Foreign investors and workers in Vietnam often rely on exit visas when leaving the country urgently, whether to reunite with family or pursue new job opportunities. Recent updates to Vietnam’s visa entry and exit rules have imposed stricter limits on overstays, making exit visas essential for those who have overstayed or lost their passports. Many are unaware of these visa regulations and seek assistance from consultancies like InCorp Vietnam. For previous clients, we encourage reaching out through our Immigration Services Tab for expert guidance.
Business or investor visas without active business engagement can also prompt the need for an exit visa. This article provides a insightful guide on securing an exit visa to ensure a smooth, hassle-free departure from Vietnam.
If you are looking for an exit visa, reach out to InCorp Vietnam via our Immigration Services
Definitions of Exit Visa Vietnam
To prevent any overstay in Vietnam and subsequent penalties for it, you must apply for an exit visa, which has now become necessary to legally exit the country. An exit visa in Vietnam is an exit permit issued by the Vietnamese Immigration Department that allows foreigners to leave the country within 15 days of issuance.
However, to get this legal document, you need to have a valid passport or equivalent international travel document along with a temporary resident card or valid visa. This exit permit prevents any overstaying visa in Vietnam issues as it allows foreigners to fly off the country when their passport gets lost or damaged. The Immigration Department takes 3-5 business days to approve an exit visa in Vietnam, and once approved, you can leave the country in a week.
The following types of people can apply for an exit visa in Vietnam:
Read Related: How Overseas Vietnamese Can Register for Permanent Residence in Vietnam?
The Purpose of an Exit Visa Vietnam
An exit visa is an official travel document issued by the Vietnamese Immigration Department, allowing foreign nationals to depart the country within a 15-day period. Processing typically takes 5-7 business days, so it is advisable to apply promptly if your current visa expires without the option for extension.
Exit visas are valid for 15 days, requiring the holder to leave Vietnam within this timeframe. Commonly issued in cases of passport loss, damage, or visa overstay, exit visas provide a solution for those facing unique travel circumstances, ensuring a compliant and orderly departure from the country.
Circumstances that Allow the Issuance of an Exit Visa Vietnam
As mentioned earlier, foreigners in Vietnam can apply for an exit visa under three circumstances below. In this section, we are detailing how the visa application and approval process works in each of these circumstances.
Overstaying a Visa or an Expired Visa Situation
The problem of foreign investors or foreigners overstaying their visas has increased since the COVID-19 pandemic, ever since the Vietnamese government changed visa regulations. If you encounter such a problem and your visa cannot be extended, follow these steps and take the help of an immigration consultancy like InCorp Vietnam.
- The first step is to get the help of a visa expert to fulfill all the requirements of a Vietnam visa entry and exit form. The visa expert will guide you through the visa extension and exit visa application. Keep in mind that an extension is granted only in cases of 1-2 days overstay, not more than that.
- The next step is to submit your passport and documents for the exit visa processing.
- You also have to pay an overstaying fine and provide valid reasons for overstaying in the exit visa application form.
- You need to pay for an exit visa.
- Once all these steps are fulfilled, you will receive the exit visa along with the passport.
Loss and Damage of Passport
The second circumstance where you need an exit visa in Vietnam is when you have lost or damaged your passport. However, this process is more complicated than getting an exit visa for overstaying, and hence it is advisable to take the help of visa experts like those in InCorp Vietnam. In such cases, you need to follow the steps given below to acquire the exit visa:
- The first and foremost thing to do is to report the loss or damage to your passport to the nearest police station.
- You can proceed to apply for a new passport only after the local police confirm the loss or damage of the existing passport.
- The next step is to visit your country’s embassy with the police report, passport-size photos of yourself, and the fees to get a new passport.
- Then you need to apply for an exit visa by submitting all relevant documents to the Immigration Department.
- In the next step, pay the application fees for the exit visa.
- After this, you will get an exit visa receipt, which needs to be submitted to your country’s embassy to receive the new passport.
Read Related: Vietnam Immigration Blacklist: How Does It Affect Foreigners Traveling to Vietnam?
For Babies Born in Vietnam
Other than these, you would also need an exit visa in Vietnam if you have a newborn baby with foreign citizenship who is born in the country. In such cases, you need to follow these steps:
- Visit your country’s embassy in Vietnam to get a legalized Birth Certificate for the baby. The certificate should be translated into Vietnamese language and notarized.
- Then fill up and submit the NA5 application form for Vietnam visa issuance and stay extension.
- This form should be packed along with your baby’s birth certificate, the delivery certificate issued by the hospital, and the passport and visa documents of the parents. Your work permit and residence card are also essential in this regard.
- You need to visit the Vietnamese Department to submit all these documents to get the exit visa for the baby.
Foreigners whose temporary resident card has expired must have a guaranteed enterprise/agency in Vietnam that would need documents like a business license, tax code registration, a seal sample certificate, and company registration with signature and seal. Be sure that your passport is valid for at least 6 months and that you have booked the flight tickets to leave the country.
The addresses of the Immigration Department in three principal regions of Vietnam are:
- Ho Chi Minh City: 333-335-337 Nguyen Trai, Nguyen Cu Trinh Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City
- Hanoi: No. 44-46 Tran Phu Str., Ba Dinh Dist., Hanoi, Vietnam.
- Danang: Tran Quy Cap Str., Danang City
Processing Time & Fee of Exit Visa Vietnam
An exit visa in Vietnam usually takes 5 business days to process, and the fees vary according to the type of visa and the duration you have overstayed your actual visa. While the standard exit visa application fee is up to US$100, the overstay fine comes in the following range.
- 500,000 VND fine for overstaying up to 3 days
- 1,250,000 VND fine for 4-10 days of overstay
- 4,000,000 VND fine for 10-30 days of overstay
- 10,000,000 VND fine for 1-3 months of overstay
- 16,000,000 VND fine for overstaying up to 1 year
- Over 16,000,000 VND fine for more than 1-year overstay with forced leave direction and restrictions from entering Vietnam in the future.
Read Related: Guide to Vietnam Visas: Application Procedures and Cost for Investors
Vietnam Visa Entry and Exit Form
Foreign investors trying to enter or exit the country must be aware of the Vietnam visa entry and exit form, which needs to be submitted to the Immigration Officer. Recently, the Vietnamese government has changed visa regulations, which have replaced the M3 entry and exit form with the NA1 form. This two-page long form is given to all foreign passengers due to land in Vietnam by air, either on the plane or at the airport. Your passport gets stamped only when you submit this form to the immigration officer.
The NA1 form requires the following details chronologically:
- A passport-size photograph of yourself taken on a white background. The photos should be in the sizes 3×4 cm, 4×6 cm, and 5×5 cm.
- Full name as shown in the passport
- Your gender
- Your date of birth in dd/mm/yyyy format
- Place of your birth as per your passport
- Your nationality at birth
- Your current nationality as shown on your passport
- Your current religion
- Your current occupation
- The name and address of your company
- Your permanent residential address, phone number, and email address
- Details of relatives or parents back in your country who are not on the plane. This is for emergency contact.
- Passport details
- Previous Vietnam entry details (if any)
- The date of current entry and the intended duration of the stay.
- Purpose of visiting Vietnam as per the Visa approval letter.
- Temporary residential address in Vietnam
- Accompanying children below 14 years of age if they don’t have their own passport
- Your visa details, including single or multiple entries and the duration of its validity…
How can InCorp Vietnam Assist with Exit Visa in Vietnam?
InCorp Vietnam is dedicated to assisting clients who wish to visit or relocate to Vietnam for business purposes. With a team of expert visa consultants and linguists, we stay updated on the latest regulatory changes, ensuring a smooth and efficient experience for all your visa and immigration needs.
Download the full PDF guide for the Vietnam Visa Guide now!
About Us
InCorp Vietnam is a leading market entry and corporate services firm in Vietnam. We are part of InCorp Group, a regional leader in corporate solutions that encompasses 9 countries in Asia-Pacific, headquartered in Singapore. With over 1,500 legal experts serving over 20,000 Corporate Clients across the region, our expertise speaks for itself. We provide transparent legal consulting, setup, and advice based on local requirements to make your business fit into the market perfectly with healthy growth.
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What to do when your visa expires?
If you have overstayed your visa or if it has expired, then you can apply for a visa extension to remain in the country. However, please remember extension is only granted in case of 1-2 days of overstay. For a time lapse more than that, you need to apply for an exit visa to leave the country.
Are children born in Vietnam required to have an exit visa?
If a foreign child is born in Vietnam, then they need an exit visa to leave the country. This happens when both the parents are foreigners or one parent is Vietnamese and the other is a foreigner. In both of these cases, the child is considered a foreign national who needs an exit visa to leave Vietnam.
Can you still apply for an exit visa if you have lost or damaged your passport?
An exit visa is especially applicable for those who have lost or damaged their passport. In such cases, you have to file a report at the local police station of the loss or damage to the passport. The police report will help in getting a new passport and exit visa from your country’s embassy in Vietnam.
Where can you get translation assistance for your exit visa application?
The exit visa application process in Vietnam is relatively simple and easy when all the required documents are sorted and the visa application package is certified and notarized by the authorities. The accuracy and authenticity of these documents play a critical role in getting the visa approval. Hence, you need to hire an able corporate services consultancy like InCorp Vietnam for this purpose.
