SIGHTSEEING: Foreign tourists enjoy cyclo rides in Hà Nội. VNA/VNS Photo

Foreign visitors to Việt Nam must have their temporary stay registered with local authorities, though accommodation providers are responsible for carrying this out. Here are the key points travellers should know about residence declaration, possible penalties and how long they are allowed to stay under Vietnamese law.

Vũ Vân Anh, LL.M.

I am planning to travel to Việt Nam and stay at a hotel in Hà Nội. Do I need to make a temporary residence declaration with local authorities? If yes, how should I proceed?

Under Article 33 of the 2014 Law on Entry, Exit, Transit and Residence of Foreigners in Việt Nam, as amended by Article 2.5 of the 2023 Law Amending and Supplementing the Law on Exit and Entry of Vietnamese Citizens and the Law on Entry, Exit, Transit and Residence of Foreigners, foreigners are not required to personally declare their temporary residence.

Instead, this obligation lies with the accommodation establishment or host. The hotel where you stay must declare your temporary residence to the commune-level public security agency of the locality where the hotel is located.

To facilitate this process, you only need to provide your passport, international travel document or other valid residence-related paper to the hotel upon check-in. The hotel’s representative will handle the declaration on your behalf.

If you change your accommodation, a new temporary residence declaration must be made following the same procedure.

The law allows hotels to make the declaration either electronically or in paper form. For paper declarations, the hotel must submit the form to the local public security agency within 12 hours of your arrival. For electronic declarations, submission must be made immediately upon check-in.

If the hotel fails to make the temporary residence registration for me, will I be penalised?

No, you will not be fined if your hotel fails to declare your temporary residence. Under Article 9.4 of Government Decree 144/2021/NĐ-CP, persons responsible for making such declaration but failing to do so are subject to a fine ranging from VNĐ4 million to VNĐ6 million. For organisations, the fine is doubled, from VNĐ8 million to VNĐ12 million.

However, foreigners may be fined if they fail to provide or deliberately provide false information to the accommodation facility during the declaration process. According to Article 18.3(i) of the same decree, such a violation carries a penalty of VNĐ3 million to VNĐ5 million.

FOOD DELIGHT: Foreign tourists enjoy Vietnamese food on Lương Ngọc Quyến St. in the heart of Hà Nội's Old Quarter. VNA/VNS Photo Nguyễn Hoa

After making a temporary residence registration, how long am I permitted to stay in Việt Nam?

The duration of a foreign tourist’s temporary residence in Việt Nam corresponds to the validity period of his/her visa, as provided in Clause 1.a, Article 31 of the 2014 Law on Entry, Exit, Transit and Residence of Foreigners. If the remaining validity of the visa is 15 days or less, the tourist will be granted a temporary residence period of 15 days.

You may want to know that under Article 2.2 of the 2023 Law Amending and Supplementing the Law on Exit and Entry of Vietnamese Citizens and the Law on Entry, Exit, Transit and Residence of Foreigners, a tourist visa (coded DL) may be valid for up to 90 days.

Additionally, pursuant to Government Resolution 128/NQ-CP dated August 14, 2023, Việt Nam grants visa-free entry and a 45-day stay from the date of arrival for citizens of 13 countries, regardless of passport type or purpose of entry, provided that travellers meet the country’s entry conditions. These countries include Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, Russia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland and Belarus.

Việt Nam also maintains bilateral visa exemption agreements with several Southeast Asian countries. Citizens of Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Laos may stay for up to 30 days; those from the Philippines may stay for 21 days; and those from Brunei and Myanmar may stay for 14 days. — VNS