Information on Vietnam visa exemption for Vietnamese citizens residing abroad and foreigner coming to Vietnam

1. Legal basis

Decree No. 82/2015 / ND-CP dated September 24, 2015, on visa exemption for Vietnamese residing overseas and foreigners being spouses, children of Vietnamese residing overseas or of Vietnamese citizens

2. Duration, value, and form of visa exemption paper

Visa exemption documents include the following 2 types:

- Type of stickers: Visa exemption papers are attached to foreign passports of Vietnamese residing abroad and foreigners used to enter Vietnam.

- Type of book: Visa exemption certificate for Vietnamese residing abroad only has permanent residence certificates issued by foreign countries and users of passports of countries and territories for which Vietnam has no diplomatic relations.

The visa exemption document is valid for no more than 5 years and shorter than the expiry date of the passport or papers of international travel validity of the grantee at least 06 months.

Visa exemption documents are granted for people who enter Vietnam to visit relatives and deal with personal matters.

Visa exemption document is granted on the passport; The following cases are issued in a separate form (book form):

a) Passport has expired the visa page

b) Passport of the country without diplomatic relations with Vietnam

c) Valuable papers for international travel

d) At the request of the visa grantee

f) For diplomatic, national defense and security reasons.

Visa exemption documents are issued separately for each person. Children who share a passport with one parent are granted a visa exemption together with one parent

3. Dossier of application for visa exemption document

a) For Vietnamese residing overseas, a dossier comprises:

• 01 declaration (according to a set form);
• 02 new color photos taken 4x6 cm in size, with a white background, face facing straight, bare head, without wearing colored glasses (01 photos stuck to the declaration, 01 loose photo);
• A foreign passport or a paper of international travel value or a permit of permanent residence issued by a foreign competent authority, which is still valid for at least 01 years (enclosed with a copy for issuance by a competent authority). Visa exemption document filed);

Proof of eligibility for visa exemption (submit a certified copy from the original or enclosed with the original for comparison), if any:

- Certificate of Vietnamese nationality;

- A copy or extract of the Decision for the restoration of Vietnamese nationality;

- A copy or extract of the Decision to relinquish Vietnamese nationality;

- Certificate of losing Vietnamese nationality;

- A Vietnamese passport (still or has expired);

- Identity card (still or expired);

- Birth certificate;

- Latest voter card;

- Registration book;

- Passport issued before 1975;

- An identification card issued before 1975;

- Excerpt of the set of birth certificates issued before 1975;

- Papers issued by foreign competent agencies, if the people mentioned in the papers are of Vietnamese or Vietnamese nationality.

b) For foreigners being spouses, children of Vietnamese citizens or Vietnamese residing overseas, a dossier comprises:

• 01 declaration (according to a set form);
• 02 new color photos taken 4x6 cm in size, with a white background, face facing straight, bare head, without wearing colored glasses (01 photos stuck to the declaration, 01 loose photo);
• A foreign passport or a paper of international travel validity of at least 01 years (enclosed with a copy for the competent agency to keep the dossier);

One of the following papers evidencing the relationship between husband and wife and children with overseas Vietnamese (submitting certified copies from the originals or enclosed with the originals for comparison):

- Registration of marriage;

- Birth certificate;

- Certificate of a parent, child relationship;

- Other valuable papers as prescribed by Vietnamese law;

- The decision to adopt a child.

4. Re-issue visa exemption document

a) In case of loss, damage expired or wish to adjust the contents of the visa exemption certificate, the visa exemption certificate will be re-issued.

b) An application for re-issue of visa exemption document includes:

• Foreign passports or papers of international travel or permanent residence permits granted by foreign competent agencies are still valid for at least 01 years (enclosed with a photocopy for issuance by a competent agency). Visa exemption document filed);
• 01 declaration (according to a set form);
• 2 new color photos taken 4x6 cm in size, with a white background, face facing straight, bare head, without wearing stained glass (01 photos stuck to the declaration, 01 loose photo);
• If the visa exemption certificate is lost, an additional loss notice must be submitted.
• Certified copy from the original, or enclosed with the original for comparison, of documents proving the content to be adjusted in the visa exemption document.

5. Submit an application for visa issuance / re-issuance

The applicant for a visa exemption / re-issuance certificate currently residing in foreign countries shall submit 01 sets of documents as prescribed above at the Vietnamese visa-issuing authority in foreign countries (the Vietnamese representative office in foreign)".

6. The time limit for granting visa exemption certificate

Within 01 working days from the date of receipt of the complete application, the Vietnamese visa-issuing authority in foreign countries shall transfer information of the visa exemption applies to the Immigration Department.

Within 03 working days, the Immigration Department shall review and reply to the Vietnamese visa-issuing authority abroad.

Within 01 working days after receiving the notification from the Immigration Department, the Vietnamese visa-issuing authority overseas issues a visa exemption certificate.

7. Fees

The fee for issuance of a visa exemption certificate is US $ 10 (applied from January 1, 2017, based on Appendix 2: Tariff rates in the diplomatic field issued together with Circular No. 264/2016 / TT-BTC November 14, 2016, of the Ministry of Finance).

For countries not exempted from the Vietnam visa, please contact us via email visa@vietnam-visa.org.vn or hotline +84.909.180.525 for detailed advice.