Expansion of visa exemption policy conducive to Vietnam tourism: experts

Foreign tourists touring Ha Long Bay (Photo: VNA)

Expansion of visa exemption policy being considered by authorities, seen to be conducive to Viet Nam tourism by experts.

Vietnam is currently exempting visa requirements for citizens of 25 countries. Since August 2023, Vietnam has granted electronic visas to citizens of all countries and extended the stay from 30 to 90 days with multiple entries. Meanwhile, citizens of the countries entitled to the unilateral visa exemption have also had their stay in Vietnam extended to 45 from 15 days.

Insiders said the expansion of the visa exemption policy to cover more countries is good for Vietnam tourism.

Accordingly, continuing to expand the visa exemption policy will help the tourism industry diversify the markets, increase the number of international tourists to Vietnam, and encourage them to stay and spend more in Vietnam.

Besides the possible increase in revenue and jobs, the policy is also expected to help raise the number of air passengers, facilitate international trade exchanges, and attract more foreign investors to Vietnam.

It is a short-term solution to widen the door to attract international tourist markets besides medium- and-long-term solutions to internal problems of the tourism industry such as promotion, digital marketing, product diversity, destination management, and human resource development, insiders said.