Just like in every other country, overstaying Vietnam visa has its own consequences. Find out its fines and recommendations.
Vietnam visa is required for foreigners who want to get into Vietnam legally (except for those eligible for Vietnam visa exemption). Trouble happens when they overstay in Vietnam without extending/renewing their Vietnam visa. In this case, foreigners must pay for a penalty/fine for overstaying Vietnam visa.
Now, let’s figure out what overstaying Vietnam visa means, its fines, and how to cope with it.
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What is Vietnam visa overstay?
Basically, overstaying visa in Vietnam means that you stay in Vietnam longer than your Vietnam visa’s permitted validity duration, i.e an expired visa for Vietnam.
Overstaying Vietnam visa could result in harsh consequences. Thus, before you or your loved one enters Vietnam, you had better understand the consequences/penalty of overstaying, how to avoid it and what to do if you have overstayed your Vietnam visa.
Consequences of Overstaying Your Visa in Vietnam
According to the Immigration Law of Vietnam, the penalty of overstaying a visa varies, depending on the type of visa and specific circumstance.
According to the law on administrative fines of Vietnam, the fine imposed on overstaying a visa ranges from VND 500,000 to VND 40,000,000, depending on the number of days of overstaying.
In addition, those overstaying a visa Vietnam may be blacklisted by the Vietnam Immigration Department and subject to forced deportation. Worse, you will never be able to come back to Vietnam again in the future.
Vietnam Visa Overstay Fines
This section will let you know in details “How much do you have to pay if you overstay your visa in Vietnam?“.
In Vietnam, the fine for overstaying a visa is charged by days of overstaying. It is clearly provided for in Article 8 of the Circular No. 144/2021/NĐ-CP as follows:
- Overstaying for less than 16 days: VND VND 500,000 – VND 2,000,000 (~US $22 – US $88)
- Overstaying for 16 days – less than 30 days: VND 3,000,000 – VND 5,000,000 (~ US $133 – US $221)
- Overstaying for 30 days – less than 60 days: VND 5,000,000 – VND 10,000,000 (~ US $221 – US $441)
- Overstaying for 60 days – less than 90 days: VND 10,000,000 – VND 15,000,000 (~ US $441 – US $661)
- Overstaying for at least 90 days: VND 15,000,000 – VND 20,000,000 (~ US $661 – US $885)
- Foreigners who do not comply with competent agencies’ decisions on forcing them to exit Vietnam and continue to reside in Vietnam: VND 30,000,000 – VND 40,000,000 (~ US $1,320 – US $1,760).
How to Avoid Overstaying Vietnam Visa In Advance?
Prevention is always better than cure. This applies for not only health, but also overstaying visa issue. It is best to avoid it in the first place with the following tips:
- Check the expiry date on visa stamp right at Vietnam airports. There are cases in which the officers give a wrong date on the visa stamp. It can be a huge issue and the travelers then cannot explain in details upon caught violating Vietnam laws. Therefore, make sure that your visa shows correct details, particularly valid dates.
- Take note or set an alarm of the last date of your Vietnam visa validity. You may forget it due to a wedding, hospital treatment, an extended trip, and lost documents, which result in overstaying your visa. Thus, always remind yourself of this crucial date in order to avoid possible fines or repercussions.
- If you would like to overstay beyond your visa’s expiration, you must file for a Vietnam visa extension.
What to Do If You Have Overstayed?
The most convenient way to solve the problem is to pay the fine when you only overstay for one or two days. Payment can be made to the immigration officer at the airport when you exit the country. The fine is approximately VND 500,000 or US$ 25.
The most convenient way when you overstay your visa is to pay a fine to the Immigration Officer at the airport when you exit the country in case you just overstay 1 or 2 days.
However, it is not the best way to deal with this issue as your passport will be marked by the officers with regards to the overstaying, which might affect your further visit to the country. In this case, we highly recommend you to extend your expired visa to further remain in the country even though it takes a few more days.
What to Do If You Lose Your Passport?
In case you overstay in Vietnam due to losing your passport, then go instantly to the local ward police office and fill in the Passport Lost Report to obtain confirmation sealed by them. After that, contact your country’s Embassy/Consulate in Vietnam for renewing your passport. It may take several weeks to carry out the renewal. In case your country does not have an official Embassy/Consulate in Vietnam, contact the nearest Embassy in a neighboring country and ask for a diplomatic note.
Your Embassy/Consulate will then issue a letter to the Vietnam Immigration Department and request essential support for a travel document if you want to leave Vietnam or a new visa if you want to stay longer. With the former case, you then can exit Vietnam by using the new passport and exit visa.
How to Exit Vietnam If Your Visa Is Expired
To leave Vietnam legally, you must pay all penalty fees and follow any required procedure by local officials, like submitting an explaining letter or applying for an exit visa.
► See how to get a Vietnam exit visa
In case your overstaying is just several days, you can pay the penalty directly to Immigration Officer at Vietnam international airport upon leaving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: I am currently in Da Nang city. Is there any Immigration Office in Da Nang city?
A: Yes, you can visit the Immigration Office in Da Nang at the following address:
Address: No. 7 Tran Quy Cap Street, Da Nang city, Quang Nam province, Vietnam.
Contact information of Vietnam Immigration Department in other big cities in Vietnam includes:
- In Hanoi: 40A, Hang Bai Street, Hanoi, Vietnam
- In Ho Chi Minh: 161 Nguyen Du, Ben Thanh Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City.
- In Hai Phong: 2 Tran Binh Trong, Luong Khanh Thien, Ngo Quyen District, Hai Phong
If you want to save time and avoid hassle upon working with the Immigration officials, Vietnam-visa.com team can assist you in processing visa-related services. Please feel free to contact us at +84.946.583.583.
Q: I am confused about my overstaying Vietnam visa so I wish you can answer my question. I applied and paid for a 30-day Vietnam tourist visa at the Vietnam Embassy in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
My visa information was imprinted with incorrect dates – entry 9 Feb – Depart 9 March. The duration is only 28 days, not 30. I think there is a mistake because February has 28 days only.
I will leave Hanoi on 10 March, so I cannot change my flight. I don’t want to request an additional 30 day extension. I went to the Immigration Department in Hanoi but things were not solved thoroughly and they tell me to apply for a visa extension via agency.
An added question is: how much will I pay for the penalty if I overstay my Vietnam visa for such 2 days?
Thank you,
Rosie Prince
A: In fact, there is no 30-day Vietnam visa but a 1-month visa. It means that the visa will be valid from the current date in one month to the exact same date in the next month (09 Feb to 09 March). So your visa states correct. Sometimes the visa will last for 28 days, 30 days, or 31 days, depending on the quantity of days in that month.
To answer your question about the fine, according to our customers’ experiences, the fine for overstay one day is about VND 500,000 per day (~ $23/day) and you can go to the airport directly to pay for the fine and leave Vietnam.
Q: I’m an American staying and teaching English in Vietnam. I got a one year tourist visa and have heard conflicting claims regarding the duration that I have for staying in the country. Some websites say that it is valid for a year, but I still have to leave Vietnam every three months, while some say I have to do a border-run every six months. The visa stamp itself doesn’t clarify anything; neither did the officials at the airport. It just says “multiple entry.” Anyway, I have been here for nearly six months now and have not exited the country. Could anyone confirm what the case actually is, and will I have to pay a huge penalty fee for not leaving the country three months ago? I’m pretty worried about it. The whole thing makes no sense.
Thanks!
A: With tourist visa for US citizens, the maximum length for each stay is 90 days (lasting from the current date in one month to the exact same date in the next month – not 3 months) and you are also not supposed to be working in Vietnam. If you want to stay in the country for a longer period, after each 90-day period, you need to exit Vietnam and then re-enter or extend visa. This type of visa is different from business visa for US citizens. People having 1-year business visa can stay in Vietnam in one (1) year continually without leaving the country.
In this case, you have to go to the Immigration Office in your local and follow the procedure required by officials.
Q: Hi folk, have read a few horror stories about overstaying fees in Vietnam.
We arrived in Ho Chi Minh City this morning and got our visas, no probs. Stupidly, we had assumed that the visa was for 30 days not ONE month exactly. We booked our flights for the 03/02 – 04/03 and our visa is only valid until 03/03.
We are curious to know what our options are. Can we camp overnight in Hanoi airport to avoid overstaying? Is it better to extend/renew my visa?
I’ve read about paying the 1 day fine also, has anyone done this?
Many thanks!
A: Camping at the airport does not count as exiting the country, but you have to be on the other side of the exit desk before your visa validity runs out.
The procedure of completing your exit depends on the number of days you overuse Vietnam visa. If you overstay your visa for just 1 day, you had better pay the fine fee on your own by going to the Immigration Office at Vietnam airport when you leave. It is not a good idea to extend or renew your visa since the fine fee for overstaying (about 500,000 VND ~ 23 USD) is lower than the extension fee. Moreover, it takes several days to extend Vietnam visa and the minimum of extension duration is one (1) month.
Q: We are going to Vietnam for 15 days and 1 hour. As we know about the new regulation of visa to Vietnam, we just can stay in for up to 15 days, so we are worried about getting into trouble for staying 15 days and 1 hour. What will we have to do in this case? Shall we get a 30 day visa to be safe? Or please let me know what the fine will be?
Also how do they count a day? If you arrive at 7pm at night is that counted as a day? We have a flight from Vietnam on technically our 16th day, but our flight is at 00.30 Thank you!
A: The 15 day exemption includes the days of arrival and departure, no matter what the time of day is. A 7 pm arrival (or even an 11.50 pm one) is counted as the 1st day.
If your flight departs at 00.30 of the 16th day, you just check in before 11.00 of the 15th. That way, you will not be fined for overstaying.
