The e-visa gives you 90 days. The visa exemption gives you 45. Both start counting the moment you land. Neither sends you a reminder.
Track your Vietnam visa free →Vietnam simplified its entry rules significantly in 2023, extending visa-free access for most nationalities and launching a straightforward e-visa system. The result: more flexibility than most of Southeast Asia — but the same hard exit deadlines.
Day 1 is the day you enter.Your entry stamp or e-visa approval shows a “valid until” date — that is your hard deadline. You must have exited Vietnam by midnight on that date.
The most common confusion: the e-visa validity window and the permitted stay are two different things. An e-visa might be valid for 90 days from the date of issue — but if you enter on day 30 of that window, you still only get 90 days from entry, not 90 days from issue. Check the “permitted to stay until” date on your entry stamp, not the e-visa issue date.
Example: you enter on June 1 on a 90-day e-visa. Day 1 is June 1. Your permitted stay expires August 29. You must leave before midnight on August 29.
Vietnam extended its unilateral visa exemption to 45 days in August 2023, up from the previous 15-day limit. This was a significant change — many nationalities that previously had to apply for an e-visa can now arrive without any pre-approval.
Countries currently eligible for 45-day visa-free entry include: the United Kingdom, all EU member states, the United States, Australia, Canada, South Korea, Japan, and several others. The list has expanded and may continue to — always verify your specific passport against Vietnam’s current exemption list before travel.
The exemption is per entry. There is no annual cap. Leave and re-enter, and your 45 days reset. However, Vietnam immigration does pay attention to entry patterns — frequent back-to-back entries using exemptions as a substitute for legal residency can result in shorter permitted stays or refusal.
The Vietnam e-visa is straightforward: apply at the official government portal (evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn), pay the fee (currently USD 25), and receive approval within 3 business days. It grants 90 days, single or multiple entry, and can be extended once in-country at a local immigration office.
The extension adds another 90 days, giving a maximum single continuous stay of 180 days. After that, you must leave Vietnam and re-enter on a new e-visa.
One practical note: e-visa extensions in Vietnam require an in-person visit to the local immigration office (Phòng Quản lý Xuất Nhập Cảnh) in whichever province you are staying. Processing times vary — Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City offices are faster than provincial offices. Start the extension process at least 14 days before your current visa expires.
Vietnam’s overstay fines are lower than Indonesia’s and more negotiable in practice than Japan’s — but the fines have increased since 2023 and enforcement at airports has tightened, particularly in Hanoi and Da Nang.
The more serious consequence is the entry record. A documented overstay can result in a reduced permitted stay on your next entry, additional questioning, or refusal. Vietnam immigration officers have access to your full entry history at every crossing.
A reminder fires once. It doesn’t know whether you extended your visa, re-entered on a new stamp, or switched from an exemption to an e-visa. It fires on a date you set when you first arrived and doesn’t update.
Travel Safe counts from your actual entry date, updates when you record a new entry, and sends you an email on every threshold day you choose — day 14, day 7, day 3. When the email arrives, you still have time to act.
Track your Vietnam visa days free.
Add your entry date and visa length. Get an email on the day you set — day 14, day 7, day 1. The countdown is always free. Email alerts cost $15, once.
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Once the visa is sorted, Travel Sane turns your random booking confirmations into one clean itinerary — flights, hotels, trains. Toss everything in, PDFs, emails, confirmations — any language — and get a perfect chronological itinerary every time.
Try Travel Sane →Vietnam’s visa rules, exemption lists, and fine schedules change periodically. Always verify your permitted stay date from your actual entry stamp and confirm current e-visa requirements at the official Vietnam Immigration portal. This page is informational only and does not constitute legal or immigration advice. travel-safe.me