Vietnam Visa-Free Countries (15 to 45 Days)

Several dozen countries have bilateral visa-free agreements with Vietnam. Citizens of these countries can enter for 15, 30, or 45 days without applying for a visa beforehand — just show up at the border with a valid passport and a return ticket.

The list is bigger than most people realise and has grown in recent years as Vietnam liberalises tourism rules.

Rules current as of 2026-05-17. Confirm via the Vietnamese embassy in your country before travel.

The full list

45 days

• Belarus
• Russia

30 days

• Cambodia (ASEAN)
• Indonesia (ASEAN)
• Kyrgyzstan
• Laos (ASEAN)
• Myanmar (ASEAN)
• Singapore (ASEAN)
• Thailand (ASEAN)

21 days

• Philippines (ASEAN — special arrangement)

15 days

• Brunei (ASEAN)
• Denmark
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Italy
• Japan
• Norway
• Russia (also has the 45-day option above for tourism)
• South Korea
• Spain
• Sweden
• United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland)
• Chile (only for diplomatic/official passports)

Phú Quốc-only (30 days, any nationality)

If you fly directly to Phú Quốc and remain on the island, any nationality gets 30 days visa-free under the island's special scheme. See Phú Quốc visa-free.

What the visa-free entry covers

• Tourism
• Business meetings, conferences, short courses
• Visiting family or friends
• Transit through Vietnam to a third country

It does NOT cover:

• Paid employment in Vietnam
• Studying in a formal Vietnamese programme
• Journalism in a reporting capacity (requires PV press visa)

Key conditions

Condition	Requirement
Passport validity	6+ months beyond intended date of departure from Vietnam
Return / onward ticket	Sometimes asked for; airlines almost always require it for boarding
Sufficient funds	Officially required; rarely checked
Entry into the country in question	Must use a recognised international port — major airports + land borders

Re-entry rules

You can re-enter Vietnam on visa-free entry again without a minimum gap between exits and re-entries — there's no longer a 30-day cooling-off rule that existed in earlier policy cycles.

However: repeated back-to-back visa-free entries used as a long-stay workaround (the "permanent tourist" pattern) are increasingly flagged. See visa runs. For genuine long stays, switch to a proper visa class.

When to use visa-free vs e-visa

Situation	Use visa-free	Use e-visa
Visit of 14 days or less	✓	Either works
Visit of 15–45 days, eligible country	✓	Either works
Visit longer than your country's visa-free allowance		✓
Multiple-entry needed within 90 days		✓ (e-visa is multi-entry; visa-free reset depends on the bilateral)
Travelling on an unlisted-nationality passport		✓ (or eligible visa class)
Family member on a different passport that isn't listed	Person with listed passport uses visa-free; other person needs e-visa	✓ for the second person

A common pattern for tourists from the UK / France / Germany / Japan / Korea: enter visa-free for the first 15 days, then if you want more time apply for the e-visa from inside Vietnam to extend — though "extension" of visa-free entry is not technically how this works (you must exit and re-enter on the e-visa instead). See visa extensions.

Practical mechanics

At the airport / land border:

1. Present passport at Immigration.
2. Officer checks the passport, the date, and the stamp/sticker policy.
3. You receive an entry stamp showing the allowed duration.
4. No paperwork, no fees, no advance form.

Some airlines (Vietnam Airlines, Bambo Airways) will ask for a return ticket at check-in. Have an onward booking ready.

When the visa-free entry can be refused

Rare but possible:

• Passport damage, less than 6 months validity
• Suspected purpose-of-visit mismatch (e.g., bringing equipment that suggests paid work)
• Previous Vietnamese overstay or deportation history
• Suspected "permanent tourist" pattern on repeated entries
• Country-specific events (occasional emergency border closures)

In all these cases the officer has discretion to refuse entry; you'd be put on the next flight out at your own cost.

Children on visa-free entries

Children with their own passport are treated independently — they enter under their own nationality rules. If your child's passport is from a country not on the visa-free list (e.g., child of dual nationals where one passport is not eligible), they need a separate e-visa.