Vietnam visa

steve-o · 17-05-2018 11:44pm

If you want to avoid queuing for a visa on arrival then get one online from the official site. https://evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn/en_US/web/guest/khai-thi-thuc-dien-tu/cap-thi-thuc-dien-tu. Don't waste your money with one of the commercial online agencies.

Fighting Tao · 17-05-2018 11:49pm

We went through the London embassy. Quick turnaround from them and no hassle.

Eyezone · 23-05-2018 11:13am

Ye, I finally must get the visa to go there and see Hang Son Doong. Big dream!!!!!!!!!!!

KBD85 · 30-07-2018 6:20pm

I'm looking for a 30 day tourist visa and in an email correspondence with what I believe to be the Vietnamese embassy in England as they don't have one here.

Obviously I have to pay for the visa but they are emailing me from vietnamesevisauk@gmail.com and directing me to a sites.google.com domain to get the payment information.

It seems dodgy as hell and I would expect at least an official domain and email address if I'm talking to an embassy.

Has anyone here applied for a tourist visa to Vietnam and can you tell me how you did it?

Thanks.

bisounours · 30-07-2018 6:29pm

When I travelled to Vietnam I did the visa pre-approval online (without payment) and then only paid at the border (I think it was 20USD?) Check if the pre-approval is available for Irish passports.

KBD85 · 30-07-2018 6:35pm

bisounours wrote: »

When I travelled to Vietnam I did the visa pre-approval online (without payment) and then only paid at the border (I think it was 20USD?) Check if the pre-approval is available for Irish passports.

I've contacted the Irish embassy in Hanoi and the Vietnamese embassy in London and neither have said anything about visa pre-approval.

The English embassy wants about £100 all together for the visa but there is something about an e-visa that has limited entry points on the Vietnamese government website but the English crowd are trying to talk me out of that option. It should be much simpler than what I'm doing now.

Ha Long Bay · 30-07-2018 6:35pm

There are now two ways to get a tourist visa for Vietnam. The old way was to get a visa approval letter from a company then when you arrive at the destination airport you apply for the visa and pay a stamping fee. Since last summer you can now get an e-visa through the official site https://evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn/trang-chu-ttdt it only took a day or two to come through. You print it off and present it at immigration and saves a lot of waiting.

twignme · 30-07-2018 6:46pm

I have obtained the visas a few times. If you are using the ‘visa on arrival’ procedure, the embassy don’t actually provide the visa, it comes through an agency, of which there are a few. The website I used last year (www.visa-for-Vietnam.com or something like that if I recall) got back to me through an email from ‘Phoenix family services’ based in Solihull UK and last year their service cost me about €27. They send you the forms to complete and a letter with all the official stuff on it that you present at the airport in Vietnam, with your visa payment and photos.
The letter you get from the agency usually has lots of peoples names on it as well as yours, it’s not a problem, it’s just the way their immigration service works.

blackvalley · 30-07-2018 7:46pm

Hi.
Sorry for repeating a question that has been asked before although not recently.
I am travelling to Vietnam later in the year and require a visa.This is a DIY trip so I cannot apply for a visa through a travel agent .
Should I apply to the embassy in London as some websites suggest .There are also some websites where you can apply privately.
Thank you for any advice.
Blackvalley

jenggg · 31-07-2018 12:55pm

Hi, I just applied last Friday to the embassy in London and they have acknowledged receipt of it and have started processing it. My friend applied through some cheap website a few years back but I didn't want to chance it-could be a problem when you get there. The travel agent I'm going with were charging me 60E on top of the visa fee so I just did it myself. It's quite easy-all online. You have to scan your application form and passport, then email them on to the embassy. Costs £60 plus £8 for postage payable by bank transfer (which my bank then charged me 15 E for). They also need a screenshot of the bank transfer.

Bumski · 31-07-2018 1:09pm

I went to Vietnam last year and applied online through the official government website. It worked well and quickly.

Be careful of third party sites that charge additional fees.

The site is: https://evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn/en_US/web/guest/khai-thi-thuc-dien-tu/cap-thi-thuc-dien-tu

jenggg · 31-07-2018 1:12pm

KBD85 I'm in exactly the same situation as you...but I didn't think there was anything particularly dodgy about it. Yes gmail account but.. I was told by a representative of Trailfinders that this was the correct website. I think they also mentioned that you can't get an e-visa anymore.. And the tour I'm going on have said you HAVE to have the Vietnam visa on joining the tour in Bangkok-that there's no way of obtaining after starting. I feel it's legit.. I hope!

Ha Long Bay · 31-07-2018 1:32pm

jenggg wrote: »

KBD85 I'm in exactly the same situation as you...but I didn't think there was anything particularly dodgy about it. Yes gmail account but.. I was told by a representative of Trailfinders that this was the correct website. I think they also mentioned that you can't get an e-visa anymore.. And the tour I'm going on have said you HAVE to have the Vietnam visa on joining the tour in Bangkok-that there's no way of obtaining after starting. I feel it's legit.. I hope!

As I mentioned there are still two ways to obtain a visa. The first is e-visa and I have provided the link above. I have used this myself last October in Da Nang without any issues.

The second way is to get a visa pre-approval letter through one of the many agencies that provide the service like https://www.myvietnamvisa.com/ before travelling as you wont be allowed check in for the flight to Vietnam without it. When you arrive at the airport in Vietnam you will then need to fill out a form, provide 2 passport photos and hand in the visa pre-approval letter and your passport to the staff at visa on arrival. You wait as the process the application and put the visa into your passport. They will call you back to the counter to collect your passport and pay the visa fee (I think this is currently $25 so be sure to have $ with you) After you receive your passport back you then go through immigration where they will stamp it. If you have an e-visa you go straight to immigration.

I would recommend the e-visa.

jenggg · 31-07-2018 1:40pm

Can you give me a reason why a loose leaf visa from the Embassy in London is not on your list of ways of obtaining a visa?

Ha Long Bay · 31-07-2018 1:45pm

jenggg wrote: »

Can you give me a reason why a loose leaf visa from the Embassy in London is not on your list of ways of obtaining a visa?

Is that question for me? I have no experience of obtaining a visa this way. I thought you had to send your passport to London to get it processed. I was just trying to help the posters based on my own experiences.

blackvalley · 31-07-2018 1:46pm

Thanks folks . I will apply through the embassy.
Blackvalley.

jenggg · 31-07-2018 1:47pm

Also on the Dept of Foreign Affairs website it lists the Foreign Embassies accrediated to Ireland and the address matches the one I was in contact with. It appears you can get an e-visa for less than 30 days but you need to contact this embassy if you want to stay over that . So I think we should be ok.

Irish tourists intending to stay less than 30 days in Vietnam can now apply for a single entry e-visa through the Vietnam Immigration Department at https://evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn/.

Irish citizens travelling for purposes other than tourism, intending to stay longer than 30 days, or who require a multiple entry visa must apply through their nearest Vietnamese Embassy.

jenggg · 31-07-2018 1:50pm

john4321 wrote: »

Is that question for me? I have no experience of obtaining a visa this way. I thought you had to send your passport to London to get it processed. I was just trying to help the posters based on my own experiences.

Thank you yes. There's a "loose leaf" visa available from the Embassy where you apply online and they send you a visa without sending your passport. I was just doing what the travel agent recommended but maybe an e-visa would work too. They didn't seem to think it would though! So confusing!

Ha Long Bay · 31-07-2018 1:58pm

jenggg wrote: »

Thank you yes. There's a "loose leaf" visa available from the Embassy where you apply online and they send you a visa without sending your passport. I was just doing what the travel agent recommended but maybe an e-visa would work too. They didn't seem to think it would though! So confusing!

The e-visa is relatively new I have been to Vietnam on 3 occasions and last October was my first time using the e-visa before that I had used the visa on arrival. I think the embassy route is a lot more expensive also.

KBD85 · 31-07-2018 5:48pm

jenggg wrote: »

KBD85 I'm in exactly the same situation as you...but I didn't think there was anything particularly dodgy about it. Yes gmail account but.. I was told by a representative of Trailfinders that this was the correct website. I think they also mentioned that you can't get an e-visa anymore.. And the tour I'm going on have said you HAVE to have the Vietnam visa on joining the tour in Bangkok-that there's no way of obtaining after starting. I feel it's legit.. I hope!

So if you are travelling to vietnam for less than 30 days and you are flying in and out of THESE AIRPORTS then the electronic visa is the cheapest and handiest option for you which you apply for HERE.

Information obtained from the Irish embassy in Hanoi, Vietnam.

tallaghtfornia · 02-08-2018 1:02pm

KBD85 wrote: »

So if you are travelling to vietnam for less than 30 days and you are flying in and out of THESE AIRPORTS then the electronic visa is the cheapest and handiest option for you which you apply for HERE.

Information obtained from the Irish embassy in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Thanks for this - do you just go straight to the immigration counter with the print of of this visa ?

Ha Long Bay · 02-08-2018 4:31pm

tallaghtfornia wrote: »

Thanks for this - do you just go straight to the immigration counter with the print of of this visa ?

Yes straight to immigration if you have the E-Visa.

blackvalley · 10-12-2018 8:32pm

Hi.
Heading to Vietnam March 2019 so need to get visa sorted. We have Irish passports.
A lot of information online but so much that its confusing.
Has anyone got advice on best / easiest ways of getting visas based on recent experience.
Thanks in advance ( Mods feel free to move post)

Blackvalley

Alpha_zero · 10-12-2018 8:36pm

Visa is not available on arrival for Vietnam, if you are going to Thailand go the Vietnamese embassy in Bangkok and can get it in a day express service pay a little more.

steve-o · 10-12-2018 9:16pm

Get it online here... https://evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn/en_US/web/guest/khai-thi-thuc-dien-tu/cap-thi-thuc-dien-tu

Ha Long Bay · 10-12-2018 9:18pm

Alpha_zero wrote: »

Visa is not available on arrival for Vietnam, if you are going to Thailand go the Vietnamese embassy in Bangkok and can get it in a day express service pay a little more.

Visa on arrival is available in Vietnam once you have the VOA approval letter. As the other poster said easiest way is e-visa online.

Under His Eye · 11-12-2018 12:48am

VOA is only valid if flying to Vietnam.

Tipperary animal lover · 11-12-2018 11:23pm

I use vietnamvisa pro.com every year for last 10years with no problems at all, very straight forward and one of the cheapest to use, but if your only staying under 30 days evisa would be your best bet, either one is easy to obtain....

hybie · 16-01-2019 9:51pm

Hi Guys. For the e-visa, it seems a lot cheaper than going through the Embassy in London. Just want to check though, I'm flying toHong Kong first on holiday and then on to Vietnam with my Irish passport. Hong Kong isn't on the list of eligble e-visa countries (China is but it's different apparently) but obviously Ireland is. Just want to check if the visa is linked to your passport, I assume it doesn't matter what country you fly from??

I asked the Embassy in London but they couldn't/wouldn't advise.

Under His Eye · 16-01-2019 10:00pm

Once you have the visa it don't matter where you fly from.

Vietnam visa

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