Under the recently-issued Directive No. 06/CT-TTg, which urges the implementation of certain focal tasks following the Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh requested that the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) consider expanding the coverage of the visa exemption policy, the Vietnam News Agency reported.

He asked the MPS to consider expanding the policy to citizens of other countries on the basis of the new circumstances and Vietnam’s relations with those countries.

The Prime Minister also directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to quickly review the application of existing unilateral visa exemptions for citizens from 13 countries, and to coordinate with the MPS to propose other countries for inclusion on the list.

The visa-free policy expansion is expected to attract more international tourists to Vietnam and enhance the country’s tourism competitiveness compared to others in the region and the world.

Vietnam is currently exempting visa requirements for citizens from 25 countries, including 13 entitled to unilateral exemptions, namely Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the UK, Russia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Belarus.

Since August 2023, it has granted electronic visas to citizens from all countries and extended stays from 30 to 90 days with multiple entries. Meanwhile, citizens of countries entitled to the unilateral visa exemptions have also had their stays in Vietnam extended to 45 from 15 days.