Revisions to the Law on Entry, Exit, Transit and Residence of Foreigners in Việt Nam were debated yesterday by the National Assembly Committee for National Defence and Security.
The revisions would aim to create more favourable conditions for foreigners in Việt Nam and promote economic development. Regulations on visa exemptions for foreigners have been causing difficulties because they only allowed foreigners to return to the country 30 days after exiting.
Amending and supplementing some articles in the law would contribute to completing the legal system on immigration while meeting the requirements of administrative procedural reform and ensuring national defence and security, the meeting heard.
The numbers of foreign tourists entering Việt Nam by sea had been increasing in recent years. A large number of them were arriving in Việt Nam as part of military exchanges conducted by the Vietnamese Navy with other countries. This was why visa regulations needed amending, the conference heard.
In order to facilitate foreign entries to Việt Nam and enhance hi-tech applications at immigration control, the officials discussed the use of automatic control gates. The Government has asked the Ministry of Public Security and other relevant ministries to address this issue.
During yesterday’s meeting, committee members agreed with the necessity of the amendments to reduce these shortcomings and helped legalise the Party’s foreign policies, ensuring compliance with trade agreements Việt Nam had signed and meeting the requirements of international integration.
The committee agreed on a new regulation regarding changing visa purposes (tourism, business etc) in specific cases but with strict conditions. The regulation would help foreigners who were eligible to stay in Việt Nam to change their visa purposes to look for jobs and investment opportunities in the country. The regulation would also help save costs for foreigners trying to return, the committee said.
The Government also planned to decide on a list of countries whose citizens were eligible for e-visas and a list of border gates where they were accepted. The committee agreed with amendments to re-entry regulations for foreigners with visa exemptions. This would mean foreigners would not need to wait 30 days before returning to Việt Nam.
Source: Vietnamnews