Travel Insurance/eSim/eVisa

Visa & eVisa for Vietnam

First find out whether your passport needs a visa at all. If it does — or if you want to stay longer than the visa-free days — the eVisa is the online route.

Visa-free for 45 days

Passports from these countries can enter Vietnam without a visa and stay up to 45 days from the day they arrive, for a holiday, a family visit or a short business trip:

• Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, Russia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom — approved until 14 March 2028.
• Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Hungary, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland — approved from 15 August 2025 until 14 August 2028.

Some neighbouring countries in Asia also get visa-free stays, but the number of days is shorter and differs by country — and has changed recently — so ask the Vietnamese embassy or check the official site for your passport.

If you are visa-free, look at the departure date the officer stamps at immigration and check that it is 45 days after you arrive. The UK government warns that it can't be changed once you've left the border post, and a wrong date can get you accused of overstaying.

Everyone else: get a visa first

If your passport isn't on the list — for example, the US State Department says US citizens need a visa — you must have one before you travel. Most visitors use the eVisa: an online application that gives a stay of up to 90 days, as a single-entry or a multiple-entry visa. The same eVisa also works if you are on the visa-free list but want to stay more than 45 days.

How the eVisa works

• Use the official government site only. It is evisa.gov.vn. Look-alike sites that add their own service fees are common, and the US Embassy tells travellers to use only the official Government of Vietnam website.
• Cost. The government fee is US$25 for a single-entry visa and US$50 for a multiple-entry visa of under 90 days (Circular 28/2026/TT-BTC, in force since 1 April 2026). The portal shows the final amount before you pay.
• Time. Applications are usually processed in 3 to 5 working days after the Immigration Department receives the application and payment. That can change, so apply well before you book non-refundable plans.
• Match your passport exactly. Every detail has to be the same as on the passport you will travel with, and you must enter and leave on that same passport.
• Choose your entry and exit points carefully. They must match the airport, land crossing or seaport you picked on the application. Plan your route first: this app's five stops run from Hanoi in the north to Ho Chi Minh City in the south, so many travellers fly in at one end and out at the other.
• Print it. Bring the printed eVisa together with your passport.
• No extensions inside Vietnam. An eVisa generally can't be renewed or extended once you are in the country, and it is normally granted only for the period you asked for.

Before you board

• Passport: valid for at least 6 months after the day you arrive, undamaged, with at least 2 blank pages. The UK government notes travellers have been refused entry over damaged passports.
• Pre-arrival declaration: foreign visitors arriving by air are asked to complete an online declaration before they land — the US State Department says no earlier than 3 days before arrival. The UK government says it is encouraged at Ho Chi Minh City's Tan Son Nhat airport and could be extended to other airports at short notice.
• Cash: declare more than 15 million dong or US$5,000 (or the equivalent) when you arrive or leave.
• Staying on: overstaying, even by accident or because of a medical emergency, can mean fines and delays in being allowed to leave.
• Medication: carry prescription medicine in your hand luggage with a copy of the prescription.

eSim for Vietnam

An eSim is a digital SIM: you install a data plan on your phone by scanning a QR code, with no little plastic card to swap. Your normal SIM stays in the phone, so you keep your home number.

• Check your phone first. It has to support eSim — Klook lists the supported phones on its Vietnam eSim page. Dialling *#06# usually shows an EID number on an eSim-capable phone.
• Local networks. The Klook listing, "5G eSIM Vietnam | Viettel", runs on Vietnamese networks — Viettel and Vinaphone in 5G, and MobiFone in 4G LTE.
• Pick your data. Plans run from 500 MB up to 50 GB, with validity from 1 to 30 days. There are also unlimited plans, with 15 GB a day at full speed and then 1 Mbps.
• Instant delivery. The eSim arrives right after you buy it. Install it from the Klook app, by scanning the QR code, or by typing in the SM-DP+ details by hand.
• The clock starts in Vietnam. The plan's usage and validity begin only when the eSim first connects to a network there, so you can install it at home and it won't start counting until you land.
• Data only. The plan is data-only — the listing doesn't mention calls or texts. WhatsApp, Messenger, Viber and similar apps keep working over data.
• Hotspot is supported, but anything you share counts against your data.
• What it costs: Klook's listing shows prices starting from US$1.05; the price depends on the data amount and the number of days you choose, so check the page for the plan you want.

Install the eSim at home on Wi-Fi, before you fly. It begins counting only once it connects in Vietnam, so you can have data ready for maps, ride-hailing apps and your hotel's messages as soon as you land.

Travel insurance for Vietnam

Check that your policy covers medical treatment and evacuation abroad before you go — a hospital stay or a flight home on a stretcher can cost far more than the cover does.

SafetyWing's Nomad Insurance is one option for short trips and long ones. Its "Essential" plan is travel medical insurance. Here is what its page says, in plain words:

• Medical treatment and hospital stays are covered up to US$250,000, with evacuation to a better-equipped hospital covered up to US$100,000 (a lifetime limit).
• Lost checked luggage is covered up to US$500 per item. A travel delay of 3 to 8 hours pays $60, and 8 hours or more pays $150.
• Scooter and motorbike accidents: motor accidents are covered only if you are properly licensed, wearing all required safety equipment and not intoxicated. If you plan to ride a scooter in Vietnam, check that your licence covers the bike you rent — before you ride.
• Not covered: pre-existing conditions, maternity care and cancer treatment are excluded from Essential. The activities that count as covered leisure sports are on a list in the policy — read it if you plan to dive, climb or kayak.
• Trip cancellation: the page lists trip interruption for a death in the family and travel delay, but not general trip cancellation. If you are paying for non-refundable tours or hotels, look at the policy wording or add separate cover.
• Price: SafetyWing's page shows Essential at US$62.72 every 4 weeks for ages 18–39, and Complete at US$177.50 a month for the same ages. Other ages cost different amounts — its calculator shows them. Paying up front for 4 weeks to 364 days takes 10% off.
• Buying: you can buy before you leave or while you are already travelling. Cover runs in periods of up to 364 days and includes up to 30 days of medical cover in your home country on limited visits home.

Those limits are for the Essential plan. SafetyWing also sells a broader "Complete" plan with different terms, so check which plan you are choosing. Its page doesn't state the deductible or the full lists of covered activities and exclusions — read the policy documents before paying.