How do you apply for a Vietnam e-visa on the official site?

Do you need an e-visa?

• Need an e-visa (or another visa): the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India and most countries not on the exemption lists.

• 45-day visa exemption until 14 March 2028: the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Japan, South Korea and Russia, under Government Resolution 44/NQ-CP.

• 45-day visa exemption until 14 August 2028: Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland, under Resolution 229/NQ-CP.

Even if you're exempt, you need the e-visa if you'll stay longer than 45 days, or want the security of a fixed multiple-entry window for side trips to Cambodia or Laos. Our Vietnam visa guide covers the US case in detail; this page is the how-to.

The official site, and how to spot the copies

The Vietnamese government's own news portal confirms that e-visa information and applications are on evisa.gov.vn, managed by the Immigration Department under the Ministry of Public Security. Some guides still list the older xuatnhapcanh address, which belongs to the same department; if you land there you'll be directed to the current portal.

Search results are full of sites with "Vietnam visa" in their domain, often ending in .com, .org or .vn but not .gov.vn. They charge a service fee on top of the government fee, and some promise "urgent" processing for extra. The official fee is the same whether you apply 2 weeks or 2 months out.

Three checks: the address ends in .gov.vn, the fee is US$25 or US$50 with no service charge, and nothing claims to be a "visa approval letter" (that is the old visa-on-arrival process, separate from the e-visa).

Fee, validity and processing

• Fee: US$25 single entry, US$50 multiple entry, paid by card on the portal. Widely reported as set in the Ministry of Finance fee schedule; the portal shows the amount before payment.

• Not refundable: if you're refused or enter wrong details, the fee is gone and you pay again.

• Validity: up to 90 days. You choose the start and end dates; you can enter any day within them, and you must leave by the end date. The window doesn't move if your flight slips.

• Processing: about 3 working days is the common figure, but it can take longer around Tet and other holidays. Vietnamese working days skip weekends and public holidays, so a Friday application is effectively a Wednesday one. See our Tet 2027 guide if you're travelling in late January or February.

• Passport: valid for at least 6 months from your entry date, with blank pages.

How to apply on evisa.gov.vn, step by step

• Go to evisa.gov.vn and choose the option for foreigners outside Vietnam.

• Upload a photo of your passport data page: whole page, readable machine-readable zone at the bottom, no glare or cut-off corners.

• Upload a portrait photo: looking straight ahead, plain white background, no glasses or hat. This is the most common reason for rejection.

• Enter personal details exactly as in your passport, including every given name, in the right order.

• Choose single or multiple entry and your entry and exit dates. Add a few buffer days at each end.

• Choose your entry and exit gates (border checkpoints: airports such as Noi Bai in Hanoi, Tan Son Nhat in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang, plus land and sea crossings). The portal lists only the gates designated for e-visa holders.

• Give your first address in Vietnam (your hotel) and a contact email.

• Pay by card and save the registration code the portal gives you. You need it to check status and download the visa.

• When approved, download the e-visa PDF and print it. Officers and airlines may ask to see it.

The entry gate question

The application asks which border gate you'll enter by, and the approved e-visa shows it. Enter through the gate you named, and choose the airport that matches your actual inbound flight. If your plans change after approval, check the official portal for whether your e-visa covers the new gate before you travel rather than relying on forum posts; reports on how strictly this is enforced vary, and we couldn't confirm an official rule for changes after issue.

For an open-jaw trip, which is the usual way to see the country (in Hanoi, out of Ho Chi Minh City or the reverse), name the entry airport accurately and choose the exit airport you expect to leave from. Our 2-week Hanoi to Saigon itinerary and 4-week route show what that looks like.

Common mistakes

• Using an agency site and paying well over the fee.

• Wrong photo: selfie with background, glasses, or a cropped passport scan.

• Name order mismatch between passport and application, especially with multiple given names.

• Dates too tight: an e-visa starting the day your delayed flight was due to land.

• Single entry for a loop trip: if you'll pop into Cambodia or Laos and come back, you need multiple entry.

• Assuming the exemption covers a long trip: 45 days is the limit for exempt nationalities, counted from the day you arrive.

Once you have the visa, our Vietnam guide, what to wear in Vietnam and Vietnam tipping guide cover the trip itself, and how much a trip to Vietnam costs puts the US$25 in context.

At the airport in Vietnam

Go straight to the immigration line with your passport and printed e-visa; e-visa holders don't use the visa-on-arrival counter. Have your hotel address and onward or return ticket ready in case you're asked. The stay you're given runs to the end date on the e-visa, not 90 days from arrival, so if you entered late in the window you have fewer days. If you need longer, apply for a new e-visa rather than overstaying: overstays are fined at departure and can complicate future visits.

Frequently asked questions