Do I need a visa for being in transit at HCM airport?
Feb 18th, 2003, 07:13 PM
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 76
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Do I need a visa for being in transit at HCM airport?
Following 18 days in Vietnam I will be spending a few days at Angkor Wat before returning home to Australia. As I am flying Vietnam Airlines I will be stopping in HCM airport on the way home for about 5 hours to change planes for my flight to Sydney. My travel agent has been informed that a single entry visa for the 18 days in Vietnam will not suffice & that I will need to be covered for being in transit as well & suggested I get a multi-entry visa which costs a bit over twice as much ($150 vs $72). This seems a bit unusual to me so can anyone confirm whether I really do need a visa to cover my transit wait on the way back from Cambodia? Cheers...
Feb 18th, 2003, 08:19 PM
#2
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 29,053
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
if you are in transit...that generally means that you do not leave the securred area and thus do not even go through immigration...<BR><BR>having said that...i remember 2 years ago when we arrived in hanoi, the old terminal....there was no such thing that i could see as "in transit"...you just all came into a big room and went to immigration---maybe they have a seperate area for in transit, but i don't know...call their embassey or e-mail them if calling is not convenient...they will give you the definitive answer...i tend to think the travel agent may be right....<BR>also just call the airline and they will also tell you or e mail them
Feb 19th, 2003, 01:11 AM
#3
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 426
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
It sounds to me like you're taking a completely separate flight into Vietnam (upon return) and then taking a separate flight home - in which case I'm pretty sure you'll have to clear customs, get your bags, and then check in for your return home flight. <BR><BR>I'm not thinking specifically of Vietnam, but typically, this wouldn't be considered "in transit" by customs people. Once you get off the plane, you have to get out through customs first - as far as they know you're heading into the country, not just back up to departures. It's a different story if you are CONNECTING in Vietnam and your baggage is checked all the way to Sydney, but that's not what it sounds like. <BR><BR>I recommend you call the Vietnam embassy/consulate directly for 2 reasons:<BR><BR>1. From what I understand, it's relatively easy to change your visa once you're in country, which you could do upon arrival the first time. I have friends who have done this when they decided at the last minute to extend their vacation (coincidentally, they're Australian). The consulate should be able to confirm this. We got our Vietnam visas upon arrival (by prior arrangement), and there were other people at the counter changing theirs.<BR><BR>2. The visa fees for Vietnam seem to be in flux, but certainly it would be cheaper if you do it yourself instead of through the agent - at the very least, they can tell you the official price and then you can negotiate with your travel agent (they should only charge you one fixed processing fee, which shouldn't be any different for a multi-entry visa).<BR><BR>Good luck!
Feb 19th, 2003, 01:27 AM
#4
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 496
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Hm.. trying to help here as well.<BR>Lucy, you can find out about the visa costs and what you need to bring at the official web site of the HCM Airport:<BR>http://www.saigonairport.com/sasco_landingvisa.html<BR><BR>Good luck!
Feb 19th, 2003, 01:24 PM
#5
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 6,822
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Not only do you need the multi-entry visa, but you pay the airport renovation fee again!<BR>(at least this happened last July, when I flew from Siem Reap via HCMC.) There really doesn't seem to be a "transit" system at all for international flights.<BR><BR>Have a lovely trip!
Sep 9th, 2004, 06:17 PM
#7
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 161
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Did you need a multi entry visa for transit back home? I'm curious, I called the vietnam embassy recently and they told me I only needed a single entry since i was leaving for home after about 1-1/2 hour wait at the airport. surely hope this is correct!
