As you know, from 30 August 2016 short term Vietnam visa (1 month, 3 months) for United States passport holders are no longer available. Whether you stay in the country for 2 days or 1 week you are granted 1 year tourist or business visa. Other nationalities who are not in the Vietnam visa exemption list can still apply for 1 month or 3 months visa as usual.
Up till now, United States is the only country whose citizens are granted 1 year Vietnam tourist visa according to the bilateral diplomatic note No. 173/NG-LS, in order to further develop the bilateral relationship between the two countries on the basis of mutual understanding and benefit, in order to enhance the relations in the fields of economy, culture, science and technology, and to encourage travels of citizens of both countries. One important thing with 1 year tourist visa is that the US citizens are allowed to stay in Vietnam maximum 90 days each visit then they will need to do visa run (or in-country visa extension) for other periods of 90 days staying. On the contrary, 1 year business visa will give the US travelers a permission to stay in Vietnam for 1 year continuously.
Apply for visa at the Vietnam Consulates
From San Francisco, the U.S passport holders or non-U.S passport holders can apply for visa at the General Consulate of Vietnam in San Francisco in person. You should prepare full required documents before coming there to save your time. The required documents for tourist visa including:
- Visa application form (will get from the Vietnam Embassy directly or download from their website);
- Two photos (usually 4 cm x 6 cm or 3 cm x 4 cm but not strictly);
- Your original passport (will be hold during your visa being processed);
- Visa fee;
- Processing time: 3-5 working days
A business visa normally requires more sponsored letter and documents from the agency or company in Vietnam.
Apply for 1 year tourist or business Vietnam visa on arrival
Visa on arrival is an alternative way to obtain a visa to Vietnam in addition to the traditional way of obtaining visa at the Vietnam Consulates in San Francisco with much cheaper cost and very simple process. Of course, the United States travelers can apply for 1 year tourist or business visa on arrival easily, how about other non-US nationalities?
6 months and 1 year Vietnam visa on arrival procedures for other nationalities coming from Antarctica, Asia, Oceania, Europe, North America, and South America is very simple too. The 6 month and 1 year visa for non-US citizens is categorized as DN business visa. The travelers can use this visa for the purposes of working with Vietnamese Enterprises or seeking an investment opportunity in Vietnam or other tourist purposes without any problem.
In order to apply for 1 year visa for US citizens, or 6 months and 1 year visa for non-US citizens, the visa process is totally the same:
- Step 1: Go online at www.visumvietnamonline.com/apply-online/ to fill out the form with required information;
- Step 2: Confirm the entered information and pay the service fee;
- Step 3: After 2 working days (normal service) or 1 working day (urgent service), a visa approval letter will be delivered to the applicants’ registered email.
- Step 4: The applicants will need to print out the letter, fill out the Entry and exit form in advance to save their time at arrival airport and bring along with their passport, 2 photos, and the stamping fee 135 USD (for 1 year visa) or 95 USD (for less than 6 months visa) in cash. All will be handed over the Immigration Officer at arrival airport to get a full visa stamp.