Australian passport holders need a visa to enter Vietnam. Here is exactly what is required, how long it takes, what it costs, and how to avoid the scams Smartraveller warns about.
Yes, you need a visa. Australia is not on Vietnam's visa-exemption list, so Australians need a visa for any visit, of any length, for any purpose. The simplest and cheapest route is the eVisa: up to 90 days, single or multiple entry, accepted at 83 entry points. Visa on arrival is no longer a practical option for Australians, and the only visa-free case is a 30-day stay if you fly directly to Phu Quoc Island and stay only there.
Apply for Australian citizens →
Yes. There is no visa-free entry for Australians for tourism, business, family visits, or transit if you leave the airport. Australia's own Smartraveller advice is blunt: you must have an appropriate visa before travelling, and Australian passport holders cannot get a visa on arrival. A few narrow exceptions exist:
For everyone else, the eVisa is the route, and it is the one we recommend.
The Vietnam eVisa is an electronic visa issued by Vietnam's Immigration Department and emailed to you as a PDF. No embassy visit and no visa-on-arrival queue. For Australian travelers it offers:
You can apply yourself at the official portal, evisa.gov.vn, or let us handle the whole application for a small service fee. The government fee is identical either way; what we add is a review of every field before submission, error correction, faster processing options, and a real person to email when something looks off. Visa on arrival still technically exists but requires a pre-approved letter through an agency and is really only useful in genuine emergencies, since the eVisa is cheaper, safer, and accepted at land and sea borders too.
| Option | Validity | Our fee (per applicant) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Month Single Entry | 30 days from arrival | $54 |
| 1 Month Multiple Entry | 30 days from arrival | $84 |
| 3 Month Single Entry | 90 days from arrival | $94 |
| 3 Month Multiple Entry | 90 days from arrival | $104 |
All prices include the Vietnam Immigration Department's stamp fee. The official government fee is USD 25 (single) or USD 50 (multiple) and is non-refundable even if rejected, which is exactly why a careful pre-submission review pays off. Your card is charged in USD, so your bank applies its own exchange rate to AUD. See the full fee breakdown and currency estimator →
Times start when our team submits to Immigration, usually within 2 hours of payment during office hours (08:00 to 21:00 GMT+7). Apply at least 2 to 3 weeks ahead where you can, with extra buffer around Tet and other Vietnamese holidays, when the Immigration Department is closed and even urgent processing pauses.
Single entry suits a straight in-and-out trip with no side trips. Multiple entry is the better choice if you plan to visit Cambodia, Laos, or Thailand and return, are taking a cruise that calls at multiple Vietnamese ports, or simply want flexibility. The price gap is small relative to the cost of being stuck at a border with the wrong visa, so if there is any chance you will leave and re-enter Vietnam, choose multiple entry.
⚠️ Watch out for scam sites. Smartraveller warns that travelers have been caught out by lookalike "official" visa websites. The genuine government portal is evisa.gov.vn, where the fee is USD 25 or USD 50. We are an independent service that charges a clear, upfront fee on top of that to handle the application for you; we are transparent that we are not the government. Avoid any site that hides its fees or imitates a .gov.vn address.
A non-compliant photo is the single most common cause of rejection. Our team checks yours against the requirements before anything is filed.
⚠️ Do not overstay. Under the December 2025 fine schedule, overstays draw tiered penalties rising to as much as VND 40 million for the most serious cases, plus possible deportation and an entry ban. On arrival, check that the exit date stamped in your passport matches your eVisa, and exit on or before that date.
See the full walkthrough on our How to Apply page.
All of these accept the eVisa:
Not in the ordinary sense. Smartraveller states that Australian passport holders cannot get a visa on arrival, and the legacy process needs a pre-approved letter arranged in advance. For almost everyone the eVisa is faster, cheaper, and safer.
If you also hold a passport from a country with a Vietnam visa waiver (for example the UK, France, Italy, Japan, or South Korea), you can travel visa-free on that passport. Just make sure your airline ticket name matches the passport you present on arrival.
No. The eVisa cannot be extended or converted in-country. To stay longer you exit Vietnam and apply for a fresh eVisa, or arrange a sponsored business visa. For stays beyond 90 days, an embassy visa with a sponsor is the usual path.
Not strictly, if you arrive directly, stay only on the island, and leave within 30 days. But if a flight change or emergency could send you to the mainland, an eVisa is inexpensive insurance. Vietnam has tightened the Phu Quoc loophole for some nationalities, so many travelers get an eVisa anyway.
If we identify a problem before submission, we refund in full and suggest alternatives. If an application is denied after submission, we refund the full amount you paid us. See our Terms and Conditions.