International visitors strolling through the central area of Ho Chi Minh City. (Photo: VNA)

Most notably, Resolution No. 44/NQ-CP dated March 7, 2025 grants visa exemptions with a temporary stay of 45 days for citizens of 12 countries, effective from March 15, 2025 until March 14, 2028.

Prior to that, Resolution No. 11/NQ-CP dated January 15, 2025 approved visa waivers for citizens of Poland, the Czech Republic, and Switzerland under the tourism stimulus programme for 2025.

However, compared to several Southeast Asian nations, Viet Nam’s visa policy remains relatively uncompetitive. The country currently grants visa exemptions to citizens of only 30 countries and territories, typically allowing stays of 30 to 45 days. Meanwhile, Malaysia exempts visas for 165 countries, Singapore for 163 countries, and Thailand for 98 countries, with permitted stays ranging from 30 to 90 days.

Given this, experts argue that in the absence of the ability to expand its visa exemption list to the extent seen in neighbouring countries, Viet Nam should implement specialised visa policies to attract affluent and high skilled travellers.

These include individuals with strong spending power, skilled professionals, and experts across various sectors who may visit multiple times for tourism while also exploring opportunities for investment, cooperation, and long-term residence.

This elite segment not only brings financial resources and intellectual capital, accompanied by a demand for premium services, but also holds the potential to generate widespread socio-economic benefits for the country. Furthermore, it could help Viet Nam deepen global partnerships and position itself as a world-class, liveable destination.

This is why many countries have in recent years rolled out the red carpet for experts, talents, and the ultra-wealthy. For example, since September 2022, Thailand has implemented the Long-Term Resident Visa (LTR), valid for up to 10 years, targeting four groups of foreign nationals: wealthy global citizens, affluent retirees, remote workers, and highly skilled professionals. The programme includes several benefits such as personal income tax incentives, multiple entries and exits, and property ownership rights. Thailand has also introduced the Thailand Elite Visa and the Smart Visa programme, tailored to the above-mentioned groups according to priority categories.

Malaysia relaunched its Malaysia My Second Home programme in July 2024 to attract international talent and investors. Singapore, meanwhile, operates several visa plans targeting foreign professionals and experts, such as the EntrePass for foreign entrepreneurs, the Global Investor Programme, and the Tech.Pass for tech entrepreneurs.

These programmes may serve as useful references for Viet Nam in adjusting and adopting its own policies according to national conditions, with the ultimate aim of fulfilling the Prime Minister’s directive on implementing appropriate visa policies to attract international tourists, experts, high-level professionals, and global billionaires to the country. Such measures could also help lay the groundwork for achieving double-digit growth in the future.

Recently, based on an analysis of visa policies in neighbouring countries, the Tourism Advisory Board (TAB) submitted a proposal to the Prime Minister recommending three new visa types, including: the Viet Nam Golden Visa, valid for 5–10 years and renewable (longer than the current 1–2 years); the Investor Visa, valid for 10 years, with a pathway to permanent residency after five years if investment levels are maintained; and the Talent Visa, valid for 5 years with a streamlined renewal process.

These proposals do not aim for visa exemption but instead ensure background checks while maintaining an open and welcoming approach to attract visitors. TAB has suggested piloting these schemes in favourable locations such as Phu Quoc, Ho Chi Minh City, Ha Noi, and Da Nang.

Crafting an appropriate visa policy is not only a gateway to attracting affluent and high skilled visitors, but also a vital driver of Viet Nam’s economic growth. It represents a strategic direction for developing sustainable tourism focused on quality over quantity, especially important in the context of limited national resources for tourism promotion.

TAB also stressed that loosening visa policy is merely the first step. To truly appeal to affluent and influential travellers, Viet Nam must build a supporting ecosystem of incentives and benefits tailored to its capacity and realities. Therefore, it is essential to establish a visa policy reform taskforce involving both public and private sectors, to evaluate new visa types and consider appropriate incentives. This will help Viet Nam develop a visa policy that is more welcoming and competitive.