How to Apply for a Vietnam VOA

A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO APPLY FOR A VIETNAM VISA ON ARRIVAL (VOA)

Apart from e-visa, Visa On Arrival, VOA, Landing Visa, or Pre-Arranged Visa provides yet another option for non-native travelers of all countries wishing to visit Vietnam from 2024 onwards.

Whether it is a hectic business trip you are setting up or a relaxing vacation by the seaside you are looking forward to, applying for a landing visa can be a suitable choice if you are willing to do some planning with the help of an external party.

Before we get to that part, as always, make sure you have at least 6 months of validity upon the arrival date and at least 2 blank pages in your passport, proof of your travel itinerary such as flight tickets, hotel bookings, etc.

Now, follow our guide in this article to make sure you have everything you need before applying for a visa on arrival.

In what situation can I get a visa on arrival? Is it exclusively applicable to emergency cases?

If you have gotten fed up with queuing and waiting at the embassy/consulate, a worry-free visa stamp at the airport may sound quite appealing. However, unlike its neighboring countries, Vietnam does not allow a direct landing visa at the airport unless you obtain a pre-arranged Visa Approval Letter first which we have dedicated a whole section below.

There are two broad categories under which a traveler can apply for a VOA: tourism and business. To obtain a tourist visa (indicated “DL" on your visa stamp), you must enlist the services of a travel agent during your application. For a business visa (“DN"), your application must be handled by a sponsor company operating in Vietnam where you will be employed during your stay.

Resorting to a third party’s involvement stems from the fact that, unlike e-visa issuance, there is no official website operated by the Immigration Department or the Foreign Affairs Ministry catering to individual applications for visas on arrival.

Depending on your nationality and travel itinerary, a single-entry tourist visa is generally valid for 30 days. For single or multiple-entry business visas, the validity can range from 30 days to 90 days or up to 1 year, especially for US passport holders. In the 1-year case, the Customs and Border Protection Authority at the entry port will determine the duration of each authorized stay, typically limited to 90 days per entry.

Another point worth noting is that visas on arrivals are good for clearance at 08 (eight) international airports in Vietnam only. No seaport or landport entry and exit are allowed.

• Noi Bai International Airport (Hanoi)
• Tan Son Nhat International Airport (Ho Chi Minh City)
• Cat Bi International Airport (Hai Phong)
• Da Nang International Airport (Da Nang)
• Cam Ranh International Airport (Khanh Hoa)
• Can Tho International Airport (Can Tho)
• Lien Khuong International Airport (Da Lat)
• Phu Quoc International Airport (Phu Quoc)

Simply speaking, there is not much difference between a VOA and a traditional visa since the paperwork requirements of both processes are quite similar. This does not mean VOA is without its perks - you don't have to apply on your own and you can pick up your visa from the landing airport instead of sitting around and waiting for the visa to arrive through post.

	Traditional Visa	Visa on Arrival
Visa Approval Letter	Yes 03-05 days; expedited 1-day service is available Fee: varied, learn more from your Consular Division, including: 1. visa approval fee 2. processing and handling fee 3. postal service 4. expedite service (if required) Official link: https://visa.mofa.gov.vn/_layouts/registration/ApplicationForm.aspx  Online fill-in form and individual application - Applied at an overseas Vietnam Consulate / Embassy or via post service; Received via post service - To send your original passport or a scan copy of your passport	Yes 03-05 days; expedited 1-day service is available Fee: varied, to be informed by the agent of choice or your sponsor, including: 1. processing and handling fee 2. expedite service (if required) Official link: N/A    Via an agent or sponsor - Applied at the Immigration Department office in Vietnam; Received via email    - To send a scan copy of your passport
Visa Stamp	Pick up at the Vietnam Consulate / Embassy of your choice or via post service Fee: included in the Visa Approval Letter payment	Pick up at the airport when landing after submitting the completed Form NA1 Fee: paid at the airport, $25 per single entry, $50 per multiple entry
In case of inaccuracy	Contact the Vietnam Consulate / Embassy	Contact your agent or sponsor
Group application	Yes	Yes

Table 1. Traditional Visa application versus Visa On Arrival application

Before you read on, we highly recommend checking if you are a passport holder of a visa-exempt country or considering applying for an e-visa yourself if your intention is to have a short and brief itinerary in Vietnam. However, visas on arrival would prove to be a perfect choice if you fall into one of the “emergency" categories below.

(1) You have booked an inbound local tour for the entire trip. The local travel agency should be responsible for securing a VOA for you prior to the trip.

(2) You come to Vietnam for business or commercial reasons. Business, investment, and study purposes, among others, are eligible to be granted visas on arrival.

(3) Your country of origin is not home to any Vietnamese embassy or consulate. The duration of stay granted in this case will be carefully assessed based on your travel itinerary.

(4) You find out you need a visa to enter Vietnam a few hours before your flight. Do not put yourself in such a risky situation as you may even be refused boarding your plane, while this also calls for an expedited service which of course results in a slightly higher fee.

(5) Your e-visa application is not approved in time, which is very unlikely, and you do not want to change your flight. Again, a higher fee will be incurred owing to the required expedited processing.

These are just a few most common ones among other rare cases. Keep reading if one of the aforementioned passenger types describes your reason for travel.

What documents should I prepare before my trip?

Here are 03 documents you would need to prepare in advance:

A Visa Approval Letter

Processing Time

3 working days for normal service, 1 working day for urgent service and 4 working hours for super-urgent / expedited service, excluding 6:00 PM Friday to 9:00 AM next Monday GMT+7 (Vietnam local time)

Associated Fee

Varied and will be informed by your representative inviter or sponsor; click here for a reference table of the most common charges in Vietnam.

As mentioned above, Visa Letter should be your first and foremost concern when it comes to a VOA.

This letter which permits you to pick up your visa at the airport gate is issued by the Immigration Department (Ministry of Public Security), Consular Department in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City Department of Foreign Affairs (Ministry of Foreign Affairs).

In the letter, your permitted date of departure (you can choose to depart later than this date, but not sooner) and your enforced date of exit (you can choose to leave the country sooner than this date, but not later) will also be stated.

The letter can only be obtained by the travel agency of your choice or your sponsor company as it will need to be processed within Vietnam.

Your job is to provide the sponsor company with a sufficient dossier of information including:

• A clear scan copy of your passport (from the first page to the latest stamped page)
• Your detailed itinerary in Vietnam (if you apply for a tourist VOA) i.e. travel dates, flight tickets, hotel bookings, description, etc. It is not compulsory for you to provide the exact arrival date at this step if you are not sure when you will arrive in Vietnam or when it is too early to decide, but be sensible to ask for a visa duration that would allow you to flexibly arrange your trip later.
• Other documents upon request

Your sponsor company will also submit their:

• Notarized copy of Business Registration Certificate
• Form NA16 as an introduction of sample signature and seal of the sponsoring company
• Form NA2 as an application for your entry outside of Vietnam

The representative will then submit these documents at the Immigration office and be given a tracking code to view the status on the Public Service Portal, administered by the Ministry of Public Security. The result is expected around 05 (five) working days.

They might need to provide additional information or make appropriate corrections as requested by the responsible officer. When this happens, about which they should inform you, there is a high chance the entire process has to reboot from the initial step again and this leads to another 05 (five) working days.

With no further adjustment needed, the issued letter will be delivered to your chosen sponsor who will then forward a scan copy to you via email. Print this out (black and white copies are good enough) and carry the printed copy with you to the airport.

Figure 2. A sample of Visa Approval Letter

A Visa Application Form (NA1 form)

Download the form from the official Immigration Department website. Fill it out either before or after printing. Affix a 4x6 cm passport photo to the top left corner, and sign the form with your full name written in the bottom right corner. Carry this document with you to the airport.

Note that consistency is key here. That's why it should not be lost on you to verify that the details on your pre-approved visa letter and NA1 form match one another. This helps avoid any raised eyebrows at the airport VOA Counter.

02 identical 4x6 cm passport photos

It is necessary to have the latest photo taken, preferably within the last 6 months. White backgrounds are also compulsory in place of dark or decorated backgrounds.

Should you lack the time to prepare these photos before departure, pay US$2 per photo to have them taken right at the Vietnamese airport.

For kids

Children under 14 must have their name enlisted on the same Visa Letter issued for your entry visa and consequently, share your visa stamp on your passports even if they have their own passports.

Children over 14 need to submit their own application for a Visa Letter. They will also receive a separate visa stamp under their names.

In both cases, their passport photos are required in the same way as adults. And any children possessing their own passports will incur the same payment at the landing airport as adults.

What fees should I expect for a visa on arrival?

Essentially, there are 02 (two) fees you would be expected to pay:

Visa Approval Letter fee

Factors like the visa types, the duration of stay, the number of entries, the number of individuals and the processing service can affect the final payment for a Visa Letter. Contact your nearest Vietnamese embassy or consulate to find out the most accurate information.

Another fee that is hard to pin down but will incur either way is the service fee charged independently by the travel agency or the sponsor local company for their management of the whole process on your behalf. There is no shame in posing the question early before they kick start the process to prevent unreasonable quotations.

Payment method also depends largely on your agent or sponsor, but almost all agencies now accept Paypal, and Credit or Debit Cards. 

Another good point to take note here is if your application is not approved, the fee could be refundable within the policy framework of the travel agency facilitating your visa.

Visa Stamp fee

Unlike the confusing pre-approved visa letter fee, the Visa Stamp fee follows a fixed rate:

• Single-entry for 1 month or 3 months: US$25
• Multiple-entry for 1 month or 3 months: US$50
• Multiple-entry for 6 months, applicable to US citizens only: US$95
• Multiple-entry for 12 months, applicable to US citizens only: US$135

Remember that travelers need to pay the stamping fee in cash, using either Vietnam dong or U.S. dollars, as credit cards are not accepted by immigration officials at the airport.

Check out our comprehensive fee table to avoid an exponential sum of charges.

What do I need to do at the airport to receive my visa stamp?

The visa desks at Vietnam's international airports are available around the clock. As long as you have obtained the Visa Letter, you should expect no trouble gaining entry into Vietnam with your visa on arrival, even on weekends or during late-night arrivals.

Upon your turn, present the Visa Approval Letter, your original passport, 01 passport photo, the entry-exit form (Form NA1), and pay the stamping fee at the counter.

Once the authority personnel has reviewed your documents, he or she will stamp your Vietnam visa in your passport. More often than not, the granted visa is adhesive, not loose-leaf.

Can I get to the airport in Vietnam first without an Approval Letter?

It is the airlines' established regulations around the world that if a traveler is unable to show a valid travel paper when crossing the border to a different country, in your case - the pre-approved visa letter, the airline has all the rights to ban you from your flight. This is because if your entry is rejected at the landing airport, it is their obligation to fly you back, with or without extra fee involved.

Therefore, the answer is no.

Can I change my flight to a different airport in Vietnam after the Visa Letter has been granted?

In your Approval Letter, the landing airport is not specified, which means you can take advantage of this flexibility to change your destination at any time, providing that it is still one of the eight international airports allowing VOA entry.

Can I extend my VOA within Vietnam?

Yes and No. VOA for tourists cannot be extended at all, whether you wish to apply within the country or out of the country. A new visa can be issued when you have gone through the crucial procedure again.

On the other hand, VOA for business visitors and other cases of investment and studies can be considered for a one-time extension. Contact these immigration offices in Vietnam to inquire what documents you should prepare based on your reason for extension.

• Immigration office in Hanoi: 44-46 Tran Phu, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi
• Immigration office in Da Nang: 78 Le Loi, Thach Thang, Hai Chau, Da Nang
• Immigration office in Ho Chi Minh City: 333-335-337 Nguyen Trai, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City

In the same way, you could always have your sponsor company handle the task on your behalf with an extra fee, but less time and hassle.

Start the process at least 2 weeks before your visa expiration date and avoid last-minute downers.