Vietnam will continue to collect opinions from ambassadors and businesses worldwide to consider adding more countries to its visa exemption and e-visa policies
The Vietnamese Government agreed on Tuesday to reinstate pre-pandemic entry and exit procedures for foreigners and Vietnamese living overseas from March 15.
Related: It’s official: Vietnam visa waiver program for foreign nationals will last for three years, starting from today
In a notice, Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Phạm Bình Minh said the procedures would be resumed to the level before COVID-19 restrictions were introduced in early 2020, based on the Law on Entry into, Exit from, Transit through, and Residence in Vietnam, the Vietnam News Agency reported.
The Deputy PM also asks the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other related agencies to implement the Government’s Resolution No.32/NQ-CP (issued earlier today) on visa exemption for citizens from 13 countries: Germany, France, Italia, Spain, United Kingdom, Denmark, Russia, Japan, South Korea, Norway, Finland, Belarus, and Sweden.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall assume the prime responsibility for and coordinate with ministries and agencies in formulating immigration policies with partners within the framework of bilateral and multilateral relations.
It will also continue to negotiate with other countries on the recognition of each other’s COVID-19 vaccine passports, facilitating Vietnamese citizens travelling abroad; promote guidelines for the application of vaccine passports by foreigners in Vietnam; and notify relevant countries/territories about the change in Vietnam’s immigration policy.
The Ministry of Health shall provide guidance on medical conditions for people entering the country in accordance with the new situation.
With the number of daily Covid cases in Vietnam increasing rapidly, tightening entry rules for foreign arrivals “is no longer essential.”
The Ministry of Public Security will strengthen the residence management for foreigners entering according to regulations and pandemic prevention and control measures.
It is expected that further details on the resumption of procedures will be made available soon, as today marks the date Vietnam fully reopens international tourism, according to Vietnam News Agency.
Vietnam closed its borders in March 2020. It partially reopened to tourists last November with a vaccine passport program and has attracted 10,000 arrivals since. But the program requires visitors to book package tours and stay within a resort or hotel, which failed to interest many tourists, and many visitors have been overseas Vietnamese coming to see their relatives.
Related
Source: Vietnam Insider