Expediting Vietnam Visa for the UAE: Urgent E-Visa Options for Emirati Passport Holders

With several non-stop flights a day from Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Vietnam has become an easy short break from the UAE: a long weekend in Da Nang, a family trip to Phu Quoc, a business meeting in Ho Chi Minh City. Emirati passport holders need a visa for Vietnam. Expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE is simple, because Vietnam is only 3 hours ahead, so most of the Vietnamese working day falls in your morning and early afternoon.

In short, this guide explains the two fast options, the order times in UAE time, and what to do if you live in the UAE on a different passport.

We are a private visa service, not the Vietnamese or UAE government. Vietnam Immigration decides every visa, so no service can guarantee approval.

Two ways of expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE

Non-stop flights from the UAE to Vietnam

The UAE is not on Vietnam’s visa-exemption list, and the short flight makes last-minute trips common:

• Emirates flies twice daily from Dubai to Hanoi and twice daily to Ho Chi Minh City, and also serves Da Nang.
• Etihad has flown from Abu Dhabi to Hanoi since November 2025, six times a week.

In general, a non-stop flight takes about 6 to 7 hours. Therefore, your e-visa must be approved before you check in at Dubai or Abu Dhabi, not before you land.

Your passport decides, not your residence visa

In fact, most people living in the UAE are not Emirati citizens, and Vietnam looks only at the passport you travel on:

• Emirati passport: this guide applies to you.
• UAE resident with another passport: however, your Emirates ID and residence visa do not change the rules. For example, Indian passport holders in Dubai follow our guide for India. If your passport is visa-exempt, such as British, German or French, you may not need a visa at all for short stays.
• Mixed families: as a result, each person applies on their own passport, so one family can need different documents.

Expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE: where are you right now?

People expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE are usually in one of these situations:

• In Dubai or Abu Dhabi, flying this week. First, count Vietnamese working days to your departure, not to your arrival.
• Planning a trip over Eid or the National Day holiday. Also, flights fill up and many people apply at the same time. Eid and UAE holidays do not stop Vietnam Immigration, but you should still order early.
• Travelling with family or domestic staff. However, each person needs their own visa, including children and helpers with their own passports. So send all passports in one order.
• On a business trip at short notice. In that case, a multiple-entry business e-visa saves a new application for later visits.
• At the airport, and the airline will not board you. Even so, on a Vietnamese working day, the 2-working-hour option may still save the flight. Also, at the weekend or on a Vietnamese public holiday, a new application can still be processed (see the weekend section below).

Expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE: order times in UAE time

The UAE is 3 hours behind Vietnam all year, with no daylight saving time. Vietnam Immigration works Monday to Friday, 08:00 to 12:00 and 14:00 to 18:00, Vietnam time:

These cut-offs are the key to expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE without losing a day. In practice: order the evening before, and an 8-working-hour result arrives by 15:30 UAE time. Also, both the UAE and Vietnam rest on Saturday and Sunday. So a Friday order is processed normally, but on a Friday afternoon the next working-day result is Monday, unless you use the weekend service.

Prices and time slots for an urgent new e-visa

These are the prices for expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE with a new application. As a rule, these slots run Monday to Friday, Vietnam time. Prices are per person in US dollars and include the government fee.

Weekends and Vietnamese public holidays: yes, urgent visas are possible on those days too. See the next section.

Urgent Vietnam visa on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays

Vietnam’s government offices are closed at weekends and on public holidays. Even so, expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE is still possible on those days with a new e-visa application, through our weekend and holiday service:

For travellers in the UAE, that means ordering by late morning and receiving the result by mid-afternoon. Prices include the government fee.

Who can use the weekend service?

The weekend and holiday service is available for citizens of 92 countries and territories, and the UAE is one of them.

Which days are covered?

Every Saturday and Sunday, and these Vietnamese holidays: New Year’s Day (1 January), Tet (Lunar New Year, dates change each year), Hung Kings’ Commemoration Day (10th day of the third lunar month), Reunification Day (30 April), Labour Day (1 May), the Public Security Traditional Day (19 August, when the Immigration Department is closed) and National Day (2 September).

How the weekend service works

1. First, send us your passport scan, portrait photo, home address, address in Vietnam and email, either through the weekend and holiday form or by email to info@vietnamimmigration.org.
2. Then we check your details and confirm the slot by email, with a PayPal payment link (cards accepted).
3. Next, pay before 14:30 Vietnam time.
4. Finally, your e-visa arrives by email by 18:30 Vietnam time the same day.

Good to know before you order

• New applications only. On these days, a speed-up of an application already in processing waits until the next Vietnamese working day. So if you cannot wait, a new weekend application is the way to get your visa the same day.
• Left Vietnam only a few days ago? Send a photo of the exit stamp in your passport as well. New exit records sometimes take a few days to appear in the system, and the stamp helps avoid a delay.
• Weekend and holiday orders go through our partner site, vietnamimmigration.org. The booking form runs on a third-party form tool that does not load well in every browser. For the fastest reply, email your request directly to info@vietnamimmigration.org. Our team watches this inbox 24/7, including weekends and public holidays, and replies as soon as an urgent visa request arrives.

If the button does not open your email app, copy the address info@vietnamimmigration.org and send your request from Gmail, Outlook or any email account you use. Write “Urgent weekend e-visa request” in the subject line.

Prices for speeding up an application in processing

In this case, you keep the application and government fee you already paid. Speed-ups run Monday to Friday only:

For this, we need your registration code, the email you used, your date of birth, entry date and entry port. Our main guide for e-visas in processing explains the status in detail.

Expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE yourself: why it is risky

Of course, if your trip is weeks away, applying yourself on the official portal is fine. When time is short, it is risky:

• There is no paid express option on the government portal. Instead, the official target is 3 working days, counted only from a complete, error-free application. In our experience, many applications take 5 to 7 working days, and longer before holidays.
• There is no hotline that speeds up your file. Emails to the portal rarely change the timing.
• Also, small errors restart the process. A name that does not match the passport, a photo with glasses or glare on the passport scan can mean a new application and a new fee.
• Holiday peaks. Before Eid and long weekends, many travellers apply at once, and waiting times on the portal get longer.

In contrast, we have handled urgent Vietnam visas for more than 10 years. We check every detail before submission, follow the application through each Vietnamese working session and show the expected result time before you pay. If we miss that time, or the visa is refused, we refund the amount we received. PayPal keeps its transaction fee (about 5%). See our refund policy.

Details that slow down expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE

• Name in English letters. Enter your name exactly as on the two lines of letters at the bottom of your passport photo page, not as written in Arabic or on your Emirates ID.
• Passport validity. In addition, your passport should be valid for at least 6 months, with blank pages for stamps.
• Photo. Also, use a clear, recent photo with a plain light background and no glasses. If you wear a headscarf, keep your face fully visible from chin to forehead.
• Entry airport. Finally, enter through the airport you chose in the application, for example Hanoi if you fly Etihad.

Other routes, and when they make sense

When you are expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE, the e-visa is usually the fastest route. However, the alternatives below fit only some trips:

• Embassy of Vietnam in Abu Dhabi or Consulate General in Dubai: suitable for some special visa types, but slower than an urgent e-visa.
• Visa on arrival approval letter: 15 days, single entry, with a stop at the landing visa counter on arrival.
• Phu Quoc only: visa-free for up to 30 days if you fly there directly from abroad and stay on the island.

How to order: expediting your Vietnam visa from the UAE

1. First, choose the service: urgent new e-visa or speed-up of an existing application. At weekends and on holidays, email info@vietnamimmigration.org.
2. Next, choose the time option. The form shows the expected result time and the total before you pay.
3. Then upload your passport scan and photo, or enter your registration code.
4. Finally, pay by card through PayPal. We email the result as soon as Vietnam Immigration releases it.

Before you land, read our Vietnam entry procedure guide (step by step from the aircraft to the arrivals hall) and our Vietnam customs rules guide (duty-free allowance, cash limits and banned items).

FAQ: expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE

What is the fastest way to get a Vietnam visa from the UAE?

For expediting a Vietnam visa from the UAE, choose an urgent new e-visa with the 2-working-hour option, ordered before 05:00, 07:00, 11:00 or 12:00 UAE time on a Vietnamese working day.

I live in Dubai but I am not Emirati. Does this guide apply?

In fact, only the rules for your passport apply. Check our hub by nationality first.

Can I get a Vietnam visa on Saturday?

Yes, also on Sunday and Vietnamese public holidays, as a new application. Email info@vietnamimmigration.org for the fastest reply, or use our weekend and holiday form. Order before 11:30 UAE time for a result by 15:30 the same day.

Do Eid holidays delay my Vietnam visa?

No. In fact, only Vietnamese working days and public holidays count. Still, more people apply before Eid, so order as early as you can.

How long can Emiratis stay on a Vietnam e-visa?

Up to 90 days, with single or multiple entry. After that, you need a new visa.

Facts checked on 8 November 2026 against evisa.gov.vn, Emirates’ Vietnam schedule as reported by AeroTime, Etihad’s Hanoi launch announcement and our price list.