Vietnam Visa for Australian Citizens: 2026 e-Visa Guide

Vietnam visa for Australian citizens is a step every traveller from Australia has to sort before departure — Vietnam does not offer visa-free entry to Australian passport holders, no matter how short the trip. The good news: since the e-visa rules were simplified, it is a straightforward online process. Here is exactly how it works in 2026, what it costs, and the mistakes that catch out first-time applicants.

Quick answer: Australian citizens need a visa for every visit to Vietnam — there is no visa-exemption for Australia. The simplest route is the official Vietnam e-visa: apply online at evisa.gov.vn, pay US$25 for single entry or US$50 for multiple entry, and you can stay up to 90 days. Processing is officially 3 working days, but we recommend applying three to four weeks before you fly to leave a comfortable buffer.

In this guide: How to apply · Documents · Entry points · Common mistakes · e-visa vs visa on arrival · FAQs

How do Australians apply for a Vietnam e-visa?

The process runs entirely online and takes most travellers about 15 minutes to complete, plus the wait for approval:

• 1. Go to the official portal: evisa.gov.vn only — plenty of lookalike agent sites charge well above the government fee for the same visa.
• 2. Create your application: enter your passport details and upload a scan of your passport photo page plus a digital portrait photo.
• 3. Choose single or multiple entry and select your planned entry and exit points from the official list.
• 4. Pay online — US$25 single entry or US$50 multiple entry, by card.
• 5. Wait for your approval code, then download and print the PDF e-visa once it lands in your inbox.

Once your e-visa is sorted, the fun part starts — see our Vietnam tours from Australia guide for flights, timing and ready-made itineraries.

What documents and photo do you need?

Have these ready before you start the application so it goes through in one sitting:

• Passport: valid at least 6 months beyond your planned stay, with at least one blank page.
• Passport bio-page scan: a clear, glare-free photo or scan of the main details page.
• Digital portrait photo: recent, front-facing, plain light background — passport-photo style, uploaded as a file rather than taken through the portal.
• A card for payment: the US$25/US$50 fee is paid online at the time of application.

Ideal pacing: apply 3–4 weeks before you fly · pay and submit in one sitting so nothing sits half-finished · check your inbox and download the PDF the moment approval lands · print a copy and pack it a week out · reconfirm your chosen entry airport 48 hours before departure. Sorted early, it never has to cross your mind again.

Which airports and borders accept the e-visa?

The Vietnam e-visa is accepted at 81 international checkpoints: 17 airports, 27 land border crossings (with China, Laos and Cambodia), and 39 seaports. Most Australian flights land at Tan Son Nhat (Ho Chi Minh City), Noi Bai (Hanoi) or Da Nang — all covered. One rule to remember: you must enter through the exact port you selected on your application, though you can exit through any approved port. That matters if you are combining Vietnam with Cambodia or Laos overland — pick your planned land border when you apply.

Common Vietnam e-visa mistakes Australians make

• Applying through third-party agent sites that charge well above the government’s US$25/US$50 fee for the same visa — evisa.gov.vn is the only official portal.
• Selecting the wrong entry airport, then changing flights afterwards — you must land where you applied to enter.
• A blurry or cropped photo is one of the most common reasons an application bounces back for correction.
• Leaving it too late — the 3-working-day minimum assumes a clean, complete application; anything needing a fix adds days.
• A passport with under 6 months’ validity, which can mean rejection regardless of the e-visa approval.

e-visa vs visa on arrival: which should you choose?

For almost every Australian traveller, the e-visa is the better choice. It is booked entirely online from home, works whether you arrive by air, land or sea, and there is no cash payment to arrange on landing. Visa on arrival, by contrast, needs a pre-approval letter organised through a travel agent (an extra fee on top), a stamping fee paid in cash at the airport, and only works if you are flying in — it will not help you if you are crossing an overland border from Cambodia or Laos. Unless a travel agent has arranged it for a specific reason, stick with the e-visa.

Vietnam visa for Australian citizens: know before you go

• Carry a printed copy: keep the PDF printout in your carry-on, plus a photo of it saved on your phone as backup.
• Match your dates: make sure both your entry and your planned exit fall inside the 90-day window, especially on longer trips.
• Combo trips: Cambodia and Laos each need their own separate visa or entry permit — the Vietnam e-visa does not cover them.
• Time it with your trip: once the visa dates are locked in, line up your travel dates with our best time to visit Vietnam guide.

Vietnam visa for Australian citizens FAQs

Why I always tell Australian travellers to sort the e-visa early

I plan a lot of trips for Australian travellers, and I’ve learnt that the visa is the one piece people quietly worry about — so I always sort it first. Once the e-visa is locked in, the rest of the itinerary simply flows: I can pin down the Ha Long cruise, the Hanoi days and the internal flights knowing the entry date is settled. The travellers who leave it to the last fortnight are the ones who end up emailing me at midnight, and I’d much rather nobody did that. My honest advice — apply three to four weeks out, print it, forget about it, and spend that energy deciding where you actually want to wake up each morning. And if you’ve been through the Vietnam e-visa yourself, smooth or bumpy, tell me in the comments; every story sharpens the tip I pass to the next traveller.
— Lan, My Viva Tour

See Vietnam with My Viva Tour

Visa sorted? Tell us your dates and what you love — food, history, beaches, trekking — and we’ll build a free, no-obligation private itinerary within 24 hours, priced in Australian dollars. Curious what the rest of the trip costs? See how much a Vietnam trip costs, or browse our Vietnam private tours. Get your free quote.

Travel notes fact-checked: July 2026. Visa rules can change without notice — we review this guide every 6 months; next check due January 2027.