Author: Kelly Thompson

Applied for business visa thinking it would be faster. It wasn’t. Same processing time as tourist, maybe slightly longer actually. The status page shows the visa type but no estimated completion difference. Went with tourist for my next trip since that’s what I actually needed. Less paperwork too. The portal treats both types the same…

The status portal switched to Vietnamese randomly one day. Couldn’t find the language toggle at first. It was in the top corner, tiny link. Clicked around until I found “English” option. The status information displayed the same way in both languages. Just text that says processing or approved. No detailed explanation in either language. Related…

Couldn’t find my application reference number. It was in an email I accidentally deleted. Tried the “forgot reference” option on the portal. Didn’t work with my details. Ended up applying again with different email. Lost the processing time from the first application. Now I screenshot everything immediately after submitting. Reference numbers, confirmation pages, all of…

Applied for multiple entry since I planned two trips within a month. Processing took longer than single entry, about five working days. The status page looked the same throughout. No indication that multiple entry takes extra time. Just longer waiting. Eventually approved though. Saved me from applying twice and paying twice. Worth the extra wait…

Live in California. Vietnam is fifteen hours ahead. When it’s midnight here, their offices are opening. Status updates seem to happen during their business hours, not ours. Set my alarm for 4am once just to check as soon as they opened. Still said processing. Approval came through during my afternoon, their middle of the night.…

Entered my arrival date wrong on the first try. Used the American format instead of day-month-year. Application got flagged and I had to start over. The form doesn’t auto-correct or warn you about format mismatches. Double-checked everything the second time. Passport number, dates, spelling of my name exactly as it appears. Small mistakes cause real…

Kept waiting for an email saying my visa was approved. It never arrived. Checked spam, checked promotions folder, nothing. Turns out you have to manually check the status portal. The approval was there for two days before I noticed. Almost missed downloading the letter in time. Now I check the portal directly instead of waiting…

They say three working days for processing. Mine took five. Not counting the weekend. So really seven calendar days from submission to approval. Cutting it close with my flight. Some people online say they got approved faster. Others waited longer. There’s no guarantee either way. The status just sits on “processing” until it doesn’t. No…

The official portal goes down a lot. Not completely down, just slow. Sometimes it loads the login page but times out when you try to check status. Happens more often during peak hours, around 9am to 11am Vietnam time. Found that checking late at night their time works better. Less traffic I assume. Keep your…

Landed at Tan Son Nhat with my approval letter. Visa on arrival line had maybe fifteen people. The woman at the counter checked my passport, looked at the letter, stamped it, and handed everything back. Took about five minutes. Paid the stamping fee in cash. Had exact change ready which seemed to speed things up.…