Planning a visa run through Cambodia on a Vietnam e-visa? Or a slow boat entry from the Mekong Delta? The rules just got more flexible. As of December 2025, Vietnam e-visa border gates expanded from 42 to 83 approved entry and exit points. This matters for nomads who cross borders overland. It also matters for anyone flying into a secondary airport, or planning a multi-country Southeast Asia loop. It is one of the more practically useful visa updates in recent memory.
What Changed: Resolution 389/NQ-CP Explained
On December 2, 2025, Vietnam’s government issued Government Resolution No. 389/NQ-CP. It added 41 new border gates to the official e-visa entry and exit list. According to the Vietnam Government Portal, this brought the total number of approved e-visa ports to 83. That is up from 42 under the earlier Resolution 127/NQ-CP from 2023. The new gates span three categories: air, land, and sea.
Applicants still select an intended port of entry when submitting an e-visa application. What Resolution 389/NQ-CP itself changes is the list of approved ports where a valid e-visa can be used — it does not change who qualifies for an e-visa or how long one lasts. Visa agencies commonly report that travelers are not strictly held to the port declared on their application, but this flexibility is not spelled out in the resolution text itself, so confirm your specific port situation before travel.
Vietnam E-Visa Border Gates: Before and After
The table below summarizes the expansion. The 83-port total, the December 2, 2025 resolution date, and the category breakdown all come directly from the official Vietnam Government Portal announcement, which lists the new airport, land, and sea gates by name. Independent visa agencies report the same 17/27/39 breakdown, which cross-checks cleanly against the government’s own enumerated list.
| Category | Before (2023 list) | Added by Resolution 389/NQ-CP | Total as of 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Airports | 13 | 4 | 17* |
| Land border gates | 16 | 11 | 27* |
| Seaports | 13 | 26 | 39* |
| Total (official figure) | 42 | 41 | 83 |
*The 17/27/39 split is derived directly from the government portal’s own enumerated list of new and pre-existing gates (13+4 airports, 16+11 land gates, 13+26 seaports). Independent visa agencies report the identical breakdown, which further corroborates it. Treat the 83-port total, the resolution date, and this category breakdown as officially confirmed facts.
New Land Border Gates Worth Knowing for Overland Travel
For nomads doing land border runs, the land-gate additions matter most. Several newly added crossings connect Vietnam to Cambodia, Laos, and China. These routes are already popular for visa runs and slower overland loops.
- Le Thanh border gate (Gia Lai province): connects to Ratanakiri, Cambodia. Useful for a Central Highlands-to-Cambodia route.
- Binh Hiep and Tan Nam border gates (Tay Ninh province): additional crossings into Cambodia’s Svay Rieng and Prey Veng areas. They sit alongside the long-standing Moc Bai crossing.
- Long Sap border gate (Son La province): links to Houaphanh, Laos. This opens a northern overland option.
- Nam Giang border gate (Da Nang): a further crossing into Laos.
- Tra Linh (Cao Bang) and Thanh Thuy (Tuyen Quang): further crossings on the China border.
- Dong Dang and Lao Cai railway border gates: rail-specific crossings to China. These are separate from the existing road crossings of the same name.
These names and locations come from the official government list. That said, the resolution does not guarantee staffing or infrastructure is ready at every newer gate on day one. As a result, confirm a specific crossing is operational first. Do this before relying on it for a hard deadline, such as a flight connection on the other side of the border.
What Vietnam’s E-Visa Actually Covers
The border-gate expansion is a good moment to recap the e-visa itself. It is easy to confuse with other Vietnamese visa categories, so here is a quick rundown.
- Validity: up to 90 days from entry. This is confirmed on Vietnam’s official e-visa immigration portal.
- Entry type: applicants choose single-entry or multiple-entry at the time of application, per the same official portal.
- Eligibility: open to citizens of all countries and territories. This policy has been in effect since August 15, 2023, per the Vietnam Government Portal.
- Cost: visa agencies commonly cite a government fee of roughly USD 25 for single-entry and USD 50 for multiple-entry, paid through the official electronic payment gateway. The official portal confirms fees are collected this way. However, it does not display the exact dollar figure on its public information page. Treat this cost as a secondary-source estimate. Confirm the current fee at checkout on the official application site before paying.
- Processing time: commonly reported at a minimum of about three working days by visa agencies. The official portal page reviewed for this article does not state this as a fixed guarantee.
- Application channel: directly through the government’s official portals, evisa.gov.vn or thithucdientu.gov.vn.
This e-visa is a general short-stay visa for tourism, business, and similar purposes. It is entirely different from Vietnam’s UĐ1 visa, a longer-term, sponsor-based track for high-quality digital-technology talent and select International Financial Centre roles, with a companion UĐ2 visa for a UĐ1 holder’s spouse and children under 18. NomadSEAGuide covers UĐ1 separately in Vietnam UĐ1 Visa 2026: Who Really Qualifies (Not All Nomads). It is worth reading if you are weighing a longer-term Vietnam base against a 90-day e-visa stay. In short, do not assume UĐ1 rules or costs apply to your e-visa trip, or the other way around.
Why the Expansion Matters for Digital Nomads
For remote workers who structure their year around 90-day e-visa stays, more entry points generally mean more route flexibility. For example, a nomad based in Chiang Mai once had a fairly short list of major land crossings for a Vietnam visa run. Now, additional gates in provinces like Tay Ninh, Gia Lai, and Son La open up less-touristed routes. In addition, the seaport expansion matters for slow-travel cruisers. It also matters for anyone combining Vietnam with a Mekong River boat trip from Cambodia, since more river and coastal ports now qualify.
However, practical availability is not the same as legal eligibility. Some newly listed gates are tied to facilities still under construction. Long Thanh International Airport is one example: it is listed as an e-visa entry point, but as of July 2026 it has not opened for normal commercial passenger service. Vietnamese state media report a commercial launch currently targeted around December 1, 2026. Therefore, check that a specific port is both on the current list and operationally active. Do this before building a travel plan around it.
How to Verify the Current Port List Before You Travel
Entry rules and port lists in Vietnam, as in most of Southeast Asia, can change again without much notice. As of July 2026, this article reflects the expansion most recently confirmed by the Vietnam Government Portal in December 2025. It also reflects the standard e-visa terms shown on the official immigration portal. Before booking non-refundable travel, however, check the current official port list yourself. Use Vietnam’s e-visa portal (evisa.gov.vn or thithucdientu.gov.vn) or the Vietnam Immigration Department’s published list. Secondary sources, including this article, can lag behind official updates.
As a practical next step, open the official e-visa application portal. Review the currently approved list of ports before finalizing your entry and exit points. Keep a screenshot or PDF of that approved list alongside your issued e-visa when you travel.
FAQ
Do I need to pick a specific border gate when applying for a Vietnam e-visa?
Applicants do select an intended port of entry on the application form. Visa agencies commonly report that this does not lock travelers into that exact port, and that any of the 83 approved ports can generally be used instead. That flexibility is not explicitly spelled out in Resolution 389/NQ-CP itself, however, so it is good practice to double-check your issued e-visa document for any port restrictions. Individual cases can vary, so confirm this before you travel.
Are all 83 e-visa border gates fully operational right now?
Not necessarily. Most of the 83 ports are established, active checkpoints. However, a few newly listed gates are tied to facilities still under construction. Long Thanh International Airport is one example: as of July 2026 it has not opened for normal commercial passenger service, with a commercial launch currently targeted around December 1, 2026. These gates will become usable once construction and staffing are complete, and not before. As a result, confirm the operational status of a brand-new crossing close to your travel date. Do not assume the resolution alone guarantees it is open.
Does the Vietnam e-visa border gate expansion affect the UĐ1 talent visa?
No. Resolution 389/NQ-CP applies specifically to the standard e-visa program covered in this article. It does not apply to Vietnam’s UĐ1 visa, a separate, sponsor-based, longer-term category for digital-technology talent, or its UĐ2 counterpart for a UĐ1 holder’s spouse and children. This border-gate update does not change either visa. For details on the UĐ1 program, see NomadSEAGuide’s dedicated UĐ1 guide, linked below.
Related Reads
- Vietnam UĐ1 Visa 2026: Who Really Qualifies (Not All Nomads) — a different, sponsor-based Vietnam visa track, useful if a 90-day e-visa is not enough.
- Cambodia Digital Nomad Visa 2026: 3 Facts Before You Go — relevant if your Vietnam land-border route continues on into Cambodia.
- Thailand DTV Visa Tightened in 2026: What Actually Changed — useful context if you are comparing Vietnam’s e-visa against Thailand’s options for a regional base.
Sources
- Primary/official: Vietnam Government Portal — “More choices for foreigners with e-visa to enter and exit Viet Nam” (December 3, 2025), confirming Resolution No. 389/NQ-CP, dated December 2, 2025, and the 83-port total.
- Primary/official: Vietnam Government Portal — “How to apply for e-visa to enter Viet Nam”, confirming all-nationality eligibility since August 15, 2023.
- Primary/official: Vietnam Immigration Department — National e-visa portal, confirming 90-day maximum validity and single/multiple entry options.
- Secondary (cross-check): My Vietnam Visa — “Vietnam E-Visa Ports of Entry: Full List of 83 Approved Ports (2026 Update)”, used to cross-check the 17/27/39 category breakdown and named land crossings.
- Secondary (cross-check): Vietnam-Evisa.Org — “Vietnam E-Visa adds 41 more international border gates eligible for entry”, used to cross-check the full list of newly added gates.