Visas For Vietnam

Vietnam Visas

Vietnam is a favourite destination for Australian travellers, with its incredible variety of experiences such as cruising the otherworldly Halong Bay or wandering the wide, French Colonial boulevards of Ho Chi Minh City. If you’re an Australian citizen wishing to visit Vietnam, you must have a visa to enter the country. Thankfully, they’re now even easier to apply for with the Vietnam e-visa launched in 2018.   

Types Of Tourist Visa For Vietnam

You can enter Vietnam with a regular tourist visa, an e-visa, a visa exemption certificate or an approval letter for a visa-on-arrival.

Let’s cover off the two least likely scenarios first. You can obtain an approval letter for a visa-on-arrival in special circumstances, such as if you’re departing from a country where there is no competent Vietnamese visa-granting authority. Second, the visa exemption certificate applies if your spouse or parent is a national of Vietnam. This certificate is valid for  five years and allows you to enter Vietnam multiple times for up to six months. We suggest referring to the Australian Government’s Smart Traveller website for more detail on the above.

Most Australians will simply be looking to obtain a Vietnam tourist visa. Visas for Vietnam from Australia take the form of either for a regular tourist visa or an e-visa. The only real difference is the way you apply, and the fees. The Vietnam e-visa is a single entry visa, valid for a maximum of 30 days.

Be wary of any private online visa service. There have been reports of travellers thinking they’d obtained a visa, only to arrive in Vietnam and be refused entry. Make sure you either engage a Flight Centre Travel Expert to arrange your visa for you, or only apply for your visa through the Government of Vietnam’s official website or offices.

How To Apply For A Vietnam Visa

If you’re wishing to apply for a Vietnam e-visa, you can do so through the Vietnamese Government’s ‘National Web Portal On Immigration’. You will need to upload your passport data page, and pay the fee which is about AU$35. If you apply for an e-visa to Vietnam, you’ll be advised within three working days if your visa has been approved. Once it has, we recommend that you also print out your e-visa to present on arrival in Vietnam if requested.

You can also apply for a regular tourist visa in person at the Vietnamese Embassy in Canberra, by post, or online through the Vietnamese Embassy’s website. You’ll find the correct link on the Australian Government’s Smart Traveller website, although the newer, e-visa process is more streamlined and efficient.

Please note: Visas are the individual responsibility of travellers. The information above is to be used as a guide only. Conditions can change suddenly so we recommend checking the Australian Government’s Smart Traveller website for the latest updates.

If you have any questions regarding Vietnam visas, call 133 133 and talk to a Flight Centre Travel Expert for advice.