Visa-free entry for citizens of 5 Western European countries.

The government has just issuedResolution 46/NQ-CPVisa exemption is granted to citizens of 5 countries: the United Kingdom, the Republic of France, the Federal Republic of Germany, the Kingdom of Spain, and the Republic of Italy when entering Vietnam.

Specifically, citizens of the five aforementioned countries will be exempt from visa requirements when entering Vietnam, with a temporary stay of no more than 15 days from the date of entry, regardless of passport type or purpose of entry, provided they meet all the conditions stipulated by Vietnamese law.

This policy will be implemented for a period of one year, from July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2016, and will be reviewed and extended in accordance with Vietnamese law.

At the regular meeting in May 2015, the Government agreed with the solutions presented by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to overcome difficulties and develop Vietnam's tourism industry, including expanding the list of countries exempt from visa requirements, issuing e-visas, and streamlining visa issuance procedures.

In Resolution No. 92/NQ-CP on some solutions to promote the development of Vietnamese tourism in the new era, issued at the end of 2014, the Government also requested the Ministry of Public Security to take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and relevant agencies to review, research and propose expanding the scope of countries eligible for visa exemption while ensuring national security and social order and safety.

It is known that Vietnam has unilaterally waived visa requirements for 7 countries (Japan, South Korea, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, and Russia), and waived visa requirements on a reciprocal basis with 9 ASEAN countries. Recently, the Government also issued a Resolution on temporary visa exemption for citizens of the Republic of Belarus.

Since visa exemption was implemented (in 2014), the number of Japanese tourists to Vietnam has increased 2.43 times; from South Korea, it has increased 3.6 times; and from Russia (since 2009), it has increased 7.45 times…

According to Chinhphu.vn