Vietnam Announces Visa for High-Spending Tourists

Quick answer: Vietnam’s Politburo signed a major tourism resolution on August 22, 2026 that includes a new “preferential visa” category for foreign visitors who spend more and stay longer — part of a broader shift from chasing visitor numbers to chasing visitor value. The catch: officials haven’t yet announced who qualifies, what the preferential treatment actually includes, or when it takes effect. Here’s everything that is and isn’t confirmed so far.

What Vietnam Actually Announced

The policy comes from Politburo Resolution No. 26-NQ/TW, signed on August 22, 2026, which sets out a sweeping tourism development plan through 2030 and 2045. Among its measures, the resolution calls for “preferential visas for foreign visitors who contribute most to Vietnam’s tourism industry” and directs authorities to prioritize travelers who spend more and stay longer over simply maximizing arrival counts.

State media has framed this as a deliberate pivot from volume-based to value-based growth: Vietnam welcomed 21.2 million international visitors in 2025, up 20.4% year-on-year, and the resolution’s targets (below) assume that keeping growing that number matters less than growing what each visitor spends and how long they stay.

What’s Still Undecided

This is the part worth being clear-eyed about. As of this writing, the resolution has not specified:

• A spending threshold — how much you’d need to spend, or on what, to qualify for the preferential tier.
• What the preference actually is — longer permitted stays, faster processing, lower fees, or something else entirely hasn’t been defined.
• Which nationalities or markets it applies to — the resolution says entry and exit policy will be eased “market by market,” which suggests different countries could see different terms.
• A rollout date — no implementation timeline has been published.

In short: if you see an article or a travel agent claiming Vietnam now offers a specific “high-spender visa” with defined rules, treat it with skepticism until Vietnam’s immigration authorities publish the actual criteria. We’ll update this article once they do.

The Parts of the Resolution That Are More Concrete

While the preferential visa itself is still vague, a few related measures in the same resolution are more specific and worth knowing about, since they’re more likely to actually affect travelers in the near term:

• Mandatory travel insurance. The resolution calls for compulsory insurance coverage for international visitors — a requirement that, unlike the visa tier, is a concrete new obligation rather than a vague aspiration. No start date has been confirmed yet, but it’s worth budgeting for if you’re planning a Vietnam trip well into 2027.
• A digital nomad and long-stay pilot. Vietnam plans to test mechanisms specifically aimed at remote workers and extended-stay visitors — a separate track from the high-spender visa, aimed more at duration than daily spend.
• Simplified border and island procedures. The resolution calls for easier entry and sightseeing procedures in border and island regions specifically.
• Phu Quoc named as a growth pole. Alongside Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Da Nang — Vietnam’s three established tourism poles — Phu Quoc is being built up as a new high-end hub, which lines up with the island already being chosen to host APEC 2027.

Vietnam’s Tourism Targets Behind All This

The preferential visa is one tool in service of specific numeric targets the resolution lays out:

• By 2030: 45–50 million international visitors, 160 million domestic trips, $80–90 billion in total tourism revenue, tourism contributing 10–12% of GDP directly, 2.3 million direct jobs plus 3.5 million indirect, and 1.5 million lodging rooms nationwide.
• By 2045: 70 million international visitors a year, 14–15% of GDP, and a spot in the world’s top 30 for tourism competitiveness.

The plan also calls for 10 key tourism hubs and 20 national tourism zones beyond the three established poles, plus 15 tourism enterprises meant to become globally competitive brands. It’s an ambitious, whole-of-government document — the preferential visa is a small piece of a much larger strategy, which is part of why the visa specifics haven’t been the priority to finalize first.

What Travelers Should Actually Do Right Now

Nothing changes for your next trip today. If you’re planning travel to Vietnam in the coming months:

• Keep using the current visa rules. Nothing about e-visas, visa exemptions, or arrival procedures has changed yet — see our complete Vietnam visa guide and Vietnam Pre-Arrival Card guide for what actually applies today.
• Don’t assume you’ll qualify for a “high-spender” perk. There’s no application process yet because there’s no defined program yet.
• If you’re a digital nomad or planning a long stay, keep an eye on this space — the long-stay pilot program is the piece of this resolution most likely to affect you directly once details emerge.
• Budget loosely for possible mandatory travel insurance if your trip is planned for later in 2027, since that’s the most concrete new requirement in the resolution.

For general trip prep that doesn’t depend on any of this, our Vietnam travel checklist covers what to sort out before you fly.

FAQ

Is Vietnam’s high-spender visa available now?

No. The Politburo has approved the general direction — preferential visas for high-spending, long-stay visitors — but has not published eligibility criteria, benefits, or a launch date. There is currently no way to apply for it.

Does this affect my upcoming trip to Vietnam?

Not yet. Current e-visa rules, visa exemptions, and arrival procedures are unchanged. The one item to watch is a proposed mandatory travel insurance requirement for foreign visitors, which is more concrete than the visa tier but also has no confirmed start date.

What is Resolution 26?

Resolution No. 26-NQ/TW is a Politburo resolution signed August 22, 2026 that sets Vietnam’s tourism strategy through 2030 and 2045, covering visa policy direction, infrastructure, digital transformation, and specific visitor and revenue targets.

Will this replace Vietnam’s e-visa system?

No indication of that so far. The preferential visa is described as an additional category for high-value visitors, alongside — not instead of — the existing e-visa and visa exemption systems most travelers currently use.

Where can I get official updates on this?

Vietnam’s Immigration Department and state media (including VnExpress International) are the most reliable sources once concrete rules are published. We’ll update this article with specifics as soon as they’re announced.