Ministry seeks resumption of visa waiver for tourists from 24 countries

By Hoang Phong February 17, 2022 | 11:39 pm PT

American tourists pose for a photo on Nguyen Hue pedestrian street in HCMC, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Tam Linh

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Thursday has called for reviving the visa exemption policy for tourists from 24 countries that was in force before the pandemic.

It follows the government's decision to reopen borders to tourists on March 15 as it seeks to revive the beleaguered travel industry after nearly two years of closures.

Before the pandemic nationals of Belarus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, Russia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, and the U.K. were allowed to visit Vietnam for up to 15 days without a visa.

Visitors from most other ASEAN countries do not require a visa for up to 30 days. The waiver is for 21 days for visitors from the Philippines and 14 days for those from Brunei and Myanmar.

Kyrgyz nationals do not need a visa for travel up to 30 days while for Chileans it is 90 days.

The ministry also wants the resumption of e-visas for citizens of 46 countries that allows them to apply online for a 30-day, single-entry visa.