Quick Summary: According to QuocTich.com data updated 09/2026, Vietnamese passport holders must apply for a visa in advance at 100 out of 198 destinations, with 43 of these countries located in Europe. However, "requiring a visa application" is not the same as "difficult to enter": the truly difficult destinations are those with rigorous application reviews and high rejection rates, such as the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand — and there are places that are closed to nearly every passport in the world.
Vietnamese citizens often ask "which country is hardest to enter," assuming the answer is the list of countries requiring visa applications. In fact, these are two different questions. A well-prepared Schengen application can open 29 countries at once; meanwhile, a single failed U.S. visa interview can follow an applicant for over a decade on every subsequent application form.
This article puts real data from our platform on the table and divides "difficult" into three tiers. The goal is not to discourage, but to help you understand which type of door you're facing and how much effort you should invest in preparing for each one.
How Many Countries Require Vietnamese Passport Holders to Apply for a Visa in Advance?
We cross-referenced Vietnam passport entry requirements against 198 destinations in our database. The results, according to QuocTich.com data updated 09/2026:
| Process | Number of Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Visa-free | 23 | Primarily ASEAN, a few Caribbean nations, South America |
| Visa-on-arrival | 25 | Mostly in Africa and the Pacific |
| ETA (electronic declaration) | 4 | Taiwan, Kenya, Côte d'Ivoire, Papua New Guinea |
| Electronic visa (e-visa) | 46 | Including Japan, South Korea, Australia, UAE, India |
| Visa application required in advance | 100 | Nearly half located in Europe |
If you combine the first three groups — destinations that don't require an advance application before departure — the Vietnamese passport has access to 52 destinations, ranking 74th on our passport index. This explains why different news outlets report different numbers; we've addressed this in a separate article in our policy section.
One detail often overlooked: the e-visa group (46 countries) is not "difficult" at all. Japan, South Korea, and Australia all fall into this category for Vietnamese citizens, meaning you submit your application online with no interview, though rejection is still possible. The complete list by category is available on the which countries grant visa-free entry to Vietnamese passport holders page.
Which Continent Has Closed the Most Doors to Vietnamese Citizens?
Breaking down the 100 destinations requiring advance visa applications by continent reveals a stark imbalance:
| Continent | Visa Required | Total Destinations | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Europe | 43 | 46 | 93% |
| North and Central America | 8 | 10 | 80% |
| South America | 8 | 12 | 67% |
| Oceania | 7 | 14 | 50% |
| Africa | 17 | 54 | 31% |
| Caribbean | 4 | 13 | 31% |
| Asia | 13 | 49 | 27% |
Europe is nearly a wall: only three countries offer e-visas to Vietnamese citizens (Albania, Moldova, Georgia). However, this wall has one common gate. The 29 Schengen countries share a single application form and unified criteria; a valid Schengen visa allows you to travel throughout the bloc during its validity period.
By contrast, the Caribbean — which many assume is remote and restrictive — is surprisingly open. Dominica, Barbados, and St. Vincent grant visa-free entry; Antigua and St. Kitts offer e-visas. Only Grenada still requires Vietnamese citizens to apply for a visa in advance, a detail that surprises many clients when they first receive their second passport.
Three Tiers of "Difficult to Enter" — Don't Lump Them Together
We divide the 100 countries requiring visa applications into three tiers based on practical application experience, not bureaucratic procedure.
Tier One: Visa Required, but Clear Criteria
Most of Europe, South America, and Africa fall here. Applications are assessed on paper: proof of funds, employment, itinerary, insurance, hotel booking. People with stable employment, consistent bank statements, and good travel history typically receive approval.
The challenge in this tier is preparation, not luck. Most Schengen rejections happen due to inconsistencies: itinerary says one thing, hotel booking says another, bank statements show a large deposit with no explanation. We've written in detail about what a strong Schengen application looks like for Vietnamese citizens.
Tier Two: Interview and Assessment of Immigrant Intent
United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand. Officials don't just ask "do you have enough money?" — they ask "will you come back?" U.S. immigration law presumes that visa applicants intend to stay; applicants must prove the opposite.
This is the tier where money cannot guarantee certainty. A wealthy entrepreneur can be rejected if their ties to Vietnam appear weak, or if a relative is living illegally abroad. And every rejection is recorded; future applications will ask about it.
Tier Three: Closed to Nearly Every Passport
Some countries are difficult to enter not because of Vietnamese citizens specifically, but because they're closed to nearly the world. Looking at our database, here's how many passports each country requires visas from:
| Destination | Passports Required to Apply for Visa (out of 198) |
|---|---|
| Afghanistan | 198 |
| Turkmenistan | 198 |
| North Korea | 197 |
| Eritrea | 194 |
| Sudan, Algeria | 191 |
| United States | 152 |
| Canada | 143 |
| New Zealand | 137 |
| Mexico | 132 |
| China | 127 |
The top tier consists of countries where politics and security determine entry; tourist visas barely exist or require government-approved tours. The latter group — the U.S., Canada, and New Zealand — are large economies with strict screening, and these are the "difficult" destinations in the sense that concerns Vietnamese citizens most.
How Many Doors Can a Second Passport Open Among These 100?
This is the most practical question for readers of this site. We took exactly the 100 destinations where Vietnamese citizens must apply for a visa and checked how a Grenadian passport performs:
| Passport | Visa-free | Visa-on-arrival / ETA | Still Requires Visa |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grenada | 62 | 8 | 29 |
| St. Kitts & Nevis | 67 | 8 | 25 |
| Turkey | 31 | 9 | 59 |
According to QuocTich.com data, updated 09/2026. Each row may total 99 because the issuing country is counted as the destination.
A Grenadian passport converts 62 "visa required" doors into visa-free entry, including the entire Schengen bloc, China, Brazil, and Argentina. But 29 remain closed, including the heavy hitters: the United States, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, and South Africa. The United Kingdom switches to ETA with a Grenadian passport.
The lesson: a Caribbean passport solves Tier One very well, but not Tier Two. If your goal is to reach the United States, you need to read a different roadmap — such as Grenada to U.S. E-2 visa, where a second passport is a step toward a specific visa category, not a direct ticket. Detailed comparisons are available on the where can a Grenadian passport take you page.
To test a specific pairing yourself, use our Vietnam to U.S. visa checker tool, then switch to any country you're interested in.
Legal Workarounds That Few People Know About
For some "visa-required" countries, a third country's visa can serve as a substitute. This is where professionals often optimize travel planning for clients:
- A valid U.S., UK, or Schengen visa is accepted by some Latin American countries in place of a separate visa; Mexico is a well-known example. The specific conditions (visa type, number of entries, remaining validity) change over time and must be verified with the consulate before purchasing tickets.
- A multi-entry Schengen visa is often the most valuable "secondary passport" for Vietnamese citizens: it opens 29 countries and strengthens your travel history for future applications.
- Transit is not always visa-free. Some European airports require a transit visa for Vietnamese citizens even if you don't leave the international transit area. Always verify which visas are needed for every connecting airport.
What you should not do: purchase "visa guarantee" services. No consulate sells guaranteed results, and submitting a misleading application to "improve your odds" is a mistake that follows you for life.
Risks You Need to Know
Data changes. Entry regulations shift with diplomatic relations, sometimes overnight. Our platform updates data regularly, but before you travel, verify with your embassy or airline.
One denial has a price. For Tier Two destinations, visa denial history appears on applications from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Misrepresenting your history is far worse than the initial denial. Don't apply when your application isn't ready just to "give it a try."
A second passport doesn't erase your history. Many application forms ask about every citizenship you've ever held and every visa denial on any passport. Someone who failed a U.S. visa interview with a Vietnamese passport must still disclose this when applying with a second passport.
Visa-free doesn't mean automatic entry. Border officials retain the right to deny entry if they suspect foul play. Even when traveling visa-free, bring a return ticket, hotel booking, and proof of funds.
Checklist Before Applying for a Visa to a "Difficult" Country
- [ ] Determine which tier the country falls into: paper-based criteria or interview-based immigrant intent assessment.
- [ ] Review your history: have you been denied before, in which year, and on which passport?
- [ ] Bank statements for at least 6 months; be able to explain any large deposits.
- [ ] Documentation of ties to Vietnam: employer, employment contract, property, children in school.
- [ ] Itinerary, hotel bookings, and flight tickets that align day by day.
- [ ] If applying to Tier Two: keep answers short, truthful, and consistent with your written application.
- [ ] Check transit visa requirements for every connecting airport.
- [ ] See if any existing visas (U.S., Schengen, UK) can substitute for the visa you need.
Next Steps
If you're traveling for tourism or business, start by sorting the countries you need to visit into the three tiers above, then tackle Tier One first to build travel history. If you're considering a second passport to reduce the number of doors you need to knock on, open our comparison page, place two or three passports side by side, and look carefully at the "still requires visa" column — that's what determines which passport truly fits your family's goals.
