a visa on arrival at the airport? Let’s learn more about these information through the article below.

Visa on arrival is a very familiar term with foreign tourists to Vietnam

Overview of Visa on arrival in Vietnam

A visa on arrival is simply a form of issuing direct visas to foreigners upon arrival at the Vietnam Airports. The advantage of this visa is that it applies to citizens of all countries with different types (differs from electronic visas that can enter only once and for a period of 30 days only).

With a visa upon arrival, foreign visitors can apply for a single entry or multiple entry visa with periods of staying in Vietnam from 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months to 12 months. However, this type of visa cannot be applied directly, but must be through Vietnamese travel agencies or visa companies. All you have to do is select a reputable visa service provider in Vietnam and provide the necessary information through the website or directly by phone, pay the fees and wait for 1 to 2 days. After this time, the visa company will send you a “visa approval letter”. All you have to do is print this document and when you arrive at the Vietnam Airport, show it with your passport and pay a fixed visa stamp fee to the immigration officials to obtain a visa on your passport.

What is Vietnam visa approval letter?

A visa approval letter is a form of document issued, signed, and stamped by the Vietnamese Immigration Department of the Vietnamese government. This is a document that allows you to board the plane and obtain your visa directly at the airport upon your arrival. With this document, foreign visitors are allowed to enter and receive the visa directly at the airport without having to apply for a visa before coming to Vietnam.

visa approval letter form

In the visa approval letter, the basic information of the person allowed to enter the country (name, gender, date of birth, nationality and passport number) will be displayed in addition to the date for entering Vietnam. A visa approval letter may be issued to multiple people on the same document (up to 40 people), the cost of this type of letter will be less than a private visa approval letter.

However, in some cases, foreign visitors are concerned about security and personal information when sharing with many people. You can pay an additional fee to get a visa approval letter only for you, or your group (possibly family members, friends) if you do not wish to disclosure of your information to strangers.

Who can apply for a visa upon arrival in Vietnam?

As mentioned above, a visa on arrival in Vietnam is currently applied to citizens of all different countries, as long as the passport has a validity period of at least 6 months and there is still at least two blank pages when arriving at the airport.

Visa on arrival Vietnam is currently applied to citizens of all different countries

Types of Vietnam visa on arrival

Visa on arrival currently includes two types for tourism and commercial purposes. The entry time ranges from one month (30 days) to one year, you can choose the entry type as single (allow entry and exit only once to Vietnam) or multiple (allow entry and exit Vietnam several times).

The documents necessary to apply for a visa upon arrival

With visa on arrival, visitors do not need to prepare any papers other than providing basic personal information for the representative company (it can be in the form of registering online or directly). The information you need to register with a representative company in Vietnam is your full name, gender, year of birth, nationality, and passport number. You also do not need to prepare a scan of your passport or photos.

However, in some special cases, you may be required to provide documents related to the trip to Vietnam such as airline tickets or hotel reservation confirmation and passport photo. In general, the issue of applying for a visa upon arrival in Vietnam is simpler than all current visa applications

What are the visa application fees of visa on arrival?

The application fee is divided into two categories, and you have to pay twice, namely: service fees (visa approval letter fees for the licensed company) and visa stamp stamp fees (fees for obtaining the visa stamp at the airport when entering Vietnam) .

Service Fee: This is the fee to get approval letter online. You have to pay for a visa approval letter for the travel agents (because foreigners cannot apply for a visa approval letter from the Vietnamese government yourself, therefore, you must authorize the travel agent in Vietnam to request this letter). The service fee depends on the nationality and the type of visa on arrival you need. This fee must be requested in advance at reputable and accredited travel agents. Reputable agents will have good user protection policies, and if you cannot receive the visa approval letter, they will also recover the full fee for the unsuccessful applications.

Visa Stamp Fee: This is the fee for receiving visa stamps on your passport and will be paid directly to Vietnamese Customs upon arrival at the airport. When you arrive at the airport, all you have to do is search for “visa on arrival” office, submit a visa approval letter with your passport, pay the fees, and obtain a visa stamp. This fee is $ 25 for a one-time entry visa and $ 50 for a multiple-entry visa (less than 3 months staying)

The fee for receiving visa stamps on your passport is $ 25 for a one-time entry visa and $ 50 for a multiple entry visa and you will pay directly to Vietnamese customs upon arrival

How to apply for a visa approval letter?

It is very simple to apply for a visa approval letter to get Vietnam visa. What you need to do is find information on travel agents or reputable travel companies that provide visa on arrival via the Internet. Provide basic information such as: full name, gender, nationality, date of birth, passport number and type of visa you need … then pay the fees and after two days, the visa approval letter will be sent to your email.

For those who need to apply for a private approval letter or want to get the result faster (one hour or one day …) they can negotiate with the agency and pay additional fees.

Reference: Visa application form online

List of airports that allow to use visa on arrival in Vietnam

Currently, the visa on arrival can only be received at Vietnamese international airports. You must review this list to choose flights to the appropriate airports. When you come to the aforementioned airports, search for “visa on arrival counter” (each airport has different names. Please see details below). Visa on arrival offices will be placed in front of passport inspection office.

The process of receiving a visa on arrival when arriving at the Vietnam airport

At the airport for travel to Vietnam, you only need a “visa approval letter” to board the plane. After arriving at one of the international airport gates that provide visa upon arrival in Vietnam, you need to look for via on arrival offices, which have different names according to the airport (mentioned above), to receive visa stamps.

You need to prepare the following documents in advance: the original passport + visa approval letter + Vietnamese visa application form (this form will be sent by visa agents to your email so that you can fill in information, paste pictures, sign first name, print and attach the visa approval letter in advance ) + Visa Stamp Fee.

After submitting these documents to the customs office, you only need to wait for the customs to stick your visa on your passport. After receiving your passport, check your visa again, and if there is any problem with your information, ask the customs immediately because you cannot correct it if you leave the customs office. After this step, you already have an entry visa and you can enter Vietnam.

Office of visa upon arrival at Noi Bai International Airport (New terminal – Hanoi Capital)

Office of visa upon arrival at Tan Son Nhat international airport (Ho Chi Minh City)

Office of visa upon arrival at Da Nang international airport (Da Nang City)

Some important notes about the visa upon arrival in Vietnam

Visa on arrival in Vietnam is a simple and fast way to obtain a visa, which saves you time, but you also have to pay attention to some of the following problems:

First, find the website of reputable authorized agent for the visa approval letter because you cannot apply for this letter yourself.

Second, carefully ask the price of the type of visa on arrival that you need from the authorized agents, as well as the necessary documents and money-back issues if your application cannot be approved.

Third, please fill in the Vietnamese visa application, and paste the picture and sign it in advance to save time in the airport. If there is no previous model, you can bring two white background pictures with a standard size according to the size of the passport and use this form presented at the airport.

Fourth, always check your passport information, visa approval letter and visa stamp after it is issued to avoid unnecessary mistakes.