The Vietnam National Tourism
Administration said it will seek approval from the government to have foreign
visitors exempted from visa fees later this year to boost the country's tourism.
The fee exemption scheme is
expected to begin when the administration launches a two-month sales promotion
for tourists in August or in September.
The government last year agreed
to exempt visa fees for tourists who booked tours under the 2009 national
campaign "Impressive Vietnam."
Visa fees for tourist entry
into Vietnam are now US$25. Tourists can be charged higher by travel agencies.
Ung Phuong Dung, director
of Indochina Service Vietnam, said last year her company had around 200 tourists
eligible for visa fee exemption every month, but most of them had not known
about the benefit beforehand.
Such a program needed to be
promoted better to foreign visitors, she said.
Foreign arrivals in
February rose 30.2 percent from a year ago to around 446,000. The country
expects to receive 4.5-4.6 million foreign tourists this year, up 18-21 percent
from 2009.