On the morning of February 21, the National Administration of Tourism announced the newest changes in the plan to welcome international visitors.
This is a proposal of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism send to other ministries to get advice and feedback before officially announcing it.
Accordingly, international visitors can come to Vietnam by land, sea, and regular international flights.
Regarding entry regulations, travelers from 12 years old and above who come to Vietnam must have a certificate of the COVID-19 vaccination with a full dose or the document to confirm that they are fully recovered after getting infected with the COVID-19.
Travelers are also required to have a test for the SARS-CoV-2 virus with a negative result. Vietnam accepts both rapid test results (24 hours before departure) and RT-PCR results (72 hours before departure).
Travelers need health insurance with a provision to cover the COVID-19 treatment. The insurance payout rate is reduced to $10,000 from $20,000 as in the previous plan.
After entry, visitors traveling by air have to take a rapid test at their accommodations and receive results within 24 hours.
Visitors traveling by land or sea are tested for the COVID-19 disease at the border gate.
Children under 12 years old and elderly people over 65 years old who have not been vaccinated can enter Vietnam but must be accompanied by a guardian. They also have to test for COVID-19 and purchase health insurance as mentioned above. If the test result is negative, they can travel freely. If the result is positive, they will be isolated and treated for the COVID-19 disease.
Travelers also need to install a COVID-19 monitoring app and stay connected (to the Internet) during their stay in Vietnam. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism also proposes a visa-free policy like the one before 2020.
In 2021, Vietnam serve 40 million domestic tourists and 3,800 international tourists under a pilot program on vaccine passports.
In the pre-COVID-19 pandemic (2019), Vietnam welcomed 85 million domestic tourists and 18 million international visitors.
The government has agreed to reopen all tourism activities from March 15./.
