Informational only, not legal advice. Verify with official sources before relying on this.

Know Abroad

VietnamVietnam

Visa & Immigration

Last verified August 15, 2026

Written for U.S. passport holders

Common Entry Types

E-visa
As a U.S. citizen, you're not visa-free in Vietnam. You need an e-visa before you travel, applied for online, valid up to 90 days as either single-entry ($25) or multiple-entry ($50), taking 3–5 business days to process. Your entry point (airport or border crossing) must match exactly what you declared on the application.

Overstay Consequences

  • Under Decree 282/2025/NĐ-CP (effective December 15, 2025, replacing the older Decree 144/2021/NĐ-CP), overstay fines were significantly increased: roughly $19–$76 for 1–15 days overstayed, doubling for the 16–29 day bracket.
  • Immigration authorities can order deportation for overstays of 16 days or more, and can deport immediately if you can't pay the fine.
  • Deportation involves detention during processing, a mandatory exit deadline, an exit visa requirement, and the deportee pays all associated costs (flights, admin fees, detention expenses); it can also come with a re-entry ban.

Renewal Path

  1. 1An e-visa can't be renewed in-country. If you need more time, apply for a new one or leave and re-enter within your visa's remaining validity.

The Gotcha

Vietnam is a scam target for exactly this kind of paperwork: because the e-visa is applied for entirely online, fraudulent look-alike websites regularly mimic the official portal to collect your passport details and payment. Vietnam's own immigration department has published an explicit warning about this. Only use the government's actual current domains, not the first result that looks official.

Sources

This page was drafted from the primary sources below. Rules change, so check the linked page directly before relying on any of this.