3 month invite letter now takes 3-4 days

HenryJo wrote:

My 3 month single entry visa was running out on 12 March, so visted vivutravel[dot]com to request another 3 month single entry invite letter. Did this on 07 March 2019. Of course, their website said the processing time was 2 working days for normal guaranteed service. See:

...

Within minutes I received an email from vivutravel saying from 2019 it takes 3-4 working days to get 3 month invite letter. I was told if the visa type was changed to 1 month it is possible.

Is anyone aware of this?..I was told the same by Chi's cafe previously, so tried vivutravel only to be told the same. Ultimately, I chose not to do visa run, and just left vietnam. (didn't see the point of doing visa run just for one month)

Yes, something like that.

My trusted VOA agent in Hanoi just posted a notice on her Facebook business page, confirming that the approval process has slowed.

Yes, and no rush service (1 day, 4 hours, 2 hours... services) is available as before!
However, you may change to business visa application in emergency cases. 3-months business visa can be arranged within 1 working day or less.

Just been caught out by this. Was informed by the online agent I used, the day after they had taken my money for a two day service,  that my invite will actually be emailed to me about 12hrs after I land in HCMC.  Very handy.

I suppose I could hang about in arrivals and hope I can get someone to print it off for me when it shows up, which would foul up various travel and hotel arrangements, or enter visaless for 15 days (UK passport) and at some point within that window do a quick round trip flight to Bangkok and use the 3 month visa upon re-arrival. Either way a PITA but hey it would be no fun if it was easy.

Will be using a different agent next time. 

Brick23 wrote:

Just been caught out by this. Was informed by the online agent I used, the day after they had taken my money for a two day service,  that my invite will actually be emailed to me about 12hrs after I land in HCMC.  Very handy.

I suppose I could hang about in arrivals and hope I can get someone to print it off for me when it shows up, which would foul up various travel and hotel arrangements, or enter visaless for 15 days (UK passport) and at some point within that window do a quick round trip flight to Bangkok and use the 3 month visa upon re-arrival. Either way a PITA but hey it would be no fun if it was easy.

Will be using a different agent next time. 

That's a shame. Did you ask them to refund the difference between the normal processing rate and the charge for expedited service?

From what my agent in Hanoi has told me, there was a big slowdown, partially because during Tết they don't process as many Visa applications, so there was a backlog for them to work on after the extended holiday was over.

Lesson here, to anyone reading this thread in the future:

Order your Visa On Arrival (VOA) letter 30 days ahead of time and don't pay for expedited or "fast" service.

Also, using a trustworthy agent with a good reputation among foreigners is most important, even if their fee is higher that other agents are quoting online.

Send a private message to a forum member you trust and ask for the contact info for their trusted agent.

In the end though, the government really can change requirements and time for processing without warning, and that ends up being totally out of the VOA agent's ability to control.

OceanBeach92107 wrote:

Brick23 wrote:

Just been caught out by this. Was informed by the online agent I used, the day after they had taken my money for a two day service,  that my invite will actually be emailed to me about 12hrs after I land in HCMC.  Very handy.

I suppose I could hang about in arrivals and hope I can get someone to print it off for me when it shows up, which would foul up various travel and hotel arrangements, or enter visaless for 15 days (UK passport) and at some point within that window do a quick round trip flight to Bangkok and use the 3 month visa upon re-arrival. Either way a PITA but hey it would be no fun if it was easy.

Will be using a different agent next time. 

That's a shame. Did you ask them to refund the difference between the normal processing rate and the charge for expedited service?

From what my agent in Hanoi has told me, there was a big slowdown, partially because during Tết they don't process as many Visa applications, so there was a backlog for them to work on after the extended holiday was over.

Lesson here, to anyone reading this thread in the future:

Order your Visa On Arrival (VOA) letter 30 days ahead of time and don't pay for expedited or "fast" service.

Also, using a trustworthy agent with a good reputation among foreigners is most important, even if their fee is higher that other agents are quoting online.

Send a private message to a forum member you trust and ask for the contact info for their trusted agent.

In the end though, the government really can change requirements and time for processing without warning, and that ends up being totally out of the VOA agent's ability to control.

From what my agent in Hanoi has told me, there was a big slowdown, partially because during Tết they don't process as many Visa applications, so there was a backlog for them to work on after the extended holiday was over.

Must have been just this year, because last year (2018) I contacted Chi's cafe for three month single entry tourist visa invitation letter on 28 February 2018 and received SMS saying the letter was ready on 03 March 2018.

In the end though, the government really can change requirements and time for processing without warning, and that ends up being totally out of the VOA agent's ability to control.

Seems it was beyond the GOVERNMENT'S CONTROL. i.e. due to backlog. Not enough personnel to process the invitation letter requests perhaps. Note that visa applications are different to invitation letters. When an invitation letter/approval letter is issued, the letter needs to be shown to immigration at airport/land border crossing on entry to vietnam, then stamping fee paid, form filled, photos attached, then only is the visa issued. I think your agent was talking about invitation letter/approval letter, not actual visa applications, which usually requires the applicant to visit the vietnam embassy (see: https://vietnamvisa.govt.vn/requirement … d-kingdom/)

...and that ends up being totally out of the VOA agent's ability to control.

Updating facebook page (or a website for that matter) is well within the control of the agent. As your agent quite clearly displayed.

HenryJo wrote:

Updating facebook page (or a website for that matter) is well within the control of the agent.

That's my gripe, none of the websites I checked out before deciding on one made any mention of this upfront.

Eh, live and learn.  There are worse fates than having to take a brief holiday-in-holiday to Thailand.