Vietnam-visa.com is among a few leading websites in Vietnam entrusted by thousands for providing foreign tourists and businessmen with Vietnam visa on arrival every year. With more than 10 year experience in visa service, the website http://Vietnam-visa.com has been a familiar name among travel community.

Recently, an upgraded version of Vietnam-visa.com has been released with more user-friendly interface and new features that are tailored to users’ needs. The launching of new version has received positive feedback from users.

On the celebration of the upgraded version going online, Mr. Nguyen, CEO of Vietnam-visa.com, stated: “The new version with updated content and featured tools promises to bring a new look to the website as well as to enhance its usability in providing customers with the best experiences possible while using Vietnam-visa.com. The changes and innovations represent our effort to reach out and fulfill expectations from internet users and our potential clients. Furthermore, it reflects our ambition in striving to be better and do better.”

The upgraded version of Vietnam-visa.com allows users to easily surf through important pages with updated information about Vietnam visa as well as other Vietnam travel issues. A new Q&A section was designed for customers to submit questions directly to the website. The questions will be displayed and answered by our support staff and any other website user who wishes to share their experiences. Along with the Q&A section is a page for Vietnam visa tips which covers all visa-related guides categorized for users from specific nationalities.

Aside from Vietnam visa application service, the new version also features other extra services including Vietnam visa extension service, Vietnam hotel booking service, Transportation service and Tour booking service. We are happy to include in the new version a tutorial video to guide customers through the visa application process and brand-new tools for checking visa processing status and calculating service fees.

In launching the upgraded version, Vietnam-visa.com also offers special discount programs including VIP Account and Corporate Account program. While VIP account is run as a special thank you to our frequent customers, Corporate Account is designed to best assist clients representing big companies or organizations. More information regarding these programs can be found at http://www.vietnam-visa.com/corporate.html.

Dying to tell us ways of improving it?

We want our new website version to be everything you want it to be and so would love to know your thoughts. You can be as honest as you like, so please email any (constructive) comments to support@vietnam-visa.com and let us know what you think.

A Mekong river cruise

Tourism ministers from Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam are expected to attend the GMS Working Group Meeting, as well as representatives from the private sector.

The MTCO spokesperson said a major sticking point for introducing the single visa was the likely negative impact on revenue from tourist visas, which she described as a “golden goose” for some GMS countries.

“It may take years before the countries agree on [the single visa] and then implementation will remain a big challenge, including who collects the money and how is it spread among the countries. Thailand had agreed since 2009 on a single visa scheme but this was never implemented,” the spokesperson told The Myanmar Times.

“The single visa project … is a long-term project. In principle the ministries of tourism are willing to move into this direction but the decision needs to be made at the highest government level.”

It was not even certain the issue would be raised in November, she said, as the agenda has not yet been developed.

While the visa would likely increase arrivals and make travel between the six countries easier, the spokesperson said governments should focus on spreading the benefits of tourism further among their populations.

“I believe the priority is to promote and facilitate a more controlled development of tourism … rather than looking only at numbers of arrivals [and a policy that] benefits mainly a few big enterprises, which are reaping most of the benefits,” she said.

She also recommended studies into “how tourism can benefit the destinations and contribute to the economic development of the local communities”.

“Tourism is a fantastic sector of activity that truly supports the human and economic development at the local level if developed in a sustainable manner. The countries will benefit even more in the long run if they recognise that and implement accordingly.”

According to statistics from the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism, tourist arrivals in Myanmar totalled 172,244 in the first six months of 2011, an increase of 22.83 percent on the same period last year.

Almost two-thirds of visitors were from Asian countries, including 35,459 from Thailand – the largest single national group – and China, with 17,944 visitors. About 11,003 visitors came from the South Korea.

Arrivals from European countries totalled 39,734 in the first six months of 2011, representing 23.03pc of all tourists. France led the way with 9435 visitors, followed by Germany with 6119 visitors.

Source: Myanmar Times

Source: Vietnam Airlines

If you travel to Vietnam by air, it is highly recommended that you choose Vietnam visa on arrival as picking up visa at the Vietnam international airports is quite simple, easy, no additional charges and no fail. For further information, please visithttp://www.vietnam-visa.com.

Six countries of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) – China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam will make discussions on introducing single visa for the member countries at GMS travel show to be held in Myanmar  later this year, according to tourism circle Wednesday.

Organised by the Tourism working group of the GMS, the travel show will be held in the ancient city of Bagan for development of tourism as part of its economic cooperation in the subregion.

Food show will also be attached with the travel show.

The 4,500-km Mekong river originates from China’s Qinghai and runs through Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam down to South China Sea near Ho Chi Minh city.

Source: Philstar

According to Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Thanh Hoa, the Government has issued Decree No. 46 amending and supplementing some articles of Decree No. 34 on managing foreigners seeking to work in the country.

Six months after the new decree takes effect on August 1, foreign workers who have not received a work permit or have yet to apply for a permit will be expelled from the country. These people will also be barred from future visa applications to work in Vietnam.

The new regulation also relates to foreign workers who come to Vietnam as part of the workforce on foreign invested projects. During the tendering process, an investor will be required to employ both Vietnamese and foreign workers. State owned enterprises, enterprises operating under Enterprise Law and foreign invested projects operating under the Foreign Investment Law are allowed to recruit foreign workers, but cannot exceed a three percent threshold in terms of their total current employees. New businesses will be obliged initially seek Vietnamese employees.

Hoa claimed that shortcomings on the management of foreign workers in Vietnam existed.

According to Hoa, the regulation that allowed foreigners who work in Vietnam for less than three months to be free from needing a work permit has created the opportunity for enterprises and contractors to take advantage of supposedly ‘untrained’ workers.

“The new circular attempts to put a brake on the use of low-quality foreign workers,” he emphasised.

MoLISA is also considering applying stricter punishments to employers who have unlicensed foreign workers. He optimistically claimed that it would take only ten working days for a foreign worker to get their work permit, promising a halving in processing time, despite anecdotal evidence pointing to the process taking months to complete.

Institutions and enterprises that receive foreigners who come to study in Vietnam must also file a report to the MoLISA, he added.

Despite government concern over the numbers of foreigners working in the country, Vietnam currently only employs 74,000 workers from 60 countries, 58% of which originate from the Asia, according to unofficial statistics.

Source: DTI News

The festival opened with various cultural, art and sporting activities like music shows, a group wedding and a calligraphy showcase.

This year the festival features more than 60 cultural, art and sport activities including Cau Ngu ritual (fish worshipping), fireworks display, wine tasting, kite flying and lantern and carnival processions.

Highlights of the festival include sea and island fun activities, especially on the Truong Sa and Hoang Sa archipelago islands, aimed at promoting tourism and calling for the protection of the sea and the country’s sovereignty of the region.

Le Xuan Than, vice chairman and head of the organizing committee, told Sai Gon Giai Phong that the festival will help build Nha Trang’s image as a cultural, friendly and hospitable city boasting of a beautiful landscape of blue sea, white sand and sunny weather.

He added that the festival will introduce the great potential of Khanh Hoa province for economic and tourism development and send a message for environmental protection to local and foreign visitors.

The festival ends on June 15. Followings are some photos taken at the opening ceremony.

Source: DTI News

Photo: VnExpress

Covering a total area of nearly 500ha, Ba Be National Park has one of the 20 most beautiful freshwater lakes in the world, which was also listed around the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEANS) heritage parks.

Ba Be is an important ecotourism area in the northeastern mountainous region with 21 popular tourist sites.

The Vietnam Department of Biodiversity Conservation and the Ramsar Administrative Authority in Vietnam also hopes to nominate Tram Chim as Vietnam’s fourth Ramsar.

Source: VOV

Vietnam-Saudi Arabia cooperative relationship has been promoted but it is not on par with each country’s potential. Therefore, both countries need to make greater efforts to realize their opportunities for cooperation.

This was stated at the first session of the Vietnam – Saudi Arabia joint committee on economic, scientific and technological cooperation, co-chaired by Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Le Duong Quang and Saudi Arabian Deputy Minister of Economics and Planning Ahmed Bin Ibrahim Al Hakami.

During the meeting, the two sides reviewed their relationship and proposed solutions to strengthen cooperation in trade, oil and gas, industrial and agricultural production, finance, banking, transportation, investment, construction and labour.

They emphasised the need to establish a mechanism to ensure food and energy security, with a focus on Saudi Arabia investing in Vietnamese agriculture to supply rice for the west Asian countries and supplying crude oil to Vietnam.

Deputy Minister Quang asked Saudi Arabia to recognise Vietnam’s market economy; implement the protocol on oil, gas and mineral cooperation, which was signed in April 2010; and help Vietnam build oil refineries and power plants. He also recommended promoting trade exchange between the two countries.

Deputy Minister Ahmed Bin Ibrahim Al Hakami asked both sides to take initiatives to help the business communities in both countries to expand cooperation for mutual benefit.

Specific plans for the cooperation should be carried out effectively, he said.

The two countries are negotiating agreements on visa exemption for diplomatic and official passport holders, protecting and encouraging investment, air transportation, an agreement between the two foreign ministries and another between the two central banks.

Saudi Arabia is now Vietnam’s biggest West Asian trade partner with trade turnover reaching US$284 million in 2010. Vietnam’s main exports to Saudi Arabia are seafood, tea, coffee, pepper, cashew nuts, rice, textiles, garments, and wood products while it imports plastic materials, liquefied gas, chemicals and related products, fertilizers, and animal feeds.

Source: VOV

“It will however take special effort to be able to issue an ASEAN visa because visa regime in each country is different,” Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa was quoted by the ANTARA Indonesian news agency.

The announcement was made during the ongoing 18th ASEAN summit in Jakarta, Indonesia.

The new visa system will allow a citizen from a country outside ASEAN come to all ASEAN member countries with one visa, the same way it works with a Schengen visa in the European Union.

Source: Rian

When waiting for the ASEAN regime takes effect, citizens of other countries in ASEAN can apply for Vietnam visa on arrival at http://www.vietnam-visa.com. Check out the Vietnam visa cost for ASEAN citizens here http://www.vietnam-visa.com/pricing.html.

VNB Travel is operated to promote the image of Vietnam to international friends through offering a free consultancy service related to traveling in Vietnam and facilitating potential tourists worldwide with procedures of Vietnam entry and exit and traveling related arrangement during their stay in Vietnam.

As locals, VNB Travel has a great command of the Vietnam culture, legal system and regulations related to Vietnam Visa. And pursuant to the National Ordinance 24/1999/PL-UBTVQH10 on entry, exit and transit of foreigners in Vietnam issued by Standing Committee of National Assembly, VNB Travel set up www.vietnam-visa.com to assist the Vietnam visa applicants at the most convenient but cheapest way with SMART service that meets the criteria of Simple andSecure, Mannerly, Achievable, Reliable, and Timely. Since 2008, www.vietnam-visa.com is proud of having assisted as many as 35,000 travel and business tourists to Vietnam.

With the aim of bring the best Vietnam visa service to travellers, VNB Travel has developed two new support channels at Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/vietnamvisaservice)  and Twitter (http://twitter.com/vietnamvisa). Instead of writing email and making phone calls which are sometimes costly and/or unconvenient, you can simply send us a tweet or write on our wall. Your questions will be answer within the same working day by our enthusiastic supporters. Besides asking questions, you are also welcome to leave us comments, suggestions, concerns.

Visit us at http://www.vietnam-visa.com

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We do hope to assist you whenever you visit Vietnam!