Vietnam entry requirements

When entering Vietnam, you must present several documents and comply with the applicable regulations. We explain all processes, the main rules, and the allowable quantities for bringing items and food to Vietnam.

You apply for your entry permit at the Vietnam border crossing by handing over your travel documents to the border officials in charge of the inspection. The documents include:

• Your passport (which is valid for at least six months beyond the expiration date of your e-visa or visa)
• Your valid e-visa (permit printout) or visa
• Your return or onward travel ticket
• Two passport photos (4 x 6 cm)

If you are traveling to Vietnam with minors, you should carry other documents in addition to their valid passport and e-visa. These include:

• An official consent form for travel, signed by the child (if possible)
• Authorizations from all legal guardians
• Copies of identification documents of the legal guardians
• Birth certificate of the child
• Two passport size photographs (4 x 6 cm) per child

Minors traveling alone must carry an official declaration of consent from their legal guardian(s).

To ensure the safety of all travelers, as well as the Vietnamese people, you will need to complete a number of forms before and during your trip. These include the customs declaration and the Vietnamese Health Declaration.

Before entering Vietnam, you must provide information about who you are and what goods you plan to bring into Vietnam on the customs form. Have the following data ready for this purpose:

• First and last name
• Gender
• Date of birth
• Nationality
• Passport number
• Flight number and departure airport
• Date of entry
• Information on animals and plants, means of payment, luxury foodstuffs, commercial products, and other high-value or regulated goods you bring into the country

If you are traveling to Vietnam by air, you will be given the Entry and Exit Form before you enter the country. Have the following data ready:

• Name
• Date of Birth
• Gender
• Place of birth
• Nationality
• Passport number
• Date and place of issue of passport
• Occupation
• Name of your employer
• Your current address
• If traveling with children: names, dates of birth, and degree of relationship
• Reason for your Vietnam trip
• First overnight address in Vietnam
• Duration of your Vietnam stay
• (Air)port of entry

In the end, attach your passport photo (as well as passport photos of children traveling with you) in the space provided. The original form will be given to the immigration officer at the border. Keep a copy with your passport, as you may need to show it in Vietnamese hotels.

While completing the Vietnam Health Declaration, you will be asked to provide the following information:

• Name
• Telephone number
• Passport number
• Date of birth
• Gender
• Nationality
• Contact address in Vietnam
• Phone number in Vietnam
• Travel history for the past 21 days
• Do you have any symptoms of illness (fever, cough, shortness of breath, etc.)?
• In the past 21 days, have you had contact with people with symptoms of illness, or people from high-risk areas?
• Are you pregnant?

There are currently no mandatory vaccinations for traveling to Vietnam. However, it is advised to get immunized against COVID-19, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, typhoid, rabies, and Japanese encephalitis. Standard vaccinations for children are also recommended.

There are no mandatory insurances for traveling to Vietnam. However, we recommend that you get travel health insurance, which will protect you from heavy financial burdens in case of an emergency.

At the border, present your travel documents to the Vietnamese border officials to request an entry permit. The officials will review your information and may ask you some additional questions to better assess your eligibility to enter the country.

If you are granted permission to enter Vietnam, the border official will stamp your passport with the entry and exit dates. Check the exit date thoroughly and have it corrected if necessary.

After picking up your luggage, you will pass through the customs area on your way to the exit. If you have declared goods in your customs declaration, you must go through the red channel here and undergo an inspection.

If you do not have any declarable goods with you, you may use the green customs channel. However, you may still be subject to an inspection of your luggage by customs officials with their sniffer dogs.

The import of various goods, electronic devices, and means of payment into Vietnam is strictly regulated. When entering the country, follow the limits carefully, and rather overstate than understate in your customs declaration to avoid trouble with the authorities.

If you are over 18 years old, you are allowed to take the following amounts across the border into Vietnam tax-free:

• 200 cigarettes or 20 cigars or 250 g tobacco
• 1.5 l alcohol over 20 % or 2 l alcohol under 20
• 3 l beer
• 3 kg of coffee
• 5 kg of tea
• Private gifts and new goods up to a value of 5,000,000 Vietnamese dollars (approx. € 195)
• Items for personal use (clothing, toiletries, etc.)
• Currencies up to an equivalent value of $ 5,000
• Gold jewelry up to 300 g
• Perfume for personal use

You may take the following items or amounts of goods into Vietnam, but you must declare them on your customs declaration:

• Currencies with an equivalent value of $ 5,000 or more
• Gold bars up to 1 kg
• Gold jewelry from 300 g

You need a permit in advance to import the following items or goods into Vietnam:

• Live animals (only with health certificate, vaccination, and permission from the embassy)
• Endangered species and products or parts of them (only with CITES permit)
• Medicines (only with official doctor's letter, prescription, and original packaging)

If you are traveling to Vietnam with prescription medicines, inform the officials at the border in detail and show the doctor's letter and prescriptions on all occasions. The original packages should have your name and the prescribed dosage.

You are not allowed to bring the following items or goods into Vietnam:

• Drugs / narcotics
• Pornographic content
• Counterfeit branded goods
• Cultural artifacts
• Weapons / explosives / ammunition / explosive material
• Anti-government propaganda material or literature that attacks the Vietnamese government

Visual and audio media may also be inspected upon your entry. In extreme cases, customs officials may detain your media carriers for several days for examination.