After a series of three positioning flights to begin my 2017 American Airlines Mileage Run on Qatar Airways I finally made it to Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam. I opted to arrive in Vietnam nearly 24 hours before the start of my journey because I wanted to make sure that no matter what, I wouldn’t miss my initial Qatar Airways flight. Additionally, if possible, I wanted to explore Vietnam for a little while before heading back to the United States.
While entering Vietnam is simple enough, US passport holders need to first apply for a Visa to enter the country. There are a few different methods you can choose from when applying for a Vietnam Visa. The first, and most traditional method is to send your passport and application to a Vietnam embassy. According to the Vietnam Embassy webpage this method takes at least 5 business days, but can be expedited. Expedited or not, this method requires you to put your passport in the mail which is something I’m not especially comfortable doing.
A second option is to visit a Vietnam Embassy in person with the proper documentation. In-person applications are subject to the same 2-5 day processing time as mailed applications, but at least you can keep an eye on your passport. Either method costs the same amount of money and requires payment in the form of a money order, cashiers check, or certified check.
Vietnam Visa On Arrival
Luckily for US travelers, there is a third option which I believe is easiest. Vietnam currently allows US passport holders to apply for a Visa On Arrival. This method requires the passport holder to apply for a Visa On Arrival online prior to departure. Applicants will then receive an approval letter which allows them to board a plane to Vietnam. Once in Vietnam, the applicant need only to present their valid passport, the approval letter, a completed visa application, and payment to receive their Vietnam Visa.
The process is extremely painless and is my preferred method since it doesn’t require me to put my passport in the mail. While the process is simple enough I didn’t exactly trust using this method until the moment I received my Visa and entered Vietnam for the first time.
Applying For A Vietnam Visa On Arrival
After doing a quick google search (or bing, or AskJeeves, I don’t care which search engine you use) you’ll quickly find a whole list of Visa On Arrival Websites. All of these sites have a few things in common. For starters, they all claim that their services are the “easiest” or “least expensive” options available. Secondly, each of these websites looks like a scam. Maybe that’s just my view as I don’t exactly feel comfortable sharing personal information with a website.
The good news is that most of these Vietnam Visa on Arrival websites seem to work just fine. Also, there really aren’t “good” or “bad” options. My advice is just to look for the least expensive option and give it a shot. I personally used VietnamVisa.Govt.VN for my Vietnam Visa on Arrival. I chose this site because it showed up #1 on google and offered competitive pricing.
Once you settle on a Vietnam Visa on Arrival website, you must next select which type of visa fits your needs. I opted for a 1-month multiple entry as it was only $3 more ($20 total) than a single entry option. I wasn’t exactly sure what my final travel plans, but I assumed that I’d enter Vietnam at least twice during my journey.
After selecting the Vietnam Visa on Arrival that fits your travel plans you must also select the processing time. The options are 2 working days, 1 working day, or 4 working hours. I chose the 2 working days option yet my Visa On Arrival letter arrived via email just a day later.
Avoid The Airport Fast-Track And Car Service
If you chose to use the website I did for attaining a Visa On Arrival make sure to avoid paying for the airport fast track service or car service. If you’re staying in Ho Chi Minh City there’s really no reason to pay $35 for a car service. Cab rides from Ho Chi Minh Airport (SGN) into the City Center cost less than 120,000 VND (or less than $5). Additionally, there is a shuttle bus that runs into the city every 30 minutes and costs just 20,000 VND (or less than $1).
Lastly, even when I tried to enter Vietnam during the peak midday arrival period clearing customs took just 15 minutes. I will admit that processing my Visa On Arrival was a little more confusing that I originally assumed, but if you’ve ever traveled internationally before you’ll be completely fine.
Receiving Your Vietnam Visa On Arrival Letter
After entering your personal information into the application page you must then proceed to the payment page. I chose to use a credit card to pay for my visa on arrival letter. I wasn’t quite sure if the visa on arrival website was safe and wanted the added layer of security that comes from paying with a credit card. I’m happy to say that there were no issues when it was all said and done.
You should receive a confirmation e-mail a few moments after submitting your application. Then, within two working days you’ll receive your Vietnam Visa approval letter. In total, VietnamVisa.Govt.VN processed my Visa application in less than 36 hours.
A little more than a day after submitting my application I received my Vietnam Visa letter. The letter looks a little bit sketchy at first glance. The cover page states that you’re one of some number of applications arriving to Vietnam within about a month-long time frame. My Visa on Arrival letter included 20 other travelers arriving from all over the world to different cities in Vietnam. Apparently, this is how Vietnam Visa Application letters work. Just make sure to double-check that your information is correctly listed on the subsequent pages. As long as you find your name, date of birth, and passport number listed correctly you should be fine.
Required Documents To Receive A Vietnam Visa On Arrival
In the email I received with my application letter from VietnamVisa.Govt.VN I also received set of visa instructions. The instructions informed that that Vietnam Visa On Arrival applicants should have the following when visiting the Visa on Arrival window in Vietnam airports:
- Original Passport, which is valid for at least 6-months following the arrival date.
- A Completed Entry Applicant Form. You can fill this form out at the Visa on Arrival window.
- I recommend printing and filling it out prior to your arrival as it speeds up the VOA process.
- Two 4×6 cm Passport Photos which have recently been taken.
- For this I actually copied the extra passport photo I had from Walgreens. I simply printed my photos on 8×11 white paper and cut each one down to size. Others have reported successfully using mobile phone selfies cut down to size with a solid white background.
- Lastly, the authorities in Vietnam can take your photo and print it out, but there is a fee associated with doing so.
- You MUST have all the pages of your Printed Application Letter.
- You should have had to present this letter to the airline prior to departing.
- Also, you MUST pay for your Visa on Arrival in CASH.
- Single Entry Visas (1 or 3 month) cost $25 USD upon arrival.
- Multiple Entry Visas (1 or 3 month) cost $50 USD upon arrival.
- The Vietnamese authorities let me leave the secure area to use an ATM and pay the $50 fee with 1,300,000 VND. This whole process took nearly an hour and cost me more than $20 in ATM and foreign transaction fees. Please, make sure to bring cash!
Getting My Vietnam Visa and Entering Vietnam!
After presenting the required documents to the authorities they’ll take your passport, a photo (just one), and cash payment. They’ll then direct you to take a seat and wait. No one in the waiting area seemed to know exactly what was going on. The process is made more difficult because the authorities speak very little english. It’s hard to know exactly what is going on while they process your visa application.
After waiting in the waiting area for 15 minutes I heard what I can only assume was my name over the PA system. I went up to the “Cashier” window and the customs agent handed my passport back to me. Within the pages of my passport was my shiny Vietnam Visa!
With passport and visa and hand I proceeded toward the customs booths too enter Ho Chi Minh Vietnam. At this point (12AM) there wasn’t a line and I made it past the customs agent in less than 2 minutes. I then went down to the arrivals hall, found my bus into the city, and enjoyed the shockingly jerky bus ride toward the city center.
Final Thoughts
Wow I can’t believe that worked! Honestly, it’s hard to believe how many websites offer Vietnam Visas on arrival. Even more surprising is that they all seem to work just fine. I had good luck with VietnamVisa.Govt.VN, but that doesn’t mean it’s the only website that works. Additionally, I’m not receiving any sort of compensation to promote their services.
In the end my Vietnam Visa on Arrival worked out just fine. Just make sure that you have your application letter in hand when trying to board your flight to Vietnam. Most airlines won’t let you board a flight terminating in Vietnam without a Visa or VOA application letter. Once you arrive in Vietnam you’ll have to visit the Visa on Arrival window (which is similar to the DMV) for them to print out your Visa. The whole process took just a few minutes to apply and just under 30 minutes to process in Vietnam. The process would have been even easier, but I just had to forget any cash and instead attempt yet another international trip with only credit cards.
