How to extend Vietnam visa in Hanoi

This post will give you a comprehensive guide on how to get your Vietnam visa extended in Hanoi. It will cover:

  • What you need to prepare for visa extension
  • Where do you go to extend your visa
  • How to get your visa extended

Now, let’s go on one by one.

Which documents do I need to prepare for my visa extension in Hanoi?

The documents you need to prepare for your visa extension in Hanoi in particular and in Vietnam in general depend on the type of visa you are holding. Here are the details that you should know.

For working visa (LD visa), you need to prepare:

  • NA5 form for visa extension/renewal;
  • Work permit or work permit free written confirmation;
  • Original valid passport with valid LD Visa or DN visa;
  • Certified registration of temporary residence (if you have) or ask the hotel for printout from “Online Declaration Temporary Residence for Foreigner” system;
  • LD Visa or DN visa approval letter;
  • Legal documents of the sponsor company in Vietnam
  • Others which may be required by the Immigration Office

For Business Visa (DN) visa, you need to prepare:

  • NA5 form for visa extension/visa renewal;
  • Original valid passport with valid DN visa;
  • Certified registration of temporary residence (if you have) or ask the hotel for printout from “Online Declaration Temporary Residence for Foreigner” system;
  • Legal documents of the sponsor company in Vietnam
  • Others which may be required by the Immigration Office

For Investor Visa (DT visa), you need to prepare:

  • NA5 form for visa extension/ visa renewal;
  • Original valid passport with valid DT Visa;
  • Investor’s Investment Certificate, Business registration Certificate of which the visa holder is a capital contributor;
  • Certified registration of temporary residence (if you have) or ask the hotel for printout from “Online Declaration Temporary Residence for Foreigner” system;

For tourist visa (DL visa), you need to prepare:

Where do you go to extend your visa in Hanoi?

To do Vietnam visa extension in Hanoi, you can:

  • Do it yourself at the Immigration office in Hanoi at 44 – 46 Tran Phu street, Ba Dinh ward; or
  • Ask a visa agent in Hanoi to do visa extension on your behalf if you want to avoid unfamiliar administrative procedures.

How to get visa extended in Hanoi?

As mentioned above, there are 02 ways to do visa extension in Hanoi and we will guide you one by one.

How to do visa extension in Hanoi on your own?

To do visa extension this way, you need to:

  • Step 1: Prepare the documents as listed above
  • Step 2: Visit the Immigration office in Hanoi to submit your documents.
    • If the documents are valid and sufficient and your visa can be extended, you will pay the extension fee and get an appointment for result pickup (1);
    • In case your documents are in sufficient, you need to go back home to prepared the missed ones (2);
    • In case you are not eligible for visa extension, you should come home and do the visa run to extend your stay in Vietnam (3).
  • Step 3:
    • For (1), come back to the Immigration office to get your passport and extended stay stamp.
    • For (2), prepare the required documents and then repeat steps 1 and 2.

The extension processing time is normally 5 working days since receipt of your full documents.

How to do with Vietnam visa extension service

The visa extension process with a visa agent seems to be simpler. The things you need to do are as follows:

  • Step 1: Send a copy of your current visa page to the agent for checking your visa extension possibility;
  • Step 2: Submit your original passport and other documents if required to their office;
  • Step 3: Wait to get back your passport with extended stay stamp.

The outstanding advantages of using the visa extension service are that:

  1. You will know about whether your visa can be extended or not before preparing all the things,
  2. You are released from administrative procedures, and
  3. The documents you need to prepare are minimum. For example, for DL visa, you only need to provide your original passport and the other things will be cared by the agent.

However, the extension fee via an agent, of course, is higher than the extension fee when you do it on your own.

The information above gives you a comprehensive guide to get your visa extended in Hanoi. Hopefully it is a great reference for you when you are in Hanoi and wish to extend your stay while your visa is about to expire.