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Vietnam on Wednesday scrapped quarantine and other travel restrictions for foreign visitors to fully reopen its border after two years of pandemic-related closure, the government said. Visitors entering the Southeast Asian country only need to show a negative COVID-19 test before arrival, according to the Health Ministry, which said the new measures were effective immediately.
Visitors must monitor their health during the first 10 days of their stay and notify medical professionals in Vietnam if they experience any COVID-19-like symptoms. Vietnam also reinstated visa exemptions and the issuance of visas on arrival similar to their pre-pandemic status. Vietnam closed its border and stopped issuing tourist visas in March 2020 to contain the spread of the coronavirus. It partially reopened to international tourism last November for visitors travelling in strict bubbles.
The tourism industry comprised nearly 10% of the country’s economy before the pandemic. The reopening comes as Vietnam reports record numbers of new COVID-19 infections, with a daily average of nearly 200,000 cases over the past two weeks.
Despite the high infection rate, the Health Ministry says the majority of patients have mild symptoms from the omicron variant and do not require hospitalization. Vietnam has administered over 200 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, covering 80% of the country’s 98 million people, according to the Health Ministry.
