While Thailand tightens its visa-free window, Vietnam has moved the other way and quietly become one of the easiest countries in the region for a European client to enter. Most of Europe now receives 45 days visa-free, running to 2028, and every other nationality can apply for a 90-day e-visa entirely online. For a trade partner pricing long Southeast Asia trips, that is a structural gift: the country that used to need a visa for many clients now carries the longer half of a program without paperwork for most of your source markets. What follows is a practical read for partners building client trips across our two core destinations, and it is the natural companion to our note on Thailand's move to a 30-day exemption. It is guidance, not legal or immigration advice, so confirm the current rule for each traveler's nationality on the official sources we link before booking flights or applying for anything.
Who now gets 45 days visa-free
Vietnam widened its visa-free list in two steps. Under Resolution 44, in force from 15 March 2025 to 14 March 2028, citizens of 12 countries receive a 45-day visa-free stay: Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Russia, Japan, South Korea, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland. Under Resolution 229, a tourism stimulus measure in force from 15 August 2025 to 14 August 2028, a further 12 countries were added: Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. Taken together that is 24 countries, which covers almost all of Western and Central Europe plus the Nordics. The exemption is granted regardless of passport type and purpose of entry, so it applies to leisure and business travelers alike, provided the traveler meets the ordinary entry conditions. Because these lists are set by the authorities and can be extended or revised, treat them as live values and confirm the current position for a given nationality on the Vietnam Immigration Department site rather than relying on a figure from an earlier trip.
| Visa-free group | Countries | Stay | In force to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resolution 44 | Germany, France, Italy, Spain, UK, Russia, Japan, South Korea, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland | 45 days | 14 March 2028 |
| Resolution 229 | Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Hungary, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia | 45 days | 14 August 2028 |
Treat the table as the shape of the policy, not a booking reference. The lists and end dates are set by the authorities and can move, so verify each traveler's nationality on the official portal before you quote.
The 90-day e-visa for everyone else
No traveler is shut out by the visa-free list, because Vietnam's e-visa is now open to citizens of all countries and territories. It is valid for up to 90 days, available as single or multiple entry, and applied for entirely online with a passport scan and a digital photo, with no invitation letter required. The official fee is US$25 for single entry and US$50 for multiple entry, processing runs to roughly three to five working days, and the e-visa is accepted at 83 land, sea and air ports of entry. That matters in two directions. A client from a nationality that is not on the 45-day list still enters easily, and an exempt client who wants to stay longer than 45 days can simply apply for the 90-day e-visa instead of leaning on the exemption. Passports should carry at least six months of validity. Apply and confirm the current e-visa terms on the official Vietnam National Electronic Visa portal when you build the dates, since fees and entry types can be adjusted.
What 45 days actually buys, and the two-country fix
A visa allowance is not just a compliance number, it is a product boundary. Forty-five days is enough to travel Vietnam properly, from the northern highlands and Ha Long down through the central heritage towns to the Mekong Delta, rather than compress the country into a ten-day skim. It also changes how a Southeast Asia trip is assembled. With Thailand moving to a 30-day exemption, the clean structure for a long trip is a 30-day Thailand leg followed by a 45-day Vietnam leg, which sits inside both allowances with room to spare and lets Vietnam carry the longer, slower half of the itinerary. What used to be sold as a Thailand-anchored trip with a short Vietnam add-on can now be built the other way around. The one requirement is a ground partner who operates both countries and can move a client across the border without you validating a new supplier from scratch, which is exactly what a two-country routing or a dedicated Vietnam program is built to do. For help sizing the two legs, our guide to how many days to spend across Thailand and Vietnam sits alongside this one.
What this means for programs you are selling now
The practical work is small and worth doing before the next quote goes out. First, check your client nationalities against the 45-day list, because a market you previously treated as needing an e-visa may now be visa-free, which removes a step and a cost from the sell. Second, reconsider which country anchors your longer trips, since Vietnam can now hold 45 days without paperwork for most European passports while Thailand holds 30. Third, when a client wants more than 45 days in Vietnam, quote the 90-day e-visa rather than planning a border run. The move that protects the client relationship is the same as always, which is to confirm the rule for each traveler before they book and to send any borderline case to the official portal, because final responsibility for eligibility rests with the authorities. For the other side of this picture, our note on Thailand and Vietnam entry requirements keeps both countries in one view.