The Prime Minister of Vietnam Vietnam has proposed expanding its visa waiver scheme to several additional countries in a bid to boost tourism and make Vietnam a more attractive destination for travelers.
He also urged collaboration between ministries to waive visas for tourists from selected countries, VisaGuide.World reports.
On the other hand, the countries targeted for the possible visa waiver have not yet been announced, underscoring Vietnam’s proactive approach to revitalizing its tourism sector and attracting more foreign tourists.
Vietnam Aims To Expand Its Visa Waiver Scheme As Its Regional Counterparts
Currently, Vietnam allows visa exemptions for travelers from 25 countries, a figure that represents a lower number than its regional counterparts. For example, Malaysia and Singapore offer visa-free entry to citizens from 162 countries, the Philippines to 157 countries, and Thailand to 93 countries.
In addition, this initiative came after considering that Vietnam’s neighboring countries like Thailand and India are expanding their visa-free policies to new destinations by October of this year.
18 Million International Tourists Expected to Visit Vietnam Until the End of 2024
Despite the challenges posed by a four percent drop in international visitors from pre-pandemic levels in the first half of this year, Vietnam again set an ambitious target of attracting 18 million international tourists by the end of 2024.
According to government data, during the first half of the current year, Vietnam welcomed a total of 8.8 million international visitors. At the same time, the latter also aims to attract 18 million international tourists by the end of the year.
In February of this year, Vietnam planned to introduce visas on arrival and extend residence visas to 36 months with multiple entries, aiming to boost tourism.
The main target markets that the country aimed to further develop its tourism included the following regions:
- Europe
- North America
- India
- Middle East
- Northeast Asia
About two months later, Vietnam revealed that it was also in discussions with 15 countries for visa-free travel and another 80 countries for reciprocal visa waivers for diplomatic passport holders.
Regarding the plan, Deputy Hoang Van Cuong raised concerns about Vietnam’s limited visa-free entry to just 28 countries despite negotiations with more nations.
Vietnam grants a three-month tourist visa to citizens of all countries and territories. As of August 2023, it has also increased the visa-free stay to 45 days for citizens from 13 countries, including those as follows:
- Germany
- France
- Italy
- Spain
- UK
- Russia
- Japan
- South Korea
- Some Nordic nations