Vietnam’s 90-day e-visa change: the 2023 rule behind today’s planning
Understand the August 2023 move to e-visas of up to 90 days, single or multiple entry, and why your issued dates still control the actual holiday.
Cat Ba Connect3 min read
The short answer
From 15 August 2023, Vietnam extended the legal maximum e-visa duration from 30 to 90 days and allowed single or multiple entries. That change remains relevant when old guides describe only a 30-day single-entry visa. It does not mean every application is automatically issued for 90 days or for multiple entries. Read the type and dates actually granted, then align each international entry and the final departure with that document.
Recognise a continuing rule rather than breaking news
Government News reported parliamentary approval in June 2023 and identified 15 August 2023 as the commencement date. An article revisiting the change in 2026 should say that it is an established rule, rather than present the extension as a fresh announcement. For visitors, the useful task is to discard the outdated 30-day-only assumption while retaining the discipline of checking a particular application. The historical change explains the available framework, not the outcome of your case.
Separate duration from number of entries
The official portal describes a maximum of 90 days with either single or multiple entries. These are two choices, not one inseparable product. Someone staying continuously in Vietnam has a different entry pattern from someone visiting Cambodia and returning to Hanoi. Sketch the border crossings before choosing an application type. Domestic flights between Vietnamese cities do not create another international entry, whereas leaving the country and returning requires a fresh assessment of the permission available for that return.
Treat the approved interval as controlling
A statutory maximum does not add unused days to the end of a shorter issued visa. Read the valid-from and valid-until fields and compare them with the actual arrival and departure. If you arrive later than planned, do not assume the end date shifts by the same number of days. Put the approved interval into your calendar as fixed reference information, and resolve any mismatch before buying a last domestic flight that depends on an unsupported extra stay.
Check the document before regional side trips
For a regional itinerary, keep each planned departure and re-entry on one page and mark which document supports it. A multiple-entry visa still has an ending date; a single-entry visa should not be treated as reusable merely because that date has not passed. If your plans change after issuance, ask the competent authority about the correct option rather than relying on a driver or hotel to interpret a border rule. Allow time for any necessary application before the return flight.
Use the longer option to plan realistically
The expanded maximum can make a slower holiday feasible, but choose dates from a real itinerary rather than an imagined entitlement to remain indefinitely. Keep enough time for application processing, document review and changes before departure. Once admitted, check the stay recorded by immigration as well as the visa itself. A longer legal framework is most useful when it supports a clear arrival, several manageable destinations and an achievable exit, without depending on an automatic extension at the end.
Questions travellers ask
Is every e-visa issued for 90 days?
No. Ninety days is the maximum; the dates on the issued visa matter.
Does a domestic flight consume another entry?
No international border is crossed on an ordinary domestic flight within Vietnam.
