You may have seen the term “Vietnam Visa on Arrival” and assumed it means you can board a flight from Australia without a visa, land in Vietnam, walk up to …
If you are travelling from Australia to Vietnam and have been told that you need a “pre-approved visa letter,” the terminology can be confusing at first. Is the letter already your Vietnam visa? Is it simply a confirmation that you have applied? Or is it a document that you take with you and use after arriving at a Vietnamese airport? These are important distinctions, particularly for travellers who hear the phrase “Visa on Arrival” and naturally assume that the entire visa process begins after landing. In the Visa on Arrival process described in this guide, the pre-approved visa letter belongs to the stage that takes place before you leave Australia. You arrange the required approval first, prepare the supporting documents for your trip, and then complete the remaining visa formalities at an applicable international airport in Vietnam. Understanding what the approval letter does—and what it does not do—makes the whole process much easier to follow.
A Vietnam pre-approved visa letter, commonly referred to as a Vietnam Visa Approval Letter, is an approval document arranged before travel for passengers using the applicable Visa on Arrival process. Australian travellers using this route should obtain the required approval before boarding their flight to Vietnam rather than expecting to begin the entire application after landing.
The approval letter is an important part of the process, but it should not be confused with the completed visa itself. You use the approval documentation together with your passport and other required documents when completing the remaining Visa on Arrival formalities at an applicable Vietnamese international airport.
The easiest way to remember the process is:
Get the approval letter → Prepare your documents → Fly to Vietnam → Complete the Visa on Arrival procedure at the airport
In other words, the letter connects the pre-departure approval stage with the arrival-stage visa procedure.
Australian passport holders using an applicable Vietnam Visa on Arrival arrangement may obtain the required approval documentation before travelling. The important point is that the approval-letter route should match the traveller’s actual itinerary and intended method of entering Vietnam.
This is particularly relevant because “Visa on Arrival” can easily be interpreted as permission to board a flight from Australia with nothing more than a passport and deal with the visa after landing. That is not how the process described here should be understood. The approval stage takes place before departure, while the remaining formalities are completed at the Vietnamese airport.
Travellers should therefore look at the entire journey rather than focusing only on the word “arrival.” Your passport, intended date of entry, arrival airport and requested entry type should all be considered when arranging the approval documentation.
No. This is one of the most important distinctions for Australians considering Vietnam Visa on Arrival.
The approval letter forms part of the process, but it is not the same as having completed the airport visa procedure. Think of it as the document that allows you to move from the pre-travel approval stage to the arrival stage, where the remaining formalities are handled according to the applicable procedure.
| Vietnam Pre-Approved Visa Letter | Completed Visa Stage |
|---|---|
| Arranged before travelling | Completed according to the applicable visa procedure |
| Approval documentation | Final visa/entry documentation |
| Used as part of the Visa on Arrival process | Used for entry according to its conditions |
| Does not by itself represent completion of the airport procedure | Represents completion of the relevant visa stage |
This distinction also explains why receiving the letter does not mean there is nothing left to do. You still need to prepare the required supporting documents, travel through an applicable entry point and complete the remaining procedure after arrival.
A simple rule helps avoid most of the confusion:
Approval Letter ≠ Completed Visa
The approval is arranged first. The remaining Visa on Arrival procedure comes later.
The name “Visa on Arrival” puts all the emphasis on what happens after landing, but the process actually begins earlier. For the route explained in this article, the approval letter belongs on your pre-flight checklist, alongside your passport and other essential travel documents.
There is also a practical reason to arrange the approval before heading to the airport. Airlines may check passengers’ travel documentation during check-in or before boarding, depending on the traveller, route and applicable destination requirements. It is therefore unwise to assume that any visa-related documentation will only matter once you reach Vietnam Immigration.
The correct sequence is much easier to remember than the terminology:
Approval first. Flight second. Airport visa procedure third.
Once that sequence is clear, the phrase “Visa on Arrival” becomes much less misleading.
The process can be understood as a series of connected stages rather than one application completed entirely at the airport.
1. Provide your passport and travel information
The approval request is prepared using information from the passport you intend to travel with. Your expected arrival date, arrival airport and relevant entry information may also be required.
2. The approval request is processed
Your information is submitted for the relevant processing. Processing should not be treated as automatic approval, and the time required can depend on the individual application and applicable procedures.
3. Receive your approval documentation
Once the appropriate approval documentation has been issued, review it carefully. Do not simply save the file without checking the information against your passport and planned journey.
4. Prepare the rest of your arrival documents
The approval letter is only one part of the document pack. Prepare the other required items before leaving Australia rather than trying to organise everything after landing.
5. Fly to the applicable international airport in Vietnam
Keep your important visa documents accessible during the journey. They should not be treated as paperwork that can be forgotten about until after immigration.
6. Complete the remaining Visa on Arrival formalities
After landing, follow the applicable airport procedure, present the required documents and complete the remaining visa stage before proceeding through normal immigration.
Seen this way, the approval letter is not an isolated document. It is the link between what you arrange in Australia and what you complete in Vietnam.
Accuracy matters more than speed at the beginning of the process. An approval arranged quickly is of little use if the information does not correspond with the passport you actually carry to Vietnam.
The information required for an approval request can depend on the individual application, but travellers should generally be ready to provide accurate passport and journey details.
| Information | What to prepare |
|---|---|
| Passport details | Information from the passport you will use to travel |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Intended arrival date | Your planned date of entry into Vietnam |
| Arrival airport | The international airport where you intend to enter |
| Entry type | According to your intended journey |
| Travel information | Flight or itinerary details where required |
Use the same passport throughout the process. If your passport has been replaced, renewed or changed after an earlier visa arrangement, do not automatically assume that documentation linked to the previous passport can simply be used with the new one.
It is also worth checking your itinerary before submitting the request. Your holiday destination and your actual immigration entry point are not necessarily the same place. For example, a traveller heading to Nha Trang may actually enter through Cam Ranh International Airport.
Receiving the approval letter should be followed by a document check, not immediately by putting the file away until departure day. Compare the information shown in the approval documentation with the passport you will actually carry.
Pay particular attention to your full name, passport details, nationality and relevant entry information. Where arrival dates, entry points or other travel details are included or applicable, compare those with your itinerary as well.
Small mistakes are much easier to investigate while you are still in Australia than after you have travelled thousands of kilometres and are standing at an airport counter. For that reason, document verification should be treated as a normal part of receiving the approval rather than an optional extra.
A useful habit is to perform the check twice: once when the approval arrives and once again before departure.
Once the approval has been arranged, prepare the rest of the document pack together. Keeping everything organised before departure reduces the chance of discovering a missing form or photograph after a long flight.
For the Visa on Arrival process discussed in this guide, prepare:
| Document / Item | What to prepare |
|---|---|
| Passport | Valid passport corresponding with the approval arrangement |
| Visa Approval Letter | Approval documentation obtained before departure |
| Passport photograph | 4×6 cm with a white background |
| NA1 form | Completed for the arrival procedure |
| Stamping fee | USD25 for the single-entry visa discussed here |
The passport should be the same one connected with the approval arrangement. The approval documentation, completed NA1 form and photograph should also be kept somewhere easy to access when you land.
For the single-entry arrangement discussed here, the airport stamping fee is USD25. This should be understood separately from any service or processing fee paid earlier for arranging the approval documentation. Paying for approval processing does not necessarily mean that the applicable airport stamping fee has already been included.
After landing, follow the signs or airport instructions for the relevant Visa on Arrival or landing-visa processing area before proceeding through the normal immigration process. The exact layout varies between airports, but the purpose is the same: this is where the remaining stage connected with the approval documentation is completed.
You will generally need to present the passport used for the approval arrangement, your Visa Approval Letter, completed NA1 form and required photograph. For the single-entry visa discussed in this article, prepare the applicable USD25 stamping fee as well.
After submitting the documents, follow the airport’s processing instructions and wait for your passport and visa procedure to be completed. When the passport is returned, take a moment to check the visa information before leaving the counter.
Once everything is correct, you can continue to the normal immigration checkpoint. This is why the airport should be viewed as the completion stage of the process rather than the place where the approval application begins.
The Visa on Arrival process discussed here is associated with entry through applicable international airports. Your intended arrival point therefore matters when arranging your approval documentation.
Common international airports associated with the process include:
| Destination | International airport |
|---|---|
| Ho Chi Minh City | Tan Son Nhat International Airport |
| Hanoi | Noi Bai International Airport |
| Da Nang | Da Nang International Airport |
| Nha Trang | Cam Ranh International Airport |
| Phu Quoc | Phu Quoc International Airport |
| Da Lat | Lien Khuong International Airport |
Always distinguish an international airport arrival from entry through a land border or seaport. A process intended for airport Visa on Arrival should not automatically be assumed to work at a different type of entry checkpoint.
This becomes particularly important on multi-country trips. If you fly from Australia to another Southeast Asian destination and later travel overland into Vietnam, your actual Vietnamese entry point is not the airport you originally flew into elsewhere in the region. Visa planning should be based on the point where you actually enter Vietnam.
There is no useful reason to treat every application as though it follows exactly the same timeline. Processing can depend on the application information, time of submission, requested travel arrangements and the immigration procedures applicable at the time.
If information needs to be reviewed or corrected, that can also affect how smoothly an application moves forward. This is why submitting accurate passport and travel information from the beginning is particularly important when departure is close.
Travellers with flexible dates can allow more time for the process. If your flight is already approaching, however, the question changes from “How long does it normally take?” to “Is there an appropriate processing option for the amount of time I actually have left?”
That question should be assessed against your real passport, application and flight details rather than answered with a blanket promise.
If your departure date is approaching and you have not yet arranged the required approval, start by gathering the information needed to assess your situation. This is more useful than simply saying that the application is “urgent,” because the actual flight time and intended entry details determine how much time is available.
Prepare your passport information, intended arrival date, Vietnamese arrival airport, flight schedule and required entry type. If you have already started another visa-related application, provide the relevant information about that as well so that the existing situation can be understood before further processing is considered.
For Australian travellers who need assistance, our Vietnam Visa Services team can review the passport and travel information and help determine which processing option may be suitable for the planned journey.
Applications can be submitted here:
For eligible cases, expedited processing options of approximately 2–8 hours may be available depending on the application, submission time and immigration procedures applicable at that time. Before processing, passport and application information can also be reviewed to help identify avoidable inconsistencies or errors.
Support is available 24/7 for questions concerning visa applications, approval documentation and entry procedures. Our team has more than 15 years of experience providing Vietnam visa assistance, while refund arrangements are handled according to the applicable service terms and published refund policy. Processing availability and timing should always be assessed for the individual case rather than assumed in advance.
Is a Vietnam pre-approved visa letter the actual visa?
No. The approval letter is part of the applicable Visa on Arrival process and is arranged before travel. The remaining visa formalities are completed after arrival at an applicable Vietnamese international airport, so the approval letter should not be described as the completed airport visa itself.
Do Australians need to arrange the approval letter before flying?
If you are using the Visa on Arrival process described in this guide, the approval documentation belongs to the pre-departure stage. It should therefore be arranged before you rely on the flight to Vietnam rather than left until after arrival.
Can I fly to Vietnam first and request the approval letter at the airport?
That is not how the process described here is intended to work. The approval comes first, followed by the flight and then the applicable airport formalities. Airlines may also check travel documentation before boarding, which is another reason not to leave the approval stage until arrival.
Should I carry a copy of my Vietnam Visa Approval Letter?
You should have the required approval documentation readily accessible during your journey and for the arrival procedure. Do not rely on remembering an application number or having documents stored somewhere that cannot be accessed when they are needed.
What else should I bring besides the Approval Letter?
For the process discussed here, prepare the passport connected with the approval, a completed NA1 form, a 4×6 cm white-background photograph and the applicable stamping fee. Keeping these items together before leaving Australia makes the airport stage easier to manage.
How much is the Vietnam Visa on Arrival stamping fee?
For the single-entry visa discussed in this guide, the applicable stamping fee is USD25. This is separate from any service or processing charge associated with arranging the approval documentation before travel.
Can Australians request an urgent Vietnam Visa Approval Letter?
Eligible urgent processing options may be available depending on the traveller’s circumstances, submission time, application details and applicable immigration procedures. If departure is close, providing complete passport and flight information makes it easier to assess what options are actually available.
The most important thing to understand is that a Vietnam pre-approved visa letter is part of a process, not a replacement for the entire visa procedure. For Australians using the applicable Visa on Arrival route, the approval belongs to the stage completed before departure, while the remaining formalities take place after reaching an eligible Vietnamese international airport.
Arrange the approval first, check it carefully against your passport, prepare the NA1 form, photograph and applicable fee, and keep the documents accessible during your journey. Once those steps are understood, Visa on Arrival becomes much easier to follow: the airport is where you complete the process, not where you should begin arranging the approval.
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