If you are a Zambian citizen and wish to apply for Visa through the embassy, you will have to either travel to the embassy location or enquire over the telephone or e-mail if the Visa application process can be facilitated over postal mail. If you decide to personally visit the embassy and apply for Visa, you will have to incur travel and stay costs. The procedure through the embassy requires the applicant to visit the embassy several times before the process is complete.
At the embassy, you will have to fill the Visa application form in English. You will have to mention the place of collection and submission of the Visa as Vietnam. After filling the form, you will have to submit it along with a recent size photograph, one self-addressed envelope and your original and valid passport. You need to ensure that your passport has a validity of at least six months and a few blank pages for stamping. Besides submitting these documents, you will have to pay the Visa fees which can be paid to the Embassy of Vietnam by way of money order or cashier’s cheque.
The embassy will take at least five working days to process your documents. Once the documents are processed, you will be issued a fully stamped Visa. Usually, the Visa issued by the embassy is for single entry. If you wish to get a multiple entry Visa, mention it in your application form and pay additional fees to get the same.
In case you decide to apply for Visa to Vietnam through the embassy by correspondence, you will have to send in all your documents, including your original passport, through postal mail. The document is too valuable to be sent across through postal mail, where there are chances of misplacement and loss.
The ideal option for Zambian citizens is Visa on Arrival. In order to apply for Visa on Arrival, you will have to get in touch with a reliable travel agent in Vietnam. You can fill the application form and pay the fees and service charges of the travel agent online. The online application form is processed in a couple of days, after which you will be issued a letter of approval. This letter of approval will have to be submitted at the Visa on Arrival counter of the Vietnamese airport you arrive in to receive your Visa on Arrival. Along with the letter of approval, you will be required to submit Visa stamping fees.
It is to be noted that the Visa on Arrival facility is extended only to those travelers who arrive in Vietnam by air. For those taking land routes, it is mandatory that they carry all their documents along with them while traveling. In case of a cruise ship, the cruise authorities are to be contacted for information on Visa on Arrival.
