How to Apply for a Vietnam Visa in Philadelphia : visasupply.com

Philadelphia is the largest city in the state of Pennsylvania and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. Founded in 1682 by Englishman William Penn, a social reformer and champion of liberty, he named the city Philadelphia using the Greek term meaning “brotherly love”. Philadelphia has the nickname “City of Brotherly Love” and is nowadays more casually known by locals and non-locals alike as “Philly”. The Philadelphia metropolitan area has over 6 million people and includes cities and towns in the states of New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland, in addition to Pennsylvania. The area is well known as a center of higher education and has more than 80 postsecondary institutions including Temple University, Drexel, Villanova, and University of Pennsylvania, whose Penn Language Center offer courses in Vietnamese. Philadelphia was one of the main cities for Vietnamese refugees to establish new lives after they fled their country’s civil war in 1975. There are now 20,000 ethnic Vietnamese living in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The “Little Saigon” neighborhood in South Philadelphia is the center of Vietnamese culture where local people can shop for products from Vietnam and enjoy Vietnamese food staples like bánh mì (sandwich), phở (noodle dish), and gỏi cuốn (spring rolls).

Vietnam is a country in Southeast Asia with a population approaching 100 million people bordered by China, Laos, and Cambodia. It has a huge coastline stretching 2,140 miles along the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand. The country’s long coastline, abundance of natural resources, and geographic location have made it a target of invasion and dominance from many foreign powers. Despite its recent turbulent history, Vietnam is a nation on the rise and firmly in control of its destiny. After suffering through years of economic stagnation after their civil war, Vietnam is quickly developing their country’s economy and has become a strong partner for American companies seeking to establish manufacturing capacity outside of China. American companies are also exporting over $12 billion in goods and services to Vietnam. One of these “exports” is American higher education, and Vietnamese spend nearly a billion dollars a year to send their sons and daughters to study in the U.S. Vietnam is also gaining in popularity as an overseas study destination for American students, and several of Philadelphia’s top schools have study abroad programs there. Vietnam’s tourism industry has been growing rapidly thanks to its many historical attractions, beautiful beaches, and lively cities.

Obtaining a Vietnam Visa from Philadelphia

Vietnam E-Visas are issued by the Vietnam Immigration Department in Vietnam and can be obtained through the following website: Vietnam evisa - National portal on Immigration (xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn)

Traditional sticker visas (the visa placed in one of the pages of your passport) for Vietnam are issued by the Vietnamese government in the United States. The government of Vietnam is represented by their embassy in Washington, D.C. along with three consulates located in San Francisco, Houston, and New York.

To apply for a visa from Philadelphia, you can either apply for the E-visa using the website mentioned above, or you can apply for the traditional sticker by filling out the visa application and shipping your original passport and supporting documents to the embassy by FedEx, UPS, or USPS. Here is the address:

Embassy of Vietnam, Consular Division
1233 20th Street NW, Suite 400
Washington, D.C., 20036

It is important to review the requirements for visas on the Vietnam embassy website and ensure your application and all supporting documents are accurate. Here is the link to the embassy website with detailed information: Visa | Embassy of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in the United States (vietnamembassy-usa.org)

It may also be possible to apply for the loose-leaf visa through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as mentioned on the embassy website, however, Visa Supply recommends obtaining either the E-visa (if you are only making a one-time visit for less than 30 days) or the traditional sticker (if you are making a longer visit).

Traditional sticker visas generally take about a week to process through the embassy and the government fee for U.S. citizens is $70 for the single-entry visa that allows for a 30-day stay, $100 for the single-entry visa that allows for a 90-day stay, $125 for a multiple-entry visa valid for 30 days, $150 for a multiple-entry visa valid for 90 days, $165 for a multiple-entry visa valid for 6 months, $200 for a multiple-entry visa valid for 12 months. The government fee for the E-visa is $25 and the processing time is usually 3 business days. Please note that the Customs and Border Protection Authority at the port of entry into Vietnam determines the length of each authorized stay.

Be sure to include a self-addressed FedEx prepaid envelope and make note of the tracking number so the embassy can return your passport and visa to your home or office. You can also use the United States Postal Service (USPS), however, FedEx is the preferred method for shipping important documents like a passport. If you decide to use USPS, please use their express mail service where a tracking number is provided.

Other things to consider:

All U.S. citizens require a visa to enter Vietnam and they must have a valid passport that does not expire within six months of their date of entry into Vietnam. However, visitors to Phu Quoc Island do not require a visa if they stay less than 30 days and have a round-trip ticket coming from another country. For example, a round-trip flight from Bangkok, Thailand to Phu Quoc International Airport would not require a visa.
U.S. citizens must obtain a visa in advance and should not attempt to obtain a visa on arrival.
The E-visa can only be used to gain access to Vietnam through specific entry points. Please review the list of entry points on the E-visa website: c774e24b-1ab8-4fb6-9ac1-dcdfaccecf8e (xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn)
The government of Vietnam is now developing plans to re-open their country to foreign visitors. For the latest news published by the government, please visit this site: Latest guidelines for 2nd phase of pilot program to welcome international tourists (baochinhphu.vn)
For the latest updates regarding the virus situation, please review the U.S. Embassy in Vietnam website: COVID-19 Information - U.S. Embassy & Consulate in Vietnam (usembassy.gov)
It is recommended to purchase travel insurance before any international trip in case of medical emergencies. We advise getting the Geo Blue Voyager Single Trip Plan.

Emergency Assistance for Vietnam Citizens in Philadelphia

If you are a citizen of Vietnam living in the Philadelphia area with an emergency or require urgent assistance, you can reach the Vietnam embassy by calling 202-716-8666 (the embassy’s non-emergency number is 202-861-0737. The embassy’s email address is visatovn@vietnamembassy.us. If you need to renew your Vietnam passport, you can apply in person at the embassy or use their FedEx door-to-door service. Please review their website for more information: Procedures for issuance of | passports Embassy of Procedures for issuance of | passports Embassy of Vietnam in the United States (vietnamembassy-usa.org) Vietnam in the United States (vietnamembassy-usa.org)

We Can Help if You Need Assistance

If you live in Philadelphia or anywhere in the state of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, or Delaware and have difficulty applying for a Vietnam visa or require assistance with any part of the visa process, please give our office a call at 404-682-5445 or schedule an appointment with our company. We are a private agency in Atlanta providing Vietnam visa services for Americans and other U.S.-based residents. Our number one goal is to ensure your application documents for a visa are submitted accurately to the Vietnamese government. Our services eliminate delays and give you the peace of mind to focus on your travel plans.

We provide the following Vietnam visa services for our customers in Philadelphia:

Vietnam Tourist Visa (E-visa, loose-leaf visa, or sticker visa)
Vietnam Business Visa (E-visa, loose-leaf visa, or sticker visa)
Vietnam Official Visa (sticker visa)
Vietnam Diplomatic Visa (sticker visa)
Vietnam Student Visa
Vietnam Work Visa
Vietnam Exemption Certificate (Viet Nam 5-year visa)
Vietnam Packaged Tours
Vietnam Hotel Accommodations