{"id":4631,"date":"2023-08-20T07:06:20","date_gmt":"2023-08-20T07:06:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.riskinasia.com\/?p=4631"},"modified":"2023-09-28T00:41:30","modified_gmt":"2023-09-28T00:41:30","slug":"vietnam-reopens-for-real-with-45-day-visa-free-exemptions-for-expats-and-tourists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.riskinasia.com\/vietnam-reopens-for-real-with-45-day-visa-free-exemptions-for-expats-and-tourists\/","title":{"rendered":"Vietnam Reopens for Real with 45-day Visa Free Exemptions for Expats and Tourists"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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Vietnam’s recent Visa-Free exemptions bring Tourism to the Front<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Tuesday, August 15, 2023, marks the true reopening of Vietnam post-Covid. When will the 18 million visitors of 2019 be back again? Following March 2020 to March 2022, two loooong years of lockdown. After a false start in March 2022 (limited to 80 countries with a maximum 30-day tourist visa), Vietnam sees the light at the end of the tunnel today, despite some pushback problems with digitalization in Vietnam\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But we’re getting there. Thirteen countries have visa exemptions, and the rest of the world has e-visas for 90 days! Yahooooo! Let’s get back to business and bring back the 18 million visitors from 2019! Note: The 2023 year target was 8 million, but I’m sure this announcement will surprise the Vietnamese government forecasts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What took so long? The pandemic was very tough for everyone, but as usual in Vietnam, some optimized the situation for their own benefit. Post-Covid, dozens of large-scale scandals<\/a> were unearthed by Nguyen Phu Trong, the first secretary of the Vietnamese Communist Central Party, driving to eradicate corruption. To name a few, the Vietnamese Ministry of Health, the Transportation Vehicle Inspectorate<\/a>, the Overseas Vietnamese repatriations, the Vietnamese Airlines hostesses’ drug smuggling<\/a>\u2026<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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As I write this, the processes are being implemented, and you can use the official links below\u2026 but still be patient as digitalized administration is not the preferred modus operandi of Vietnamese civil servants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Covid Repatriation of Vietnamese Overseas and Other Investigations<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In 2022, the scandal of the Vietnamese Overseas repatriations – involving the collusion of 8 high-ranked servants from various ministries – was a racket. Anyone wanting to board planes chartered by the officially authorized organizers would need to pay a minimum of VND 150 million, i.e., over US$6,000 per Vietnamese returnee to their home country to escape the worldwide Covid pandemic. As I write this, death sentences and average exemplary jail terms ranging from 12 to 20 years are being handed out. Then, recently in March 2023, the busting of a drug ring triggered by French customs informing their Vietnamese counterparts led to the arrest of 4 Vietnamese airline hostesses smuggling 11.4 kg of drugs. This almost triggered another round of extensive investigations. Hopefully, the ‘flight freight of information news’ has been lost in the Bermuda triangle of state secrecy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

HR Problems: Recruit – Train – Retain Vietnam Jailed Civil Servants?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Most foreigners in Vietnam are completely unaware of why it takes so long to reopen, despite 2 long years of Covid. The Vietnamese economy and workers desperately need to revive production and hospitality. As they shrugged off the overseas repatriation corruption case for two reasons: #1 it doesn’t concern them as it deals with Vietnamese citizen returnees, and #2 it is largely internal news in the Vietnamese language. There’s no pride in exposing Vietnamese officials’ corruption towards their own people. All the foreign community will buzz about are the court’s decisions on death penalty sentences. Read more about Covid repatriation organized bribery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pushback on E-visas and Digitalization<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A bit of simple math and economics can explain the danger of introducing digitalization in the lives of government officials. Administration in Vietnam is poorly equipped, processing tons of paperwork that needs daily stamping by overwhelmed and slow civil servants who earn an average salary of VND 7 million (about US$300 per month). To accelerate the process, the visa service can help you process your visa application effortlessly and quickly for $70 per visa. Time, Vietnamese queuing, and language are all money, as the saying goes. Now let’s say the abuses manage to bust the ring, and there aren’t many staff members left in the ministries to do the job. It might be a good idea to introduce digitization and e-processing for visitors to apply online at a cost of $25 per person, just like banks allow you to service your own account needs. For you, it’s definitely a good idea, benefiting all with $25 in the e-wallet effortlessly! But think again, as you are about to wipe out $50 from the table for every visa processed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A Tourist in Vietnam<\/a><\/blockquote>