A Vietnam e‑visa costs $25 for single-entry or $50 for multiple-entry, filed directly on evisa.gov.vn, and it usually lands in your inbox within a few days. The number that actually decides which one to pick isn’t the fee - it’s whether your trip crosses a land border and comes back.
I get this question constantly from people passing through Da Nang who are stacking a Laos or Cambodia border run onto a longer Vietnam stay. Most first-timers default to single-entry because it’s cheaper on paper, then find out three weeks in that they need to file a second application from scratch.
How Much Does a Vietnam E‑Visa Cost?
The government fee is $25 for a single-entry e‑visa and $50 for multiple-entry, paid by card straight through the official portal - there’s no separate service charge if you file it yourself. Both versions max out at 90 days of validity, counted from the “valid from” date you choose on the form, not your actual arrival.
That $25 gap is the whole decision. File two single-entry visas back to back and you’ve spent $50 anyway, minus the photo upload and form-filling you’d do twice instead of once.
Single-Entry or Multiple-Entry: How Do You Decide?
If your trip stays inside Vietnam the entire time, single-entry at $25 is the cheaper, simpler pick. If a Laos or Cambodia visa run is even a maybe, multiple-entry costs the same $50 as filing twice but skips the second application entirely.
Digital nomads doing a 90-day stretch with a mid-trip Thailand flight, or travelers combining Vietnam with a Cambodia loop, almost always come out ahead on multiple-entry - not because it’s cheaper, but because it removes a second round of paperwork at a moment when you’re already traveling.
How Do You Actually Submit the Form?
The portal walks you through the same sequence regardless of entry type, and it’s short enough to finish in one sitting if you have your documents ready.
- Open evisa.gov.vn and click “Apply now” to start the application.
- Upload a passport-style photo - 2x3 ratio, JPG format, under 2 MB, white background, no glasses or hats.
- Enter your personal and passport details exactly as printed, including a passport valid at least 6 months past your entry date.
- Set your “valid from” date and choose single or multiple entry, then add your first hotel’s address in Vietnam.
- Pay the government fee by card and submit - confirmation arrives by email once it’s processed.
If a step trips you up mid-form, I’ve broken down the field-by-field version separately in where the e‑visa form actually goes wrong - worth a look before you submit if this is your first time filing.
When Should You Apply Before Your Trip?
File the e‑visa once your flight and first night of accommodation are booked, since the form asks for both. Approval usually comes back within a few days, so applying a couple of weeks ahead leaves room if the portal is slow or a card payment needs a retry.
Cutting it to a day or two before departure works less often than people assume - if the payment gets declined once, you may not have time left to try a different card before your flight.
That card issue is the one part of this I actually handle for people: a fair share of foreign-issued cards get rejected at checkout on evisa.gov.vn for no clear reason, and retrying rarely fixes it. When someone’s stuck there, I file the application with a card the portal accepts and get the confirmation back the same day - all I need is a passport photo page and your travel dates. Our Vietnam e‑visa page covers what that actually involves.
Single Entry, Multiple Entry, or Just Extend Later?
Pick single-entry if Vietnam is the whole trip and $25 matters more than flexibility. Pick multiple-entry if a border run or a side flight is even a possibility, since it costs the same as two single-entry filings but only takes one form. If you’re already inside Vietnam on a single-entry visa and plans changed, filing a fresh multiple-entry application is usually simpler than trying to amend the one you have.
If the back-and-forth with the portal isn’t something you want to deal with yourself, message me on Telegram - send your passport photo page and travel dates, and I’ll get the application filed and confirmed the same day.
