Travelers Can Now Stay In This Popular Southeast Asian Country For 3 Months

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Southeast Asia has long been a favorite among budget backpackers, luxury seekers, and digital nomads alike.

Since Southeast Asia has one of the lowest costs of living in the world, travelers have the option of staying a few months on the same budget that they would have lasted for a week in Europe. But to stay longer, tourists would need longer visas.

Ask any long-term traveler to the region what their biggest complaint is (besides the Bali belly), and they’ll tell you about the frustration of rushed travel and the hassle of visas.

Fortunately, some countries have realized the difficulties and have started offering extended tourist visas. This week, we can add Vietnam to that list.

Vietnam has just announced a 90-day multiple-entry tourist e-Visa. Here’s what you need to know:

Why does that matter?

You try to cram dozens of islands, hundreds of temples, a couple of jungle hikes, and a scuba course into less than four weeks. Sounds infuriating, right?

That’s why many travelers in Southeast Asia turn to « roll visas. » They fly or take a bus over a nearby border, stay a night or two, then head back across the border to reset their tourist clock with more time to explore.

Many travelers would actually prefer not to operate in this gray area of legality. Unfortunately, tourist visas in Southeast Asia generally don’t fit the demographics, budget, and travel style of most of its tourism industry.

Although travel in Southeast Asia tends to be much more spontaneous than in other regions, longer tourist visas are not available on arrival or online for most countries.

It’s much more common than you might think for travelers to buy a same-day bus ticket from Cambodia and Vietnam to follow new friends or chase a bánh mì craving.

Unfortunately, even in countries where 60- or 90-day tourist visas are available, they usually have to be applied for in person weeks in advance. (Visa extension applications have the opposite problem; they can’t be applied for until the last minute and are notorious for unreasonable rejections.)

Longer tourist visa applications also tend to be strict in terms of financial requirements and slow to process.

Most travelers don’t want to waste a large chunk of their trip waiting for embassy appointments and printing bank statements (not to mention being stuck in a capital city they’ve probably already seen while their passport is held hostage for weeks).

That’s why the new Vietnam 90-day e-Visa is so exciting for tourists heading to Southeast Asia.

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What’s new with Vietnam tourist visa?

Last week, the Vietnamese government Announced that his previous 30-day tourist e-Visa would be extended to 90 days, effective August 15, 2023.

Whereas the previous 30-day e-Visa was single-entry, the updated 90 day version will be a multiple entry visa. This means that tourists can travel to other countries and return to Vietnam within 90 days of valid stay without the need to obtain a new visa each time.

Nearly 5 million tourists have visited Vietnam in the past six months. This Pacific paradise is only becoming more popular in the post-pandemic travel boom.

With a record number of tourist visa applications, the e-Visa extension will help Vietnam save time and money while « knowing[ing] the demand of foreign visitors to stay longer,” according to Vietnamese lawmakers.

Red Buddhist temple in Hoi An, Vietnam, Southeast Asia

How do I get a 90-day Vietnam e-Visa?

As of August 15, 2023, travelers can apply using the same process as previous 30-day tourist e-Visas. Complete an online application on the Vietnam e-Visa website. Requires:

Passport image and information
Name, date of birth, permanent address and occupation
contact information
$25 visa fee paid by bank transfer

Travelers can check the status of their e-Visa on the same website. Usually processed and approved within 3 business days. Once approved, it can be printed and brought on your trip.

The Vietnam Tourist e-Visa is open to passport holders of 80 countries including the US, Canada, UK and most of Europe.

Other long tourist visas in Southeast Asia

Vietnam joins a small club of Southeast Asian countries with longer and easier visas for US passport holders:

Malaysia – 90 days visa free
Singapore – 90 days visa free
Brunei: 90 days without a visa with an electronic arrival card
Thailand: 30 or 60 day visa on arrival or electronic visawith a 30 day extension for $60