Vietnam's e-Visa: 90 Days, Two Entry Options, and a Charge You Do Not Get Back

Vietnam's electronic visa is one of the more generous in the region on duration. It is also unforgiving in one specific way that catches applicants out.

How long is a Vietnamese e-Visa valid?
Up to 90 days. That is the maximum validity issued through the national e-visa system, and it is considerably longer than the short windows several neighbouring countries offer.

Single entry or multiple entry?
Applicants choose. The system issues both, and the choice is made at application rather than afterwards.

This is worth thinking about before you select. Travellers doing a Southeast Asia loop frequently plan to enter Vietnam, cross into Laos or Cambodia, and come back. On a single-entry visa the return leg is not permitted, and that is discovered at a land border a long way from anywhere useful.

If there is any chance your itinerary re-enters Vietnam, the multiple-entry option is the one that matches the trip.

What happens if my application is refused?
You do not get the charge back. Vietnam's official system states plainly that the amount is non-refundable if the application is refused.

This is the detail that turns a small administrative error into a real cost. A refusal is not a pause in the process. It is money spent, time lost, and a fresh application from the beginning, with a fresh charge.

What causes refusals?
The recurring causes are not exotic. Passport details that do not match the document exactly. A photograph that fails the specification. An entry point selected that does not match the actual travel plan. Dates that do not line up with the itinerary. Supporting information that is internally inconsistent.

Almost all of them are avoidable, and almost all of them are invisible to the applicant at the point of submission, because the form accepts the entry and the problem only appears at assessment.

Can I fix a mistake after submitting?
Generally not. An e-visa application is assessed as submitted. A detail entered incorrectly is not something you can amend mid-process, which is why the review before submission carries all the weight.

Does an approved e-Visa guarantee entry?
No. As with every electronic visa, approval permits you to travel to the border and be assessed. The immigration officer at the port of entry makes the admission decision, and can ask about your purpose, your accommodation and your onward travel.

Does it matter which entry point I nominate?
Yes. Vietnam's e-visa is tied to the port of entry declared in the application. Arriving somewhere else is a problem, and it is a common one among travellers who change their flights after applying and do not think of the visa as something the change affects.

What should applicants actually do?
Decide single or multiple entry against the real itinerary, not the current plan.

Check every passport field against the passport itself, character by character, before submitting.

Confirm the entry point matches the ticket, and re-check it if you change flights.

Allow enough time that a refusal is survivable. Because the charge is not returned, the true cost of an error is the first charge, the delay, and a second charge.

Verified against the Vietnam Immigration Department national e-visa portal.