Vietnam Visa for Europeans: Who Is Visa-Free for 45 Days and Who Needs an E-Visa (2026)

There is no single answer for "Europeans". Vietnam decides visa-free entry passport by passport, and the European list has grown in steps - most recently in August 2025. The result is that a German can fly to Hanoi without a visa while an Austrian on the same flight needs one.

Schengen membership makes no difference, and nor does a Schengen visa or an EU residence permit. Only the passport you travel on counts.

Visa-free for 45 days

As of October 2026, these European passports can enter Vietnam without a visa for up to 45 days:

Group	Countries
45 days since 15 August 2023	United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Russia, Belarus
Added in August 2025, running to 14 August 2028	Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Hungary, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland

Vietnam renews these exemptions by government resolution, and has repeatedly extended them. If your trip is close to an expiry date, check again before you fly.

Europeans who need an e-visa

These European passports are not on the visa-free list. Their holders need a visa for every trip, and the e-visa is the usual one: up to 90 days, issued online.

	Countries
EU members	Austria, Cyprus, Estonia, Greece, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Portugal
Rest of Western Europe	Iceland, Liechtenstein, Andorra, Monaco, San Marino
Eastern and south-eastern Europe	Ukraine, Moldova, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, Turkey, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan

Two cases that surprise people:

• Ireland and the UK are treated differently. A British passport is visa-free for 45 days; an Irish one is not. If you hold both, either works - but use the same passport for the booking, the visa and the border. Vietnam visa for Irish citizens.
• Austria and Germany are treated differently, as are Portugal and Spain. Vietnam visa for Austrian citizens · for Portuguese citizens.

How the 45 days work

• Day one is the day you arrive. Arrive on 1 March and the last day you can be in Vietnam is 14 April.
• They cannot be extended from inside Vietnam, and visa-free entry cannot be converted into an e-visa after you land - e-visa applications are only accepted from people outside the country.
• There is no minimum gap between visits. You can leave - to Cambodia, say - and come back visa-free, but each stay is capped at 45 days.
• Your passport needs six months' validity, and the airline may ask to see a ticket out of Vietnam within the 45 days.
• Overstaying is fined before you are allowed to leave. Extensions and overstays.

When a visa-free European should get an e-visa anyway

• The trip is longer than 45 days - a winter in Hoi An, a sabbatical, the length of the country by motorbike. The e-visa allows up to 90 days.
• You want your dates fixed in writing before you travel, with no questions about your onward ticket at check-in.

Flights from Europe, and the entry port to give

There are direct flights to Vietnam from London, Paris, Frankfurt and Munich, mostly to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. From elsewhere in Europe most travellers connect through Doha, Dubai, Istanbul or Singapore.

If you need an e-visa, give the airport where you first land in Vietnam as the entry port. Ho Chi Minh City's new Long Thanh airport (LTH) is scheduled to open on 1 December 2026, with long-haul flights moving there in stages - check the airport code on your ticket. Arriving in Hanoi · Arriving in Ho Chi Minh City.

Everyone: the pre-arrival form

Visa-free or not, every foreign passenger landing at Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Da Nang, Phu Quoc or Cam Ranh is asked to complete Vietnam's free online pre-arrival form within 72 hours of arrival. Visa-free travellers choose the exemption they are entering under instead of entering a visa number. How to complete the pre-arrival form.

Paying from Europe

The Vietnamese government fee is US$25 for a single-entry e-visa and US$50 for multiple entry. Our prices include it and can be paid by card in euros, pounds, Swiss francs and most other European currencies. They are shown on each visa page. Applying yourself or using an agency.

In your language

Our nationality pages are also available in German and French: Vietnam-Visum auf Deutsch · Visa Vietnam en français.

Frequently asked questions

Do EU citizens need a visa for Vietnam?

It depends on the passport. Eighteen EU countries, including France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands, are visa-free for 45 days. Austria, Cyprus, Estonia, Greece, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta and Portugal are not, and their citizens need a visa.

Do UK citizens need a visa for Vietnam?

Not for stays of up to 45 days. For longer, apply for a 90-day e-visa before you travel. Vietnam visa for British citizens.

Do Irish citizens need a visa for Vietnam?

Yes. Irish passports are not on Vietnam's visa-free list, so Irish citizens need a visa - usually the e-visa, applied for online.

Does a Schengen visa or EU residence permit let me into Vietnam?

No. Vietnam does not recognise Schengen visas or EU residence permits. Your own passport decides whether you need a visa.

Can I stay in Vietnam longer than 45 days without a visa?

No. Each visa-free stay ends on day 45. For a longer trip, arrive on an e-visa, which allows up to 90 days.

Can I leave Vietnam and come back visa-free?

Yes. There is no minimum gap between visa-free visits, but each stay is limited to 45 days.