Photos for VOA (Visa on Arrival) in Vietnam

werdnanostaw on 14/02/2017 - 22:39

I live in Perth.

We are going to Vietnam next week. We need 2 photos each for a Visa On Arrival.

Oz Post charges ~ $17 for 6 identical photos. That's $34 for two people!

I have seen the photo booths at Event Cinemas where they charge about $9 for 4 photos.

Are these photos acceptable as visa photos?

The display outside the photo booths seems to indicate that the 4 photos can be different poses. Is there enough time to swap subjects?

Are there any cheaper ways to get passport / visa photos?

I tried to take my own photos for our last Oz passport and getting them printed for 9 cents each at BigW. I don't think they were accepted at the PO because they were too light so we had to get photos taken by them - conflict of interest?

I believe I can have the photos taken at the airport in Vietnam for USD 5 each but because we are arriving late at night I am concerned that the service may not be available.

Has anyone had experience of having the photos taken on arrival in Vietnam?

I have received our letters of introduction ordered from this service, as recommended by Lonely Planet.

http://vietnamvisachoice.com/faq/

Find Me A Bargain

Comments

  • snacky09 on 14/02/2017 - 23:15

    Do it yourself online. Take a photo using a plain background use this website https://m.123passportphoto.com and print it at Harvey Norman or KMart and you have passport photos done for under $1.

    There are probably other sites that do it, Google is your friend. I have used these photos for visas for China, Vietnam and Cambodia without any issue.

  • bobbified on 14/02/2017 - 23:16
    +1

    Have a close look at the specifications for Vietnam's photo requirements. I remember they were an odd size.

    I've only had to do mine once, but from the experiences of my different friends coming and going, they haven't been too strict. But that doesn't mean that you won't get an immigration official who wants some "coffee money".

    Take the forms and size requirements to the photo place you choose to get your pictures done at. These kinds of costs should be factored into your holiday.

    I would recommend you try and get as close to exactly what they specify as you can and not risk it. The last thing you want to do is get stuck at the airport overnight for the sake of trying to save a few bucks.

  • SydStrand on 14/02/2017 - 23:20

    I did it myself in BKK airport with printer paper, so they're not picky. It doesn't have to be passport quality.

  • Mister Miser on 14/02/2017 - 23:57

    I was just in Vietnam a while ago and I went through the same service provider.

    They did mention two passport-size photos and mine were in US passport-size dimensions (square), but that was fine and the people at the airport only took one.

    Also, you can pay in Vietnam Dong for the visa stamping fee, but they would convert from USD at a slightly higher rate.

  • dcuksuop on 15/02/2017 - 00:32

    I always DIY, did it most recently for Vietnam VoA (@ Hanoi). Bought a few extras in different sizes just in case. They weren't too fussed. But they can be slow, and it's not necessarily FIFO (first in first out). Instructions and communication is poor. Feel like the randomly grab some in the stack, which gets shuffled out of order :(. My sister arrived earlier in the day, took her 5 minutes, took me over 45 minutes. :(

    PS. I used a DSLR with bounce flash and white reflectors…

  • jackofspade on 15/02/2017 - 06:40
    +1

    I DIY with a dodgey front camera on my phone and www.idphoto4you.com, print it at Kmart for 20 cents. It doesn't have to be passport quality. They are not very strict.

  • activ8newbs on 15/02/2017 - 17:03

    I may not be able to help directrly, but I just cme back from Vietnam.

    I sorted out my Visa online via the Smart traveller.gov website, posted the forms to Canberra and got teh visa etc done within 3 days for $100 including post etc.

    I just happened ot have old passport photos laying around (hence why I can't help with your question). Though, might be worth sorting out Visa here - likely cheaper and one less thing to worry about once you arrive, tired and exhausted.

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