Visa-agency fraud in Vietnam

Vietnam's immigration rules change often, approval timelines are uncertain, and most travellers are not fluent in Vietnamese. That combination makes the visa space a reliable hunting ground for fraudsters. The problems range from minor — a cloned website that charges double — to serious: paying significant money for a visa class that does not exist, or handing over a passport scan to a criminal operation. This page covers the most common schemes and how to avoid them.

This page is general information only and does not constitute legal or immigration advice. Verify every claim with a licensed Vietnamese immigration lawyer or directly with the Vietnamese immigration authority before acting.

The legitimate e-visa is at evisa.gov.vn

The only official portal for Vietnam's 90-day e-visa is evisa.gov.vn, operated by the Ministry of Public Security. The government fee at the time of writing is USD 25 for most nationalities. Processing takes up to three working days on the standard track.

There is no other official government website for this product. You do not need an agent, a fixer, or a third-party service to apply. The form is in English. If you use a legitimate third-party service for convenience, expect to pay a service fee on top of the government fee — but you should rarely need to do so.

Read the full walkthrough in our e-visa guide before you start.

Fake e-visa lookalike sites

Search for "Vietnam e-visa apply" and the first paid results are often clone sites designed to look like evisa.gov.vn. Common signals:

• Domain names such as vietnam-evisa.com, e-visa-vn.org, vietnamvisaonline.net — none of these are government sites.
• A fee of USD 50–120 for what is described as an "assisted e-visa application" — you are paying a third party to fill in a form you could complete yourself in ten minutes.
• A request for your full passport scan, credit-card details, and sometimes a photo of your signature, with no clear privacy policy or company registration information.
• Testimonials that are generic and undated.

Some of these sites do eventually deliver a real visa — they apply to evisa.gov.vn on your behalf and pocket the markup. Others take your money and disappear, or submit incorrect information that leads to a refusal without refund. Either way, you have handed your personal documents to an unverified party.

The fix: bookmark evisa.gov.vn directly. Check the padlock and the exact domain before entering any personal data.

Padded "express service" fees

Legitimate agencies sometimes offer an express track. Vietnam's immigration authority does offer a one-day processing option for an additional official fee. The problem arises when agencies charge large "express" premiums — sometimes USD 80–200 — on top of the official fee without disclosing what the official fee actually is.

If an agency cannot show you a clear breakdown of: (1) the government fee, (2) their service fee, and (3) any official expedite fee, treat the quote with caution. A reputable agent will show you all three lines.

Agencies promising approval

No legitimate agent can reliably promise visa approval. Vietnam's immigration authority makes all approval decisions. An agency that claims "promised approval" or "100% success rate" is either misrepresenting the approval rate, or — more commonly — steering you toward a visa class that is easier to obtain but may not be appropriate for your situation.

Refusals happen. Legitimate agents will tell you this, advise you on the realistic odds for your situation, and not take your money if they think the application is unlikely to succeed.

The "Vietnam DTV / 5-year talent visa" sales pitch

Vietnam does not currently have a confirmed general digital-nomad visa or a publicly available long-term talent visa that any foreign national can simply purchase. If an agent tells you they can obtain a "DTV visa," a "digital nomad visa," or a "5-year remote worker permit" for a flat fee, that claim is, by definition, not based on a currently available official product.

What this pitch usually means in practice: the agent plans to apply for a long-stay visa under a business or investor category, using documentation that may not accurately represent your situation. In the best case, the application is refused and you lose your fee. In a worse case, documents are fabricated on your behalf without your full knowledge.

If you work remotely and are considering long-term stays in Vietnam, read our digital nomad visa reality check before speaking to any agent. Understanding what Vietnam actually offers is the best defence against a sales pitch built on a product that does not exist.

How to tell a real agent from a fake one

A legitimate Vietnamese immigration agent or law firm will typically:

• Have a registered Vietnamese company or a law firm with a publicly verifiable licence number from the Ministry of Justice.
• List named, qualified lawyers or licensed immigration consultants on their website.
• Provide a written engagement letter or service agreement before taking payment.
• Quote fees transparently, including the official government component.
• Not promise outcomes they cannot control.
• Be reachable by phone or in-person at a listed address in Vietnam.

Red flags include: no verifiable company registration, no named staff, pressure to pay immediately, fees quoted only in vague ranges, and a refusal to provide a written agreement.

For more detail on vetting agents, see our guide on finding a good immigration agent.

What a legitimate engagement letter looks like

Before paying any agent more than a trivial amount, you should receive a written document that includes:

• The agent's full company name and registration number.
• A clear description of the service being provided (which visa class, which track).
• A fee breakdown separating government fees from service fees.
• The timeline and what happens if the application is refused.
• A refund or partial-refund policy.
• Contact details for a named person responsible for your file.

If an agent refuses to provide this in writing, that is itself a warning sign. Most cases of fraud involve verbal promises that are rarely written down.

Reporting fraud

If you believe you have been defrauded by a visa agency operating in Vietnam:

• Report to Vietnam's Ministry of Public Security via their online complaint portal or at a local immigration department office. Bring all written evidence — screenshots, receipts, correspondence.
• Report to your bank or card issuer immediately if you paid by card. A chargeback may be possible within the dispute window; do not delay.
• Report to the consumer protection authority — Vietnam's Vietnam Competition and Consumer Authority (VCCA) accepts complaints from foreigners.
• If a fake website cloned the official evisa.gov.vn portal, report the domain to CERT-VN (Vietnam's national cybersecurity authority).

Keep records of everything: payment receipts, email threads, screenshots of the website at the time you used it.

Prevention basics

• Apply directly at evisa.gov.vn for the standard 90-day e-visa. No agent needed.
• If you do use an agent, verify their company registration before paying anything.
• Avoid paying large sums based on verbal promises about visa classes you cannot independently verify exist.
• If an offer sounds unusually convenient — a five-year permit, a digital nomad visa, promised approval — research the official immigration authority's website first. If you cannot find the visa class described there, it likely does not exist in the form being sold.
• Use a credit card rather than a bank transfer for any agency fees; it gives you more dispute options.
• Ask for everything in writing before payment, every time.

Related

• E-visa guide — the official 90-day application walkthrough
• Finding a good immigration agent in Vietnam
• Digital nomad visa reality check
• Vietnam retirement visa reality check
• Common tourist scams in Vietnam

How it works (in one paragraph)

A fraudulent visa agency operates either as a cloned government website, a fake "express service" middleman, or a seller of fictional visa classes (like a "DTV five-year remote worker visa"). You contact them believing they represent the government or a legitimate service, hand over your passport scan and payment, and either receive nothing at return, get a rejected application, or discover your documents were used without your knowledge for an application you did not authorize. The core mechanics: impersonation or misrepresentation of services, combined with asymmetric information (you do not know what visas actually exist) and password-handling (once they have your scan, you cannot easily take back control).

Where you encounter it

• Google Ads and search results — fake agencies buy top placements for "Vietnam e-visa" and "visa agency" keywords; cloned sites rank high via SEO farms.
• Facebook groups and backpacker forums — agents post testimonials or offer "quick approvals"; comments are often fake.
• Airport arrival / guesthouses — agents approach tourists in arrival halls or leave flyers in common areas; high-pressure pitches mentioning "digital nomad visas" or "promised approval."
• Booking sites and third-party portals — legitimate-looking sites on Agoda or local travel platforms redirect to unmarked agencies.

Red flags

• Website domain is not evisa.gov.vn (the only official site); lookalikes use .com, .net, .org, or similar.
• Price is USD 50–200 for an "e-visa service" (the real government fee is USD 25; legitimate agents charge only a modest service premium).
• Agent offers a visa class that does not appear on the Vietnam Immigration Department official website (e.g., "DTV visa," "5-year digital nomad," or unnamed "talent visa").
• Request for full passport scan, credit card, signature photo, or other personal ID without a formal engagement letter or verifiable company registration.
• Pressure to pay immediately; no written quote or agreement provided.
• No verifiable company registration number, named staff, or physical Vietnam address.
• Claims of "promised approval" or "100% success rate".

What to do if it happens

Immediately: stop communication, do not send additional money or documents, and take screenshots of every message and website page. Contact your card issuer (if you paid by card) and file a chargeback within the dispute window — this is often your only recourse. Report to the real authorities: the Vietnam Immigration Department (immigration.gov.vn or in person) and CERT-VN (Vietnam's cybersecurity authority) if it was a fake website. Call the tourist police hotline 1800 1800 or general police 113 to report the fraud and log an official complaint (useful for chargeback and future claims). Avoid re-using a password you gave them. If your passport scan was compromised, monitor your travel history and consider notifying your home country's passport authority. In future, apply directly at evisa.gov.vn (no agent needed for the 90-day e-visa) and verify any agent's company registration before handing over documents.