Evisa after Tet 2023?

What is response time from immigration department for evisa?
-@narcrepellant2525

As discussed in this thread, it's historically slow after Tết, when they are catching up on the backlog after they've been doing zero work during the official government holiday period.

Just a guess based on my own experience getting visa approvals (for me or a friend) after Tết 2019, 2020 & 2021, but it's probably reasonable to tack on 1 week to normal expectations until much later in February.

What is response time from immigration department for evisa?
-@narcrepellant2525

Good question, and good response from OceanBeach92107.

Narcrepellant (and others applying for eVisas over the next couple of weeks)  please let the forum know of your experienced wait time for approval.

Would be interesting to track immigration's response time, post-holidays.

I contacted my agent Sunday. I had it Thur. Other results may vary

I contacted my agent Sunday. I had it Thur. Other results may vary
-@Hooked

totally different times when an agent is involved but this is probably a good time to use one

I dropped in past the office of my long standing friend & trusted visa agent on Tuesday afternoon 2pm to get e visa number 4. She sent me a message today Saturday 1.45 e visa ready for pick up.

I dropped in past the office & my long standing friend & trusted visa agent on Tuesday afternoon 2pm to get e visa number 4. She sent me a message today Saturday 1.45 e visa ready for pick up.
-@goodolboy

I seem to recall, when the announcements were made about "eVisas only" for tourists and no more business visas sponsored by agents, somebody replied that it would be good riddance to those blood-sucking Visa agents.

All of the Visa agents I know are making a killing right now helping people who wait until the last minute or simply don't want to be bothered with the procedure.

I dropped in past the office & my long standing friend & trusted visa agent on Tuesday afternoon 2pm to get e visa number 4. She sent me a message today Saturday 1.45 e visa ready for pick up.
-@goodolboy

I seem to recall, when the announcements were made about "eVisas only" for tourists and no more business visas sponsored by agents, somebody replied that it would be good riddance to those blood-sucking Visa agents.

All of the Visa agents I know are making a killing right now helping people who wait until the last minute or simply don't want to be bothered with the procedure.
-@OceanBeach92107

Well OB I dont know about a killing & you know from my previous posts, I personally dont have a problem paying anyone in business for a service they provide me. For my e visa this time the total charge was 950,000vnd including the visa fee. That price includes visiting a nice air con office, getting a free cup of coffee & a relaxing chat with the owner & husband about things in general.............money well spent.

From my experience over the past 14+ years I personally have never thought of the visa agents I have used as blood sucking. They are in business to make money & in the good old days a large % of the fee's they charged went to "sweeten" 3rd parties & you know what.........I long for the stability of good old days to come back (I doubt they will) ............share the wealth I say & good luck to them. Personally I am not over here living on a shoe string where every 1$ is a prisoner or here with pretty dubious qualifications making a killing by saying I am an English Teacher but cant really speak English!

Great thread of comments here...especially enjoy reading 1st hand experiences that people are having with e-visa and other Vietnam related issues. My greatest challenge on sites like this, however, is avoiding going down a rabbit hole and reading well-intended post by someone who is passing on information that he/she "heard from their neighbour, who was told by his sister, who heard it at the barber shop." It's entertaining "static" but not particularly useful. Been noticing that there are some well-intentioned guys (gals) on here who are "cutting to the chase" and trying to keep issues real so that it's useful for those that need it. My point...validate any information before acting.

Ordered evisa this monday, it was in my email box yesterday, the Tet is  over also in Immigration dept.

Very quickly for me too : I asked for eVisa on Friday 3 February at the end of of afternoon: I got the eVisa on last Tuesday (7 February).

Ordered evisa this monday, it was in my email box yesterday, the Tet is over also in Immigration dept. -@narcrepellant2525

Very quickly for me too : I asked for eVisa on Friday 3 February at the end of of afternoon: I got the eVisa on last Tuesday (7 February). -@Laurent futur Nha Trang

That's great news gentlemen!

Thanks very much for the updates.

Spoke to a fellow Canadian expat yesterday in Duong Dong.

As with narcrepellant2525, he applied Monday, received confirmation early Thursday.

I picked up my new (4th) e visa yesterday & checked the dates. Enter from16th Feb until 18th March, So did a quick calculation & entering on the early morning flight from BKK on the 16th Feb & leaving on the late evening flight to BKK on the 18th March, it sort of gives me 31 days in the country! That's only true in theory though & providing the immigration officer on arrivals at TSN actually looks at the e visa & copies the dates on it. 

I picked up my new (4th) e visa yesterday & checked the dates. Enter from16th Feb until 18th March, So did a quick calculation & entering on the early morning flight from BKK on the 16th Feb & leaving on the late evening flight to BKK on the 18th March, it sort of gives me 31 days in the country! That's only true in theory though & providing the immigration officer on arrivals at TSN actually looks at the e visa & copies the dates on it.
-@goodolboy

Aidan will explain it... 😉

@OceanBeach92107

Aidan did explain it.

FIFY

@OceanBeach92107
Aidan did explain it.

FIFY
-@Aidan in HCMC

Ah well there you go & here was me thinking that immigration & my longstanding visa agent had managed to wangle goodolboy a special deal in the form of an extra one day bonus per month for living here 14+ years with good behaviour.

@OceanBeach92107
Aidan did explain it.

FIFY
-@Aidan in HCMC
Ah well there you go & here was me thinking that immigration & my longstanding visa agent had managed to wangle goodolboy a special deal in the form of an extra one day bonus per month for living here 14+ years with good behaviour.
-@goodolboy

You had me until the "good behavior" part...

🤣🤣🤣

My friend has been doing business exporting marble from Vietnam for the last 14 years. He completely forgot about Tet and what should've taken 3 business days took 14 and the loss of his business class flights. Plus was forced to spend an extra 14 days in Melbourne on his way from NZ.

Not a particularly happy chappy.

@OceanBeach92107 today I spoken with my agent about visas. She told me that tomorrow will have some news about visas, business and tourist.

So let's wait tomorrow, Vietnam business time

@OceanBeach92107 today I spoken with my agent about visas. She told me that tomorrow will have some news about visas, business and tourist.
So let's wait tomorrow, Vietnam business time
-@Joss15

well it's definitely good to hear that one more person knows about this.

we have another forum member who has been saying tomorrow for almost the last 365 days so I'm sure it will eventually happen, tomorrow...

@OceanBeach92107 today I spoken with my agent about visas. She told me that tomorrow will have some news about visas, business and tourist.
So let's wait tomorrow, Vietnam business time
-@Joss15

well it's definitely good to hear that one more person knows about this.

we have another forum member who has been saying tomorrow for almost the last 365 days so I'm sure it will eventually happen, tomorrow...
-@OceanBeach92107

@OceanBeach92107

tomorrow, tomorrow, I love ya, tomorrow.

It's always a day away!

I’m leaving monthly and would be excited to know more about a business visa provided it didn’t have to have a lot of money attached to it.  Can anybody give me some insight into this.  All I’m getting is you’ve got to marry a Vietnamese quickly.  I’m 10 months here and have gotten a renewal each time for 30 days. 

Best thing  to do is wait until an official notification is received. Trying to guess and listening to rumours will get you nowhere.

All I’m getting is you’ve got to marry a Vietnamese quickly. 
-@Richard Rossiter

There is a regular business in Honolulu of fake marriages of US citizens to Vietnamese nationals.  After a certain period, I think two years when the green card becomes "permanent", the marriage is usually terminated peacefully.   I expect the same arrangements are available in the larger Viet communities on the mainland.   Last I knew it was a payment to the American of $30K but it must be a bunch higher by now.

It is surprising that some enterprising citizens of HCMC have not set up the reverse pairings since the visa situation became so difficult.

Note:  I am not advocating what would be illegal activity.  I am simply commenting that it is not happening at a higher rate.

@OceanBeach92107
tomorrow, tomorrow, I love ya, tomorrow.
It's always a day away!
-@def1412

I believe advanced manipulations have name for that it is  "Jam Tomorrow" ha ha

All I’m getting is you’ve got to marry a Vietnamese quickly.
-@Richard Rossiter
There is a regular business in Honolulu of fake marriages of US citizens to Vietnamese nationals. After a certain period, I think two years when the green card becomes "permanent", the marriage is usually terminated peacefully.  I expect the same arrangements are available in the larger Viet communities on the mainland.  Last I knew it was a payment to the American of $30K but it must be a bunch higher by now.

It is surprising that some enterprising citizens of HCMC have not set up the reverse pairings since the visa situation became so difficult.

Note: I am not advocating what would be illegal activity. I am simply commenting that it is not happening at a higher rate.
-@THIGV

I think you will find that if you terminated a marriage in Viet Nam you don't have the same residency rights. Im sure someone in VN has thought about it, but the foreigner would lose all their residency rights. The foreigner could apply for a PR visa, but that is a very slow process.

If the Vietnamese citizen in the marriage dies, the foreigner can continue to apply for a sposal TRC, as they are still deemed as being married. I think this is correct, maybe the laws have changed.

I was offered 50k usd back in 2013 to marry a girl and bring her to Australia...I declined.

I’m leaving monthly and would be excited to know more about a business visa provided it didn’t have to have a lot of money attached to it. Can anybody give me some insight into this. All I’m getting is you’ve got to marry a Vietnamese quickly. I’m 10 months here and have gotten a renewal each time for 30 days.
-@Richard Rossiter

Not sure what you mean by "...a lot of money...", but you might want to take a look at this post and some of the follow-up posts in the thread.

I’m leaving monthly and would be excited to know more about a business visa provided it didn’t have to have a lot of money attached to it. Can anybody give me some insight into this. All I’m getting is you’ve got to marry a Vietnamese quickly. I’m 10 months here and have gotten a renewal each time for 30 days.
-@Richard Rossiter

The link that Aidan shared will give you more information, but don't get confused about what used to be available as a "business visa" and what's currently available.

I hate to spend time talking about what used to be available because there's no reason to believe that visa agents are ever  going to be able to sponsor business visas again for whatever price the market could bear.

Previously, there was a one year business visa for US citizens only that was going for anywhere between $400 USD to $1,000 USD, including stamping fee.

Now if you want a business Visa you either need to be an investor or an invitee of a legitimate business in Vietnam.

Since the thought of a lot of money makes you skittish I'm not even going to bother talking about specific figures.

I think you will find that if you terminated a marriage in Viet Nam you don't have the same residency rights. Im sure someone in VN has thought about it, but the foreigner would lose all their residency rights.

I was offered 50k usd back in 2013 to marry a girl and bring her to Australia...I declined.
-@colinoscapee

Perhaps the contract would have to be 50% up front and the rest in annual installments.  . Of course the danger is that you could actually start liking each other. 

I too have heard of 50K USD, but I didn't want to post it as I never got such an offer myself.   I was offered the 30K but that was several years before I was married, which was 2012 (I think )

I think you will find that if you terminated a marriage in Viet Nam you don't have the same residency rights. Im sure someone in VN has thought about it, but the foreigner would lose all their residency rights.

I was offered 50k usd back in 2013 to marry a girl and bring her to Australia...I declined.
-@colinoscapee
Perhaps the contract would have to be 50% up front and the rest in annual installments. . Of course the danger is that you could actually start liking each other.

I too have heard of 50K USD, but I didn't want to post it as I never got such an offer myself.  I was offered the 30K but that was several years before I was married, which was 2012 (I think )
-@THIGV

Now I feel cheated, the best offer I had was 10k usd.

Maybe the previous posters who got 50K offers looked good and "bride" was not bad looking either  ha ha, so they thought they will drop that deal and make it real, VN people are sneaky no offense dude

Maybe the previous posters who got 50K offers looked good and "bride" was not bad looking either ha ha, so they thought they will drop that deal and make it real, VN people are sneaky no offense dude
-@narcrepellant2525

Now I feel cheated, the best offer I had was 10k usd.
-@goodolboy

Inflation my friend.   Was that an offer from Ms. My?   Now the tables are turned and you will need to be giving her the 10K

I think you will find that if you terminated a marriage in Viet Nam you don't have the same residency rights. Im sure someone in VN has thought about it, but the foreigner would lose all their residency rights.
I was offered 50k usd back in 2013 to marry a girl and bring her to Australia...I declined.
-@colinoscapee
Perhaps the contract would have to be 50% up front and the rest in annual installments. . Of course the danger is that you could actually start liking each other.

I too have heard of 50K USD, but I didn't want to post it as I never got such an offer myself. I was offered the 30K but that was several years before I was married, which was 2012 (I think )
-@THIGV
Now I feel cheated, the best offer I had was 10k usd.
-@goodolboy

Thats the difference when looking at a Rolls Royce and a Lada, lol.

Please don't hate me.  Today I picked up FOUR  5 year visas from our travel agent for my Vietnamese wife, me, a son, and a niece.  Does that make sense to allow that for foreigners who will probably visit maybe a month each year.  You guys likely contribute much more to the economy.

Please don't hate me. Today I picked up FOUR 5 year visas from our travel agent for my Vietnamese wife, me, a son, and a niece. Does that make sense to allow that for foreigners who will probably visit maybe a month each year. You guys likely contribute much more to the economy.
-@williamherron13

First, you did not pick up four five year visas.

You received four five-year visa exemption certificates (VECs) good for 6 months at one time.

Second, the answer is, it definitely makes sense and it's not about you.

It's about the Vietnamese government valuing native Vietnamese people around the world and the economic connections that they bring when they are easily connected to Vietnam.

Those family ties promise an entirely different level of financial commitment to the economy of Vietnam then foreigners escaping here as tourists or wannabe residents without any family ties here.

Congratulations on getting your VECs, and leave the guilt behind.

I think you will find that if you terminated a marriage in Viet Nam you don't have the same residency rights. Im sure someone in VN has thought about it, but the foreigner would lose all their residency rights.
I was offered 50k usd back in 2013 to marry a girl and bring her to Australia...I declined.
-@colinoscapee
Perhaps the contract would have to be 50% up front and the rest in annual installments. . Of course the danger is that you could actually start liking each other.

I too have heard of 50K USD, but I didn't want to post it as I never got such an offer myself. I was offered the 30K but that was several years before I was married, which was 2012 (I think )
-@THIGV
Now I feel cheated, the best offer I had was 10k usd.
-@goodolboy
Thats the difference when looking at a Rolls Royce and a Lada, lol.
-@colinoscapee

Now I feel cheated, the best offer I had was 10k usd.
-@goodolboy
Inflation my friend.  Was that an offer from Ms. My?  Now the tables are turned and you will need to be giving her the 10K
-@THIGV

I think the discount price was to do with me explaining that I came from Scotland & Scotland was not part of OZ or USA or Canada & the deal included me fathering a little "goodolboy or goodolgal" & when the interpreter explained that was not possible because I have been firing blanks for years, the deal was quickly withdrawn!

Think Ms My's family would be hard pushed to come up with 100 usd let alone 10,000usd. The profit in Durian & Jack Fruit farming barely covers raising them raising 10 kids as it is