Vietnam's New Health Declaration: What Families Need to Know Before July 1
If you're heading to Vietnam this year, there's a new step to add to your pre-trip checklist. From 1 July 2026, every traveller entering, leaving, or transiting through Vietnam has to complete a health declaration. It's a simple form, but it's now compulsory, so it's worth getting your head around it before you fly.
Here's the plain version.
What's actually changing
Vietnam has brought in a new rule (Decree 165/2026/ND-CP) under its updated Law on Disease Prevention. Both take effect on the same day: 1 July 2026.
The short of it: a health declaration is now a standing part of crossing the border. Not a one-off outbreak measure, not something that only kicks in when there's a scare. It's a permanent part of the entry and exit process from now on.
Who it applies to
Pretty much everyone. The rule covers:
Anyone arriving in Vietnam — tourists, families, returning residents, business travellers
Anyone leaving Vietnam
Anyone transiting through
There's no exemption based on your passport, your visa type, or which airline you're on. If you're crossing a Vietnamese border gate, you fill in the form. It applies at airports, land borders, and seaports.
What you need to do
The declaration uses a standard form provided by Vietnam's Ministry of Health. It comes in Vietnamese and English, and you can complete it two ways: online or on paper.
The one rule to remember: you have to complete it within seven days before you enter, leave, or transit. Don't leave it until you're standing at the airport — but don't do it three weeks out either. Inside that one-week window is the sweet spot.
A couple of practical notes:
Keep your confirmation handy, especially if you do the paper version
Have any vaccination records accessible. Officers can ask for proof of vaccination or other prevention measures if the situation calls for it.
What happens at the border
Health officers will be stationed at the gates checking declarations and keeping an eye on travellers as they come through. For most families this means nothing more than a temperature check and walking on.
If an officer notices something — a fever, signs of illness — they may ask a few questions or do a closer check. The rules cap that detailed screening at two hours per person, so even in the rare case it happens, it's not open-ended.
Will it slow things down?
Honestly, maybe a little. It's one more step at immigration, and the bigger airports like Tan Son Nhat (Ho Chi Minh City), Noi Bai (Hanoi), and Da Nang already get busy in peak season. The fix is simple: do your declaration in advance so you're not filling in forms in the queue.
Where's the actual form?
At the time of writing, there isn't a live online form to link to yet. The form itself exists as a fixed template attached to the decree, but the government hadn't switched on the official electronic portal or app. That's expected to land before the 1 July start date.
So when it's time, go to the source. The official submission channel will appear on Vietnam's Ministry of Health website and the Vietnam Government Portal. Do your declaration there, inside your seven-day window, and confirm the current process with your airline at check-in.
A word of warning.
A lot of third-party sites have popped up offering to "submit your health declaration" for you, sometimes for a fee. Plenty of them say in the small print that they're not the Vietnamese government. The real form is free and government-issued. Don't hand your family's personal details or your money to a lookalike site. If it's not the Ministry of Health or the government portal, give it a miss.
Don't confuse it with the arrival card
There's a second document doing the rounds that people are mixing up with this one. Vietnam has also been rolling out a Pre-Arrival / Arrival Card, currently for travellers flying into Tan Son Nhat (Ho Chi Minh City) and Phu Quoc.
That's a separate form. The health declaration we're talking about here is its own thing, required at every border gate — air, land, and sea. Filling in one doesn't cover the other, so keep them straight.
Our take
If you're coming to one of our camps in Hoi An, or travelling Vietnam with the family on your own, this isn't a hurdle. It's a form. Add it to the list alongside your e-visa, do it inside that seven-day window, save the confirmation, and you're sorted.
We'll keep an eye on the official channels as the rollout settles and pass on anything useful. If you've got a trip booked with us, we'll make sure you know exactly what to do before you go.
Vietnam's not getting harder to visit.
There's just one more box to tick — and now you know about it well ahead of time.
Official sources
Only use government channels for the form. Everything else is unofficial.
Vietnam Government Portal (the official notice on the new rule): https://en.baochinhphu.vn/notice-for-viet-nam-bound-travellers-111260521112100387.htm
Vietnam Ministry of Health — where the official health declaration form and submission portal will go live
Your airline — confirm the current process at check-in
The form is free. Avoid any third-party site offering to file it for you.
