On the afternoon of August 1, the Embassy of Spain in Vietnam announced that the new blue-violet cover of Vietnam's passport does not show information about the place of birth of the passport holder. This is an important information to determine personal identity and is also mandatory information to process Schengen visa applications (Schengen visa allows people to move freely in most countries in Europe).
"Current regulations do not allow the issuance of Schengen visas to Vietnamese citizens holding new passports due to lack of place of birth information, which makes it impossible to verify the identity of the visa applicant," the notice said.
The Spanish Embassy in Hanoi announced that it cannot accept Schengen visa applications for the new Vietnamese passport model.
Therefore, the Embassy of Spain in Hanoi cannot accept Schengen visa applications for this new passport model until further notice. Schengen visa applications with previous Vietnamese passports (green cover) showing the place of birth and still valid will still be accepted and processed normally. Thus, after Germany, Spain is the second country to announce that it cannot accept visa applications for the new dark blue Vietnamese passport.
Change of schedule
Ms. Nguyen Nguyet Van Khanh, Marketing Director, Vietravel Group, said that Vietravel is currently in the process of continuously updating information from official notes and announcements on the use of new Vietnamese passports to travel to European countries.
Regarding the case of Schengen visas not being allowed to enter Germany and most recently Spain, the company said it is advising tourists who have scheduled departures or are preparing to go to Europe to navigate and adjust tour schedules that do not go through Germany.
Companies are advising customers to change their schedules or wait for new guidance from authorities.
“We will support tourists who want to change their itinerary to a more suitable destination without having to worry about a new passport. As long as they do not go through Germany, the tour will still depart normally. In case a guest with an old passport travels in the same group as a guest with a new passport, if they do not agree to change the itinerary, the company will separate the group to avoid disturbing the remaining tourists,” Ms. Khanh informed.
According to the Marketing Director of Vietravel Group, the destinations that are still departing and are popular with tourists and currently still accept 2 types of passports are France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, and Northern Europe.
“For any journey that requires flying to Germany, we will advise customers with old passports. With this information, for tourists who have registered for European tours, we will still depart as scheduled, but limit the number of customers according to information updated from the Consulates and Embassies of the two countries above,” said a representative of Vietravel.
Meanwhile, Ms. Doan Thi Thanh Tra, Marketing Communications Director of Saigontourist Travel, informed that, for now, the unit will not suffer any damage, and will temporarily change the itinerary of European tour products until there is new information.
According to Saigontourist Travel, most of the customers who buy European tours departing until September are using old passports. The European tour package has many options so the staff will advise customers based on their actual records. In addition, this time, customers coming to the company also choose tours to England, Scotland, France, Italy, then the tour to 5 European countries.
Concerns from travel companies
Mr. Nguyen Tat Thang, Deputy General Director of Hong Ngoc Ha Travel also said that in September, the company has 10 groups going to Europe. The European tour schedule that is popular with tourists is France - Italy - Germany - Spain - Greece.
Therefore, two of the favorite destinations do not accept the new Vietnamese passport model, making tour operators "confused". "For now, we recommend that customers do not change their passports early for those whose passports are valid for more than 6 months. As for customers who are using the new passport model, we will advise them to change their travel schedule to another country, and if that does not work, we will refund the customers," Mr. Thang proposed.
However, Deputy General Director of Hong Ngoc Ha Travel also said that all tour services have been booked in advance, so refunds or schedule changes will more or less affect the business.
Spain is one of the favorite destinations of Vietnamese tourists when coming to Europe.
Similarly, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc An, Deputy General Director of Fiditour - Vietluxtour Travel, is concerned that Germany and Spain are both members of the Schengen area with common regulations. Therefore, Mr. An believes that it is very likely that in the near future, the entire Schengen area will issue an announcement regarding the new passport model of Vietnam.
However, Mr. An said that if tourists have old passports with pages and validity of less than 6 months, they usually do not need to change to a new passport. On the other hand, having stamps of places they have visited on their passports will also help them apply for new visas to Schengen more easily.
“Customers on European tours usually have a 9-10 day itinerary through France - Germany - Belgium - Netherlands. In the current situation, if they cannot enter the country, the company may have to change the itinerary. Normally, Schengen visas are usually issued for about 30 days or there are visas issued at the right time according to the tour program, so if the itinerary changes, the tour company must also update the visa issuing agency,” said Mr. Nguyen Ngoc An.
