Vietnam immigration policy regulated that all Sri Lankan citizens do need a visa to enter Vietnam for leisure or business purposes. From Switzerland, Sri Lankan applicants may have 2 options to get a visa to Vietnam: getting a visa at the Vietnam Embassy in Switzerland or applying for an online visa. Vietnam online visa (known as e-visa or visa on arrival) seems to be the easiest way for Sri Lankan citizens to get a visa for Vietnam if they want to avoid the complicated procedures and bureaucracy.
There are about 55,000 overseas Sri Lankan citizens who is living in Switzerland nowadays. Many of them make a choice to depart for Vietnam from Switzerland directly for leisure or business purposes. However, in order to enter Vietnam they are obliged to apply for a Vietnam visa. From Switzerland, Sri Lankan applicants might choose to visit the Vietnam Embassy to apply for a visa in person as follow:
Embassy of Vietnam in Bern, Switzerland
Address: Schlosslistrasse 26, 3008 Bern – SWITZERLAND
Phone: +41 (0)31 388 7
Fax: +41 (0) 31 388
Email: vietsuisse@bluewin.ch
Note:
Office hour: Monday – Thursday
Morning: 9.00 AM – 12:00 PM
Afternoon: 14.00 PM – 17.00 PM, Friday: 9.00 AM – 12.00 PM
Consulate General of Vietnam in Geneve, Switzerland
Address: 18A, Chemin Francois-Lehmann, 1218 Grand-Saconnex, Geneve, SWITZERLAND
Phone: (412) 798 9866
Fax: (412) 798 0724
Email: mission.vietnam@itu.ch
Normally, Vietnam embassy visa application will take 5 – 7 working days and the Sri Lankan applicants must prepare some qualified documents before queuing in font of the embassy to submit their Vietnam visa application, including:
– A valid passport is a passport claiming to have been issued by the applicant’s country which has at least 6 months validity and 2 blank pages for visa stamp
– Entry permit form (which can vary from one Vietnamese Embassy to another)
– Two photos (usually 4 cmx6 cm or 3 cmx4 cm)
– Visa fee
The Sri Lankan citizens who plan to travel Vietnam for business purpose then a business visa (3 months validity, single or multiple entry) expected, they are requested to provide a sponsorship letter by a licensed Vietnamese company.
Vietnam visa processed by the Vietnam Embassy has been known as complicated and bureaucracy procedures. The applicants might not only wait for a long time to have their visa stamped on the passport but also spend much money on it. There is another choice that Sri Lankan visitors can make to simplify their application procedure, that is Vietnam visa on arrival.
To apply for a Vietnam visa on arrival, Sri Lankan citizens living in Switzerland just follow some simple steps:
1. Complete an online application form (which take a few minutes)
2. Conduct a payment online via PayPal or Western Union or bank wire transfer (which take a few minutes to hours)
3. Wait for visa approval letter delivered by email (which can be done within 2 working days for normal processing visa or just 2 hours for emergency processing visa)
4. Get your visa approval letter printed and bring with your passport, 2 photos and stamping fee to board the flight. At arrival airport, an entry and exit form will be required to fill in and a visa will be stamped on the passport.
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