Vietnam Transit Visa: Do You Need a Visa for a Layover?

Vietnam has no "transit visa". A layover falls into one of two cases, and your ticket decides which:

1. You stay airside - in the international transit area, from one international flight to the next. No visa needed.
2. You pass through immigration - for any reason. Then you are entering Vietnam, and you need whatever your passport needs for any visit: a visa, or a visa-free entry.

No visa needed: staying airside

A layover needs no visa when all of these are true:

• You arrive on an international flight and leave on another international flight from the same airport.
• You stay in the international transit area the whole time.
• Your bags are checked through to your final destination, so you never collect them.

This is the usual case for connections in Ho Chi Minh City (SGN) or Hanoi (HAN) on a single booking. If your layover is long, ask the airline whether you can stay airside for the whole wait.

Visa needed: anything that takes you through immigration

• Connecting to a domestic flight. Flying Sydney to Da Nang via Ho Chi Minh City, or London to Phu Quoc via Hanoi, means entering Vietnam at the first airport. That airport is also the entry port to give on your e-visa. Arriving in Ho Chi Minh City · Arriving in Hanoi.
• Separate tickets. If the two flights are on separate bookings, you will usually have to collect your bags and check in again landside - which means passing through immigration.
• Leaving the airport. A long layover spent in the city, or a night in a hotel outside the airport, needs a visa.
• Changing airports. Ho Chi Minh City's new Long Thanh airport (LTH) is due to open on 1 December 2026. A connection between Long Thanh and Tan Son Nhat means leaving one airport for the other, so it needs a visa.

If your passport is visa-free

Citizens of 39 countries - including the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan and South Korea - can enter Vietnam without a visa for between 14 and 90 days. For them, a layover that leaves the airport needs nothing extra: they simply enter visa-free. Check your passport.

Which visa for a layover

• One layover, one entry: a single-entry e-visa covers it, valid for up to 90 days from the date you give.
• Layovers on the way out and the way back, entering Vietnam both times: you need a multiple-entry e-visa, or two single-entry visas. Single or multiple entry?
• An airside transit does not count as an entry, so it uses up nothing on any visa you hold.

Apply as you would for any trip: two to three weeks ahead is comfortable, and urgent processing is available on working days.

The pre-arrival form

Passengers who stay in the international transit area don't complete Vietnam's pre-arrival form. If you enter the country - for a domestic connection or to leave the airport - you do. How to complete it.

A note on Phu Quoc

Phu Quoc's 30-day visa exemption applies only when you arrive on the island from abroad. Connecting through Ho Chi Minh City or Hanoi can keep you eligible if you stay airside and are ticketed through - but if you pass through immigration at the first airport, you need a visa. Phu Quoc rules.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a Vietnam transit visa?

No. You either stay in the international transit area, which needs no visa, or you enter Vietnam, which needs the same visa as any visit - or none, for visa-free passports.

Do I need a visa to change planes in Ho Chi Minh City?

Not between two international flights if you stay in the international transit area. A connection to a domestic flight, or one where you collect and re-check your bags, needs a visa.

Do I need a visa to connect from Ho Chi Minh City to Da Nang?

Yes. A domestic connection means entering Vietnam at Ho Chi Minh City, so give Tan Son Nhat as your e-visa entry port.

Can I leave the airport during a long layover in Hanoi?

Only if your passport is visa-free for Vietnam or you hold a visa. Without one, stay in the international transit area.

I have two separate tickets. Do I need a visa?

Usually yes, because you will have to collect your bags and check in again landside. Ask the airline whether it can check your bags through; if it can and you stay airside, you don't.

Does transiting airside use up my e-visa?

No. An e-visa entry is counted only when you pass through immigration.