Following the recent approval by the Vietnamese National Assembly, tourist e-visas will be extended from 30 to 90 days, starting from August 15, 2023. Upon being granted an e-visa, a foreigner can enter and exit an unlimited number of times within 90 days, without having to go through procedures for obtaining a new visa.

Illustrative image. (Photo: DNO)

Citizens of countries that are unilaterally exempted from visas by Viet Nam will be granted temporary residence for 45 days (up from 15 days) and can be considered for visa issuance and temporary residence extension according to regulations.

Viet Nam currently offers e-visas to citizens of 80 countries and territories and waives visa for nationals of 25 countries, mostly for between 15-30 days, a policy considered less generous than other countries in its neighborhood.

In the first 5 months of this year Vietnam received 4.6 million foreign visitors, more than half of the year's target of eight million but still only 63% of pre-pandemic levels.

The extension of tourist e-visas aims to ensure compliance with international treaties and the principle of reciprocity with other countries in order to attract tourists and develop socio-economic development.

In addition, with the legislature’s move, revenue from foreign tourists may also double, as they will have longer stays in Viet Nam, proposing simplifying procedures to better facilitate tourists’ travel to Viet Nam.

Generally, in the first 5 months of 2023, the number of international visitors to Viet Nam stood at nearly 4.6 million. As for the country’s target of 2023, it is expected to welcome 8 million international visitors. In this annual report released in March, 2023, Viet Nam's international tourism recovery is expected to reach 60 - 65% of the 2019 level.

Still encouragingly, on that picture there were still bright spots, including the improvements in the Da Nang tourism industry. Despite many difficulties, Da Nang's ‘non-smoke industry’ is regaining a very positive recovery momentum after 3 years of being affected by COVID-19.

It can be seen that, since the national government opened tourism in mid-March 2022, the tourism industry itself, along with great support from the city government, has made great efforts in luring more tourists to this central coastal Vietnamese hub of tourism.

This extension of tourist e-visas is even more important for Da Nang tourism, especially when the city is expanding and diversifying its international tourist source markets.

Many major international activities and events such as Routes Asia 2022 in June 2022 with the participation of more than 500 delegates representing more than 200 airlines, airports and air service providers from 42 countries and territories; the opening of new routes to India, Japan, Cambodia and other foreign countries.

And most recently, the ongoing Da Nang International Fireworks Festival (DIFF) 2023, with the participation of teams from the UK, Italy, Australia, Poland, Finland, France, Canada, and Da Nang (Viet Nam), is highly attractive to both locals and tourists.

With clear strategies, the city's efforts in organising events and resumption of international routes showed positive results in the first months of 2023.

Generally, in the first 5 months of 2023, the revenue of accommodation and catering services is estimated at nearly VND 9,359 billion, up 64.1% from the same period in 2022. The total number of visitors to accommodation establishments serving 5 months reached 2,826 million turns, 3.1 times higher than the same period last year. The revenue from travel and tourism support activities was VND 1,545 billion, 4.2 times higher than the year-ago period.

The new policy that takes effect from August 2023 brings about good news for the whole tourism industry. It is an opportunity for businesses to promote to target markets right during the international welcome season, which lasts from September to May every year.

For businesses that specialises in exploiting international visitors, especially in markets as far away as Europe and the Americas, tourists often make travel plans a whole year in advance, so this policy will be more favourable for tourists. Expectations of international tourists to Viet Nam will be higher than the forecast when businesses build plans to welcome guests staying for 3 weeks or more instead of short-term plans as previously.

Along with the efforts exerted by the tourism industry in organising major international events, the new policy coming into effect here will be a big boost to attract more tourists to Da Nang, and Viet Nam at large, hereby contributing to the recovery and further development of the tourism industry.

Reporting by HOANG NHUNG, THU HA - Translating by A.THU