Friends planning Vietnam trips always ask me the same question: how long will the e-visa take? My answer has evolved from “3 days” to “probably 3 working days, but give yourself 2 weeks.” The difference between those answers represents several stressful experiences watching visa status pages while flights loomed.

The official answer is 3 working days. The practical answer includes variables: your documentation quality, your timing relative to Vietnamese holidays, and pure luck of the processing queue. My fastest approval was 31 hours. My slowest was 11 days (Tet holiday period). Most fall somewhere between 2-4 working days.

For official information and to check your application status, visit the official Vietnam e-visa portal.