Vietnam to ease conditions to welcome international visitors

Vietnam to ease conditions to welcome international visitors

According to the latest draft guidance released by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MoCST), international tourists will be screened and have their temperature checked and be required to install the IGOVN application of the Ministry of Public Security upon entry. Visitors are also required to use the above application during their travel in Vietnam.

Tourists joining tours for fewer than seven days will be allowed to participate in tourism activities without quarantining, provided they test negative for the virus. Those who register to travel for more than seven days can travel to other localities that are allowed to receive tourists under the programme, provided they test negative for the virus on the seventh day.

These new conditions have created more favourable conditions for tourism businesses because the demand for sightseeing and inter-provincial tourism is high.

For tourists wishing to visit relatives at locations that are not allowed to welcome international tourists, the travel companies should notify the local authorities to monitor health status. Guests can leave the country on commercial flights or licensed charter flights.

The temporary guidance of the MoCST also requires visitors to buy a tour package from a travel agency and have COVID-19 medical insurance with a minimum of $50,000 in coverage for COVID-19-related medical treatment.

The MoCST said that the roadmap to welcome international visitors to Vietnam will be implemented in three phases, starting from this month and moving to fully open to international tourists from the second quarter of 2022.

In the first phase, Vietnam will reopen the door to foreign tourists who book package tours to Kien Giang, Khanh Hoa, Quang Nam, and Danang through charter and commercial flights. The second phase, starting from January, will see Vietnam expanding the scope to receiving international tourists and connecting destinations through regular charter and commercial flights.

Visitors can travel to various tourist destinations in different localities after completing their tour programme in the first destination within a period of seven days. In this phase, they can move back and forth between destinations in the aforementioned provinces. Some other localities could be added later if the conditions are met and there is a proposal to welcome international tourists.

Tourists to Phu Quoc are exempted from visas according to the provisions of Resolution No.80/NQ-CP dated May 25, 2020, creating favourable conditions for Phu Quoc to quickly attract a large number of visitors right after reopening.

Currently, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is temporarily recognising vaccine passports from 72 countries and territories and is in the process of discussing with nearly 80 other partners about the mutual recognition of such passports.