Vietnam Visa for US Citizens (2026): What Actually Works
The Vietnam e-visa process for Americans — what the form actually asks, what trips people up, and what to fix before you fly. Written from Da Nang, updated 2026.
Vietnam Visa for US Citizens (2026)
American passports get no visa-free entry to Vietnam — zero days, no exceptions, no “tourist stamp on arrival” anymore. What you do instead is an e-visa: apply online, pay $25, print the PDF, show it at the gate. If you do this a week before the flight the whole thing takes twenty minutes. If you do it the night before, it may not be ready in time.
This guide is the version I wish I’d had before my first trip — what the form really asks for, what catches Americans out, and the handful of decisions that matter.
The only site to use
evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn — the URL is ugly because it’s the actual Vietnamese Immigration Department. Everything else that looks like it, claims “official partner,” or charges $90 for a “rush processing service” is a third-party agent marking up the same government form. If your Google search lands on anything else, close the tab.
Google has been flooded with lookalike sites. Check the URL before you start typing passport numbers.
What you get and what it costs
| Option | Fee | Validity | Stay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single-entry e-visa | $25 | 90 days | Up to 90 days continuous |
| Multi-entry e-visa | $50 | 90 days | Up to 90 days total, any number of entries |
The single-entry covers 95% of trips. Pay the extra $25 for multi-entry only if you’re doing something like Vietnam → Cambodia (Angkor) → back into Vietnam — a single-entry voids the moment you cross a land border out.
Fees go straight to the Vietnamese government. They’re non-refundable if the application is rejected.
The form, section by section
Budget 20 minutes. You’ll need: your passport open to the bio page, a recent passport-style photo (they want 4×6 cm, front-facing, white background, no glasses), and a card that works for international payments.
Personal details — exactly as they appear on your passport. Middle names included. If your passport says “ROBERT JAMES SMITH,” type that, not “Bob Smith.” This is the single most common rejection reason.
Passport number — US passport numbers are nine digits, usually starting with a letter. Enter it with no spaces, letter included.
Intended dates and port of entry — You pick the date you plan to arrive and the airport. Your visa is valid from that date for 90 days. Pick a date a few days before your actual flight to give yourself buffer — if your flight is delayed you don’t want a visa that hasn’t activated yet. For port of entry, pick the airport you’re flying into: Tan Son Nhat (SGN) for Ho Chi Minh City, Noi Bai (HAN) for Hanoi, Da Nang (DAD) for central Vietnam. If you’re crossing a land border from Cambodia or Laos, pick the specific crossing.
Photo upload — They want 4×6 cm, white background, and no glasses. Phone selfies sometimes get rejected for being too casual. If you’re unsure, any CVS or Walgreens in the US will print a passport photo for around $12 and you can scan it.
Payment — Visa, Mastercard, or Amex. US cards occasionally get declined on the first attempt because of international-transaction filters; if it fails, call your bank, clear the flag, and retry within the same session.
You get an application code on screen. Save it. That’s how you check status.
Timing
Official processing: 3 working days. Real-world: most approvals come back in 48 hours, but I’ve seen cases push to 5 business days during holiday surges (late January for Tết, late April around Reunification Day, early September around National Day). Apply a week out. Not three days out. A week.
Once approved, the e-visa arrives by email as a PDF. Print two copies — one for the airline check-in counter (some airlines refuse to board you without a printed visa, even if you have it on your phone), one for the immigration officer. Yes, you need to print it. Yes, a phone screenshot is technically accepted at immigration but has been refused at airline check-in in the past year. Print it.
Extending your stay
You can’t. An e-visa is not extendable from inside Vietnam — the Immigration Department doesn’t renew them, and visa agencies can’t either.
If you want to stay past 90 days, the only legal path is to leave the country and come back on a new visa. Common run: fly Bangkok or Phnom Penh, apply for a new e-visa from there (same portal, same $25), wait 3 days, fly back. Penh is the cheaper and faster run — $80 round-trip from Saigon, two hours, and the Cambodian e-visa lets you in without pre-arranging anything.
Overstaying is a real mistake. Fines start around $25/day and escalate. Serious overstays get you banned from re-entry for 1-3 years. Don’t do it.
”What about the digital nomad visa?”
Vietnam still doesn’t have one. As of early 2026, there’s no visa category named “digital nomad,” “remote worker,” or equivalent. Working remotely on an e-visa — i.e., opening Slack at a Da Nang coworking space — is, technically, a violation of the e-visa terms, which specify tourism and short business meetings.
Enforcement is functionally zero for individuals using their own laptop. Immigration isn’t trawling cafés. But the rule is the rule and if you’re planning a year in Vietnam, get a proper business visa through a sponsoring company or a temporary residence card via marriage/investment. Agencies in HCMC and Hanoi handle the sponsorship route for around $400-800 depending on the current political weather.
Things that catch Americans out
- Name mismatch. Passport says “JOHN ROBERT SMITH,” form gets “John Smith” because that’s how you sign. Rejection, no refund, reapply.
- Passport expiry. Vietnam requires 6 months validity on arrival. A US passport that expires in July won’t get you in for a January trip. Check before applying.
- Missing pages. Two blank visa pages required. Fliers with heavily-stamped passports get bounced at immigration.
- Card declined. International transactions on a Vietnamese government portal look sketchy to US issuer fraud algorithms. Call the bank before applying.
- Wrong port of entry. If you list HAN and fly into SGN, immigration will often wave you through but has the right to deny entry. Pick the correct airport.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long can a US citizen stay in Vietnam on an e-visa?
Up to 90 days continuous on the $25 single-entry e-visa, counted from your actual arrival date (not the date you selected on the form). The multi-entry e-visa also tops out at 90 days total, just split across multiple trips.
Do I need a visa to fly into Da Nang from the US?
Yes. Entry rules are national — the same e-visa works for Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, or any land border. When applying, just select Da Nang International (DAD) as your port of entry if that’s where you’re landing first.
Can I extend my Vietnam e-visa while I’m already in the country?
No. E-visas are non-extendable. If you want to stay longer, you need to exit Vietnam and apply for a new one from abroad (Phnom Penh and Bangkok are the usual runs), or arrange a business-sponsored visa through an agency.
What’s the actual cost of a Vietnam e-visa in 2026?
$25 for single-entry 90 days, $50 for multi-entry 90 days. That’s the government fee on the official portal. Third-party agents charge $40-80 on top for the same government visa.
What documents do I need for the e-visa application?
Your US passport (valid 6+ months past entry, two blank pages), a 4×6 cm passport-style photo (white background, no glasses), a scan of the passport bio page, an email address for the approval, a working international credit/debit card for the $25 fee, and your intended arrival date and airport.
Can I legally work remotely on a Vietnam tourist e-visa?
Not technically, though enforcement against individuals is effectively nil. The e-visa terms specify tourism and short business meetings. If you’re living and working remotely in Vietnam long-term (6+ months), get a business visa through a sponsoring agency — around $400-800 and worth it for the peace of mind.
Is the Vietnam e-visa single-entry or multi-entry by default?
You choose on the form. Single-entry at $25 is the default and fits most trips. Multi-entry at $50 makes sense if you’re doing a regional loop (Cambodia, Laos, Thailand) and re-entering Vietnam.
What happens if my e-visa application is rejected?
The $25 is not refunded. Rejections are usually fixable: wrong passport number format, photo doesn’t meet specs, name mismatch. Correct the error and submit a new application. If you keep getting rejected, apply through the Vietnamese Embassy in Washington D.C. or one of the consulates — longer, more paperwork, but a human reviews it.
Visa rules change. We update this page quarterly and cross-check against the Immigration Department’s official portal. For live policy, always confirm on evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn before booking flights.