Foreign tourists visit the War Remnants Museum in HCM City. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has committed to easing entrance procedures for foreigners travelling or working in Việt Nam at a regular press briefing held on Thursday in Hà Nội.

It has been reported that Vietnamese and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) enterprises have lamented the slow processing and multiple rejections of entry visas for foreign experts, which severely disrupts projects and business.

Deputy Foreign Spokesperson Đoàn Khắc Việt said the ministry is committed to facilitating the travel of tourists, experts, and investors in Việt Nam and contributing to the socio-economic recovery and development post-pandemic. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has taken the initiative to advise the Government on the measures and policies, including the resumption of visa exemption for citizens from 13 countries and the resumption of visa issuance for tourists.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is also actively discussing with countries and partners to simplify the entry and exit procedures for the citizens of both sides. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also taken note of the feedback from citizens and visitors domestically or internationally to finalise their immigration policy to meet the requirements of the new era,” deputy spokesperson Việt underlined.

Following the regulations that are being shown in the law on entry, exit, stay and residence of foreigners, foreigners entering Việt Nam to work with businesses and projects in Việt Nam must review the Immigration Department under the Ministry of Public Security, Việt said.

The Immigration Department determines the types and duration of the visas, he commented.

Việt pledged that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would continue working with the Ministry of Public Security and competent authorities to research, develop and build immigration regulations that adapt to the new situation.

A reporter from German News Agency (Deutsche Presse-Agentur – DPA) also complained of complicated, time-consuming, and sometimes impractical procedures that foreign reporters must go through to obtain stay permits or visa extensions.

In response, the deputy spokesperson reiterated that “it is the consistent policy of the Vietnamese government that we will do our best to open up, facilitate and create every favourable condition for foreign citizens to study, work, and travel in Việt Nam.”

The foreign ministry will work with the Immigration Department and the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs on the issue.

“The bottom line here is to create every favourable condition in terms of procedures and paperwork following the law and to help foreign reporters and journalists with a visa extension and with your residence and stay in Việt Nam.”

In response to queries over long lines of people queuing outside of the Consular Department in recent times, as the department urges people to book appointments online, the deputy spokesperson said that there has been a spike in demand from Vietnamese citizens to go overseas for travel and study after the COVID-19 pandemic has been brought under control.

The Consular Department (under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) has recorded a sharp increase in the number of applications for consular certification and documents from citizens wishing to travel abroad, with an increase of 200-300 per cent from the beginning of September compared to June, Việt noted.

“Facing this situation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has directed the Consular Department and other units to implement a series of measures in terms of human resources and facilities to maximise efficiency in processing documents,” the spokesperson underlined.

During the four-day National Holiday (September 1-4), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has upgraded technical infrastructure and installed additional equipment, adding that they have dispatched over 20 officers from other departments to one-stop shop units at the Consular Department.

So far, the number of application-receiving doors has doubled to 10, and online appointment booking software has also been upgraded, almost doubling the maximum allowable online appointments to more than 100, the spokesperson said.

The department has also arranged information desks to put up notices and bulletin boards on electronic portals, instructing people on the procedures and recommending they use flexible applications, such as by post or through authorised local foreign affairs departments.

“These measures have yielded positive results. After the holiday, the unit that receives consular paperwork, visa legalisation and certification applications received an average of 360 applications a day, when previously it was about 150 to 250 applications a day. For the past three days, it has received more than 1000 applications every day and has certified nearly 800 documents and those who have got the invitation, received the queue number, and met the requirements of the procedures, could get their applications processed on the same day, and don’t have to return for another appointment,” Việt noted.

The spokesperson said that in the future, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would continue to advise the Government on simplifying legalisation procedures, especially consular procedures, as well as increasing the delegation of application processing and applying information technology quickly and promptly processing the documents. VNS