If you are planning on visiting Vietnam in the near future, you will need to be aware of the Vietnam entrance requirements before planning your travel. If you do not meet the passport, VISA, or immunization requirements, you could be denied entry into the country. I would not leave this planning to the last minute as you may be left without enough time to rectify any issues.

To assist you in making sure you meet the necessary entrance requirements for Vietnam, I have provided an outline of all the entrance requirements in this article. Furthermore, I also created a handy checklist that I linked to below that you can use to track the requirements as you meet them.

Download the Vietnam Entrance Requirements Checklist

Vietnam Passport Requirements

One of the most important of the Vietnam entrance requirements that you will need to consider when planning your trip is the country’s passport requirements. In order to be allowed into Vietnam, not only will your passport need to be valid, but it will need to be valid for at least 6-months after your date of arrival. So, if your passport is set to expire within 6-months of your arrival date, you will need to renew your passport before you travel to Vietnam.

Vietnam VISA Requirements

Depending on your nationality, you may be required to apply for a VISA prior to traveling to Vietnam. If you are a citizen of one of the VISA exempt countries listed below, you will not need to apply for a VISA prior to travel. However, if the country you are from is not on this list, you will need to apply for an eVISA from the Vietnam Immigration Department website.

IMPORTANT NOTE: When you apply for your eVISA, you will need to have a scanned picture of your passport image page and a passport photo. There are certain requirements for the passport and passport photo images, so make sure you read the latest instructions carefully.

COUNTRIES ELIGIBLE FOR 14-DAY VISA EXEMPTION

• Brunei
• Myanmar

COUNTRIES ELIGIBLE FOR 21-DAY VISA EXEMPTION

• The Philippines

COUNTRIES ELIGIBLE FOR 30-DAY VISA EXEMPTION

COUNTRIES ELIGIBLE FOR 45-DAY VISA EXEMPTION

COUNTRIES ELIGIBLE FOR 90-DAY VISA EXEMPTION

• Chile
• Panama

VIETNAM VISA RESOURCES

Please note, applying for a VISA can often times be a confusing experience. If you would like some assistance applying for your eVISA, I have included links to some resources for you to use below.

• Official Guide to VISAs for Vietnam
• Vietnam Immigration Department eVISA Frequently Asked Questions
• Vietnam VISA Advice Facebook Group

Vietnam Immunization Requirements

Important Note: I am not a medical doctor and do not have any medical experience. The information provided in this section is a summary of information that I got from the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States for travel to Vietnam. I am providing you this information to help bring awareness of the necessary vaccinations to you, but consultation of my guide should not replace a discussion about your travels with your doctor or a travel medical clinic.

One of the most important, and yet most often overlooked, aspects of travel is the necessary vaccinations that are required or recommended to keep you safe and healthy when you travel. Before you depart for Vietnam, you are going to want to make sure that you have all of the proper vaccinations.

Some of these vaccinations, like the Yellow Fever vaccination, are included in the Vietnam entrance requirements if you are travelling to Vietnam from certain high-risk locations. Other vaccinations, such as a flu shot and the Rabies vaccine, are recommended, but not required. For your convenience, I have summarized the CDC’s recommendations on vaccines and healthcare for travelers visiting Vietnam for you to review below.

Recommended Travel Vaccinations for Vietnam

There are a number of vaccinations that the CDC recommends that you get before traveling to Vietnam, which I have outlined for you below. If you are traveling to Vietnam from a destination where Yellow Fever is common, even if it is only a long layover, then you will be required to show proof of vaccination before you will be allowed into the country. The other vaccinations on this list are not in the Vietnam entrance requirements, but they are strongly recommended.

READ MORE:

Rabies Vaccination for Travel – Why I think All Travelers Should Consider It

Routine Vaccinations for Vietnam

In addition, the vaccinations that are recommended for travel to Vietnam specifically, there are other routine vaccinations that you should make sure that you are current on before traveling anywhere in this world. For an overview of the routine vaccinations recommended by the CDC, please review the chart that I have included below.

Non-Vaccine Preventable Diseases

In addition to the recommended vaccinations, there are other health precautions that you should take when traveling to Vietnam to avoid getting sick. While these health precautions aren’t on the list of Vietnam entrance requirements, they are important measures that you can take to make sure you don’t get ill while traveling.

aVOID CONTAMINATED WATER

When traveling, one of the easiest ways to get sick is to come into contact with contaminated water. There are a number of illnesses that are found in Vietnam that can be spread by either drinking or swimming in contaminated water. Before you depart for your trip, you will want to be aware of the illnesses below. To avoid getting sick, make sure you stick to drinking bottled water and avoid swimming in stagnant pools.

AVOID BUG BITES

Another easy way to get sick while traveling is to be bitten by bugs that carry illnesses. The most common insect that spreads diseases to humans is the mosquito, but ticks and flies can also spread serious illnesses thru their bites. To make sure you don’t fall ill from an insect bite while in Vietnam, I would recommend bringing insect repellent and mosquito netting with you when you visit and avoid getting bitten by bugs as much as possible.

be aware of airborne AND droplet illnesses

Out of all the ways that illnesses can be spread, the diseases that are airborne are the hardest to protect yourself against. After all, you don’t have to physically touch or be touched by an infected person or animal and there isn’t a repellant that you can spray on to avoid catching these illnesses.

This is why it is always important to be observant of those with whom you interact while traveling and make sure you don’t expose yourself to potentially harmful airborne illnesses. According to the CDC, the particular airborne illnesses that you should be aware of while traveling to Vietnam are as follows:

Vietnam COVID-19 Entrance Requirements

On May 15, 2022 all of the COVID-19 travel restrictions for entry into Vietnam were lifted. While it is still recommended that you get the COVID-19 vaccination prior to travel, neither the vaccination or pre-travel testing is now required to visit the country.

Vietnam Customs Restrictions

FREE IMPORT

When traveling to Vietnam, it is important to understand what types of items that you are free to bring into the country and which items you will be charged or prohibited from bringing in. According to the VISAHQ.com, website, the following items are considered free-import items, but with limits (as described below).

• 400 cigarettes or 100 cigars or 50g of tobacco.
• 1.5 liters of spirits, 2 liters of alcohol containing up to 22% volume of alcohol, or 3 liters of beer (or similar light alcoholic beverages).
• 3Kg of coffee.
• 5Kg of tea.
• Non-commercial number of gifts and unused items of up to the value of VND 5,000,000.
• Items for personal use (clothing, toiletries etc…).

PROHIBITED ITEMS

Before you will be allowed into Vietnam, you will also need to clear customs to be sure you aren’t carrying any prohibited items with you. For instance, travelers are strictly prohibited from being the following items into Vietnam:

• Narcotics.
• Pornography.
• Counterfeit items.
• Cultural artefacts and other objects of cultural importance.
• Explosive material.

CONTROLLED ITEMS

In addition to these prohibited items, the government of Vietnam has placed limits on the quantity of other items that can be brought into the country. If you plan to travel with any of the following items when visiting Vietnam, you will want to plan accordingly so that you do not violate the Vietnam entrance requirements:

• Live animals (Pets) – health certificate required along with complete and valid inoculations. Contact nearest embassy to obtain permission.
• Endangered species and any products or parts thereof as outlined by CITES maybe be brought in only with CITES permission.
• Medication.

Vietnam Currency Restrictions

The final aspect of the Vietnam entrance requirements that you will want to make sure you comply with when traveling to Vietnam is the amount of currency you plan on bringing to the country. When visiting Vietnam, like all countries, you can’t just bring any amount of currency that you want into the country or leave with any amount of currency when visiting. According to the US State Department website, the government of Vietnam has the following currency limits and regulations in place:

• No currency restrictions for entry into Vietnam. However, Vietnamese Dong in excess of VND 150,000,000 or foreign currency in excess of 5,000 U.S. dollars or equivalent must be declared.
• No currency restrictions when leaving Vietnam. However, Vietnamese Dong in excess of VND 150,000,000 or foreign currency in excess of 5,000 U.S. dollars or equivalent must be declared.

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