In a recent tourism development conference on August 9^th in Hoi An, Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc stated that Vietnam is to issue printable e-visa as soon as January 2017.

Prime Minister Phuc has also allocated US$8.8 million to expedite above e-visa project to launch on Jan 1^st 2017.

Travelers will receive their new e-visa via e-mail in printer-friendly format after filling out an online application form. This will greatly speed up visa application process and remove various inconveniences.

This is an effort to further bolster Vietnam’s growth in the number of tourist arrivals since the beginning of 2016. Vietnam has enjoyed a massive 5.5 million foreign visitors within the first 7 months of 2016, a 24% climb compared to 2015, when the number of foreign visitors was plummeting from January to July. Vietnam aims to reach 8.5 million tourists by the end of 2016, and has set a target of 10.5 million international tourists by 2020.

Vietnam has enjoyed a massive 5.5 million foreign visitors within the first 7 months of 2016

Currently, Vietnam visa can be obtained via Vietnam Embassy or Consulate, which involved substantial waiting time and various documents or via visa on arrival method by Vietnam Department of Immigration through an agency.

Vietnam has also recently extended another year of the 15-day visa waiver policy for citizens of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, and Italy as an effort to attract more foreign tourists.