Vietnam Visas for Digital Nomads

• Stay: up to 90 days.
• Entries: single entry for $25, or multiple entry for $50, which lets you leave and come back within the 90 days.
• Who can apply: every nationality.
• How to apply: only on the official e-visa site, with a passport scan and photo. Processing takes about three working days but can be slower around Tết, so apply a week or two ahead.
• Where it works: at all international airports and the main land and sea border crossings. Check that your entry point is on the list.

Many copycat websites sell the same e-visa for two or three times the price. The official site ends in .gov.vn.

Citizens of these countries can enter for 45 days without a visa, for any purpose of visit:

• Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom
• Japan, South Korea and Russia

The old rule requiring 30 days between visa-free entries has been dropped, so you can leave and come back straight away. Citizens of most ASEAN countries get 14 to 30 days. Americans, Canadians, Australians and New Zealanders need the e-visa.

Phu Quoc island has its own rule: any foreigner arriving directly on an international flight can stay 30 days without a visa, as long as they stay on the island.

Because the e-visa can’t easily be extended, long-stayers leave the country before day 90, apply for a new e-visa, and come back. Popular runs are short flights to Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur or Singapore, or an overland trip to Cambodia or Laos. Budget $150 to $300 for each run.

Border officers rarely question repeated e-visas, but a passport full of back-to-back stays can draw a few questions. Have an onward ticket and an address ready.

Some visa agencies offer to extend tourist visas or arrange three-month business (DN) visas through a Vietnamese sponsor company. These cost more, rules change frequently, and a business visa sponsored by a company you don’t work for is legally shaky. Use only well-reviewed agencies, and never hand over your passport without a receipt.

Vietnam requires a work permit for any foreigner working for a Vietnamese employer or clients. Remote work for employers and clients outside Vietnam on an e-visa is a grey area: it is not clearly allowed, but it is rarely enforced and thousands of nomads do it. Don’t take local clients, teach or do paid work for Vietnamese businesses without a permit.

A temporary residence card (TRC) lets you live in Vietnam for one to five years without visa runs. You can get one through:

• Employment with a Vietnamese company, with a work permit.
• Investment in a Vietnamese company.
• Marriage to a Vietnamese citizen.

There is no TRC for remote workers employed abroad. A TRC also makes it much easier to open a bank account and sign long leases.

Every foreigner must be registered with the local police at their address. Hotels and most serviced apartments do it automatically. With a private landlord, ask them to do it; otherwise, they can be fined, and you may need the registration for visas or a bank account.