Embassy of Vietnam

"Stay away. The immigration, consulate and embassy offices do not talk to each other. The govt run e-visa platform is Middle Ages. You will likely risk taking on unwanted fees due to lack of tourist care."

"A hacker spook this number which mean they use this number to call you. Telling you that your personal information was taking in Vietnam. They are going to make you repeat everything they said to you, record your voice and do illegal stuff. Please be careful. If you ask for their email or contact, they will hang up. They have no real email."

"I regret not reading the critical reviews before mailing my application. Guys, these 1 star reviews are true, described my situation perfectly. Terrible customer service. I wonder how long these people gotta wait to have things done."

"There IS an easy, quick, convenient way to get your visa. The website just needs to be decluttered and updated with streamlined contact info and links. This embassy office team handles A TON of requests. The staff here do their best. Streamlined and updated website communication and payment system would help all stakeholders here. I needed a visa to visit Vietnam. The website instructions list all the components of the application, except I didn’t know how to get an approval letter from Vietnamese authorities. Since I was going to be in DC for work, I went to the embassy to apply in-person. I printed out the application form, filled it out, brought everything except an approval letter. The staff member who helped me said, “you want a visa for multiple visits?” No, just one-time entry. “This is the wrong application. Go online and apply for an e-visa. It’s quicker. You don’t need an approval letter.” So I did. It took a few minutes to find the right link because there are several government (and private travel agencies) websites that all had the same keywords for Vietnam visa. When I got on the right page, the instructions were detailed and clear. I filled out the online application and paid $25. System said it didn’t accept my credit card. I tried to pay again, system told me to start a new application instead because you can’t change a transaction once it happened. Second attempt yielded the same result: credit card payment not accepted. I figured I should wait 3 days and check back to see if I get an e-visa. After 4 days the system still showed payment failed. I applied 2 more times using different debit and credit cards. Payment declined. I did some research and discovered that banks in the US use a different system and cards than the system used in Vietnam, that's why the government site rejected my cards. I called my aunt in Vietnam to borrow her debit card and paid with that. It worked! Within 3 days I got an email notifying that my visa was granted. I printed it at home and traveled. There’s a learning curve, but overall it was a very easy, convenient process to get a e-visa. Had the embassy staff not told me about an “e-visa”, I would’ve mailed in my passport and followed instructions for some complicated visa I didn’t need and gotten the process wrong. Now, if you don't have anyone in Vietnam with a credit or debit card that you can use, you can pay extra fees to a third-party travel site or agent to get an e-visa on your behalf. It costs 3-4 times more. You can also get one upon arrival for $25, which I've done before. The drawback was it could take 1-2 hours if your plane has a lot of passengers off-boarding who also need a visa upon arrival. Overall 4-stars because the embassy staff do a lot with what they have to work with. The embassy itself was easy to find and is a welcoming space. Took off 1 star because of the learning curve."

"I had to cancel a vacation to Vietnam upon arrival at the airport because my "Letter of Invitation" to get a visa upon arrival was not accepted by the airline. I tried everything I could to get help with my visa application using their evisa software. Not because I was not qualified but because of insufficient information like they needed my full name in capital letters! I sent numerous emails asking for assistance but never got any replies. I called the embassy and, after days of trying, somebody actually answered the telephone. I was told they could not help me get a visa even though their website indicates they can issue one. I may have lost thousands of dollars as a result of the trip and airline cancellations. This is third-world country behavior. If you plan on getting a visa for Vietnam, start very early as things are not like you can expect in the USA."