1. What is a Vietnam entry visa? How many types of visas are there?

1.1. Vietnam entry visa

Pursuant to the Law of entry, exit, transit, and residence of foreigners in Vietnam 2014: “Visa means a document issued by a competent authority of Vietnam to a foreigner to grant entry into Vietnam.”. Visa is issued in passports, separately or via electronic transactions. Thus, in order to enter Vietnam, foreigners must complete visa application procedures according to Vietnamese law.

Currently, the Law amending and supplementing the Law of entry, exit, transit, and residence of foreigners in Vietnam has added the electronic visa  method (E-visa) to make it easier and more convenient for foreigners to apply for a visa to enter Vietnam.

1.2. Current types of visa in Vietnam

Currently, there are about 26 types of visa for foreigners entrying into  Vietnam, classified based on purpose of entry. However, in general, there are approximately 6 most common types of visa as follows:

• Investment visa (symbol ĐT): Issued to foreign investors in Vietnam and representatives of foreign organizations investing in Vietnam.
• Work visa (symbol LĐ): Issued to foreigners working in Vietnam are required to have a work permit or have confirmation that they are not subject to a work permit, exception an international treaty to which Vietnam is a member has other provisions.
• Business visa (symbol DN): Issued to foreigners working with businesses and other organizations with legal status according to Vietnamese law, or entry to offering services, establishing a commercial presence, and carrying out other activities according to international treaties to which Vietnam is a member.
• Relative visit visa (symbol TT): Issued to foreigners who are spouses, children under 18 years old of foreigners issued visas with symbols LV1, LV2, LS, DT1, DT2, DT3, NN1, NN2, DH, PV1, LD1, LD2 or foreigners who are the father, mother, wife, husband, or children of Vietnamese citizens.
• Tourist visa (symbol DL): Issued to foreigners who come for tourism.
• Student visa (symbol DH): Issued to foreigners who come to intern and study

2. Conditions to get a Vietnam visa?

Depending on each type of visa, there will be different conditions for issuance and Visa applications also include different types of documents. General conditions for foreigners to get Vietnam visa as follows:

• Have a passport or a valid international travel document.
• Have been invited or guaranted by agency, organization or individual in Vietnam, except in cases otherwise specified.
• Not falling under the cases that have not yet allowed to entry.
• Some types of visas require documents proving the purpose of entry:
  • To apply for an investment visa, foreigners need to have documents proving investment in Vietnam according to the Vietnam Investment Law.
  • To apply for a lawyer visa, foreigners need to have a license to practice according to the Vietnam Law on Lawyers
  • To apply for a work visa, foreigners need to have a work permit according to the Vietnam Labor Code
  • To apply for a student visa, foreigners need to have a letter of acceptance from a Vietnamese school or educational institution

3. Procedure to get visa entry of Vietnam?

• Visa application dossier: as well as conditions for visa issuance, depending on each type of visa, the application requires different types of documents to be submitted. The following are the basic documents required in an application for a visa to enter Vietnam.
  • Visa application
  • Passport valid for more than 6 months
  • Enterprise Registration Certificate of the inviting or sponsoring organization or personal documents of the individual if a Vietnamese individual is the guarantor
  • Visa issuance fee
  • If you want to apply for visas such as business visa, labor visa, investment visa, study visa, etc. you need to submit additional documents proving your purpose of entry according to Vietnamese law.
• Competent agency to receive documents:. Immigration Department of the Ministry of Public Security
• Steps to apply for an entry visa for foreigners entering Vietnam

Directly Submit:

• Step 1: Foreign individuals or representative Vietnamese organizations or individuals prepare documents and go to the Immigration Department during office hours to submit dossier.
• Step 2: In case that the dossier is complete, the staff will receive it and give you an appointment letter about the results no later than 05 working days from the date of receiving the dossier. In case that the dossier is missing, the staff will guide you to add necessary documents.
• Step 3: The visa applicant directly receives the results at the Immigration Department; when you come to receive the results, bring the appointment letter and payment receipt for comparison. In case you request to receive results via postal service, follow the instructions of the postal service provider.
• In case that the visa has not been issued, Immigration Department will respond in writing or notify on the National Public Service Portal or the Ministry Of Public Security Public Service Portal and clearly state the reason.

Online Submit:

• Step 1: Foreign individuals or representative Vietnamese organizations or individuals prepare and submit dossier through the National Public Service Portal or the Ministry Of Public Security Public Service Portal; then Submit additional documents via the public postal service according to the notice of the Immigration Management Agency on Service Portal (if any).
• Step 2: In case that the dossier is complete, the competent authority will notify it on the National Public Service Portal or the Ministry Of Public Security Public Service Portal in order to visa applicants pay online and receive an electronic receipt. In case that the dossier is missing, it will notify you on Service Portal in order to complete the dossier.
• Step 3: In case of online application submission, you can request to receive the results via postal service and pay the delivery service fee or come to the competent authority to receive results. In case you request to receive results via postal service, following the instructions of the postal service provider is necessary.
• In case that the dossiers are submitted through the National Public Service Portal or the Ministry Of Public Security Public Service Portal which is under the jurisdiction of the Immigration Department, staff will transfer your dossier to the Immigration Department and notify the applicant.

4. Fee when applying dossier to get visa entry of Vietnam

Depending on the duration specified in the visa, the visa application fee will be different, specifically as follows:

Cases of fee exemption as follows:

• Guests of the Communist Party, the Government, the National Assembly or heads thereof invited personally.
• Officials and employees of diplomatic missions, foreign consular missions and representative missions of international organizations in Vietnam and their family members (spouse and children under 18 years of age), regardless of passport type, that are not Vietnamese nationals and not residing in Vietnam are not required to submit fees on the basis of reciprocity.
• Cases of exemption as per international agreement to which Vietnam is a signatory or reciprocity basis.
• Foreigners enter into Vietnam to provide assistance or provide humanitarian support for Vietnamese organizations and individuals.
• Cases where visas and/or temporary residence is issued for foreigners in Vietnam violating the law and facing penalties without being financially capable and representative missions of home countries of the foreigners refuse to incur the fees or representative missions of home countries of the foreigners are not available in Vietnam.

5. What is overstaying Vietnam visa?

Overstaying visa in Vietnam occurs when foreigners stay in the exceed the allowable time stated on their visa. The duration of a Vietnam visa depends on the type and the individual's registration requirements. When the visa expires, foreigner can choose to continue extending the visa or return to their home country.

Overstaying visa in Vietnam can lead to serious legal consequences, and in many cases can lead to being blacklisted in Vietnam. Therefore, foreigners need to pay attention to their visa validity period and extend their visa or exit Vietnam on time.

6. Application for visa extension

In fact, there is currently no regulation on how many days before the visa expires, visa extension procedures must be carried out. However, in order for immigration authorities to receive and process documents promptly, foreigners should submit applications for visa extension at least 7 working days in advance to avoid being fined for visa overstaying.

Application for visa extension

To extend an overstaying Vietnam visa, foreigners need to meet the following 4 prerequisites:

• Passport valid for at least 1 month longer than visa validity
• There is a legal guarantee by a company or individual in Vietnam
• Must declare temporary residence
• Overdue fines have been paid

After determining that you are eligible to extend your visa, you need to send it to the competent authority to receive the dossier, including:

• Passport valid for at least 6 months
• Visa extension application form
• 2 portrait photos 4x6

In the case of overstaying visa of children, Vietnamese law creates favorable conditions for children who do not need to pay fines. However, if children overstay their visa for too long, their parents or guardians may have to pay a certain fine according to Vietnamese law. Dossier about visa extension for children includes:

• Visa extension application
• Birth Certificate
• Sponsorship application from Vietnamese parents or guardians.

7. How to return home after visa expiration? Steps to do after visa expiration

According to Vietnamese law, if a visa expires, foreigner will not be allowed to leave Vietnam. When a visa is overdue, foreigners in Vietnam need to stop all work and prepare documents to go to the Immigration Department - Ministry of Public Security where they reside to present themselves and pay the fine to get a visa to return home, specifically the process is as follows:

Step 1: Go to the Immigration Department and make a record and working minutes of visa overstay in Vietnam. After completing and signing the Working Minutes, the Immigration Department officer will retain your passport and arrange a date to receive the Penalty Decision (usually about 05-07 days from the date of signing the Minutes).

Step 2: Receive the Penalty Decision according to the appointment and pay the fine. The penalty level depends on the visa overstay period. The penalty decision will clearly state the fine amount and require you to pay the fine within 10 days from the date of receiving the Penalty Decision.

Step 3: After completing the payment of the fine, you will be issued a visa to exit the territory of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

You need to buy a plane ticket to return home and notify the Immigration Department that you have completed paying the fine and purchasing the plane ticket. After receiving flight ticket information, the Immigration Department will send your passport and exit visa to the airport.

If necessary, you can contact a third party to request legal assistance for consulting or supporting exit procedures in order to avoid risks that easily arise.

8. FAQ related to Overstaying Vietnam visa

(1) Penalties when foreigners overstaying visa in Vietnam

Penalties for overstaying visa include: administrative fines, forced exit, or ban from entering Vietnam for a period of 5 years, depending on the level and duration of overstay.

Pursuant to Article 18 Decree administrative penalties for violations against regulations on social safety, security, order; social evils, fire prevention and firefighting; rescue; domestic violence prevention and control, administrative penalties for overstaying visa of foreigners as follows:

• Late less than 16 days: fine from 500,000 to 2,000,000 VND
• Late from 16 to 29 days: fine from 3,000,000 to 5,000,000 VND
• Late from 30 to 59 days: fine from 5,000,000 to 10,000,000 VND
• Late from 60 to 89 days: fine from 10,000,000 to 15,000,000 VND
• Late 90 days or more: fine from 15,000,000 to 20,000,000 VND

In addition, depending on the the level of violation, foreigners whose overstaying visa may be subject to additional penalties such as: confiscate evidence and means of administrative violations, expulsion, forced to restore the original state,…

(2) Duration of types of visa

The duration of different types of visas is specified in Article 9 Law of entry, exit, transit, and residence of foreigners in Vietnam 2014, amended and supplemented in 2019 and 2023 as follows:

• Visa symbol SQ is valid for no more than 30 days.
• Visa symbols HN, DL, EV are valid for no more than 3 months.
• Visa symbol VR is valid for no more than 6 months.
• Visa symbols NG1, NG2, NG3, NG4, LV1, LV2, DT4, DN1, DN2, NN1, NN2, NN3, DH, PV1, PV2, TT are valid for no more than 01 year.
• Visa symbols LD1, LD2 are valid for no more than 02 years.
• Visa code DT3 is valid for no more than 3 years.
• Visa symbols LS, DT1, DT2 are valid for no more than 5 years.

Note: Visa validity is at least 30 days shorter than the validity of a passport or international travel document. In case an international treaty to which Vietnam is a member has different provisions, visa duration is according to international treaties.

(3) How to find reputable consulting support on visa extension?

To have a smooth business trip or a vacation... while saving costs, time as well as avoiding unnecessary risks during the process of entry into Vietnam, you should find guidance from a team of experts who apprehend immigration law, procedures of the Immigration Department related to visa, temporary residence, permanent residence,... and have many years of experience consulting on Vietnamese law.

Phong & Partners is proud to be a providing legal services organization that have a dedicated, reputable, and professional team of lawyers and experts in Da Nang. With experience in legal consulting and case resolution for both Vietnamese and Foreigners, Phong & Partners can provide you the best legal service.

(4) Note to avoid overstaying Vietnam visa

No one wants to overstay their visa, but  it is considered a violation of the law, cause it directly affects the country’s administrative management process and social order and safety. Some following notes will help you avoid overstaying visa in Vietnam and promptly handle them:

• Comply with Vietnamese law
• Carefully plan each entry into Vietnam to ensure the completion of the purpose of entry within a reasonable time.
• If the work or plan lasts longer than the proposed time, note the visa expiration date to proceed with timely extension procedures.
• Regularly monitor and pay attention to the timeline to prepare promptly.

(5) Which countries are covered by Vietnam's 45-day visa exemption?

Recently, the Vietnamese government promulgated Resolution 128/NQ-CP about amending the previous Resolution 32 on 45-day visa exemption for the following countries:

• The Federal Republic of Germany
• The French Republic
• Italian Republic
• Kingdom of Spain
• The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
• Russian Federation
• Japan
• Republic of Korea
• Kingdom of Denmark
• Kingdom of Sweden
• Kingdom of Norway
• Republic of Finland
• The Republic of Belarus

This article discusses legal issues, administrative procedures for entry visas to Vietnam, visa overstaying and solutions. For more information on visa overstaying in Vietnam and how to return home, please contact Phong & Partners at one of the most convenient addresses listed below.