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On the afternoon of August 1st, the Spanish Embassy in Vietnam announced that the new Vietnamese passport with its dark blue cover no longer includes information about the passport holder's place of birth. This is crucial information for personal identification and is also mandatory for processing Schengen visa applications (Schengen visas allow individuals free movement in most European countries).
"Current regulations do not allow the issuance of Schengen visas to Vietnamese citizens holding new passports due to a lack of place of birth information, making it impossible to verify the identity of the visa applicant," the announcement stated.
The Spanish Embassy in Hanoi has announced that it cannot accept Schengen visa applications for the new Vietnamese passport.
Therefore, the Spanish Embassy in Hanoi cannot accept Schengen visa applications for this new passport format until further notice. Schengen visa applications with previous Vietnamese passports (green cover) that show place of birth and are still valid will be accepted and processed normally. Thus, after Germany, Spain is the second country to announce that it cannot yet accept visa applications for the new dark blue Vietnamese passport.
Change the schedule.
Ms. Nguyen Nguyet Van Khanh, Director of Marketing at Vietravel Group, said that Vietravel is currently continuously updating information from official documents and notifications regarding the use of the new Vietnamese passport for travel to European countries.
Regarding the cases where Schengen visas are denied entry to Germany and, most recently, Spain, the company stated that it is advising tourists who have already scheduled or are preparing to travel to Europe to redirect and adjust their tour itineraries to avoid Germany.
Companies are advising customers to change their itineraries or wait for further instructions from authorities.
“We will assist tourists who wish to change their itinerary to a more suitable destination without any problems with the new passport. As long as they don't travel through Germany, the tour will still proceed as normal. In cases where tourists with old passports are traveling with tourists who have new passports, if they do not agree to change the itinerary, the company will separate them to avoid inconveniencing the remaining tourists,” Ms. Khanh informed.
According to the Marketing Director of Vietravel Group, destinations such as France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, and the Nordic countries are still operating and are popular with tourists, and currently accept two types of passports.
"For itineraries that require a flight to Germany, we will advise accepting passengers with older passport formats. Therefore, with this information, tourists who have already booked European tours can still depart as scheduled, however, we will limit the eligible passengers based on updated information from the Consulates and Embassies of the two countries," a Vietravel representative shared.
Meanwhile, Ms. Doan Thi Thanh Tra, Director of Marketing and Communications at Saigontourist Travel, stated that, for the time being, the company has not suffered any losses and will temporarily change the itineraries of its European tour products until further notice.
According to Saigontourist Travel, most customers booking European tours departing until September are using old passports. Since the European tour packages offer many options, staff will advise customers based on their specific documents. Additionally, customers visiting the company this time are choosing tours to England, Scotland, France, and Italy first, before moving on to the 5-country European tour.
Concerns from travel companies
Mr. Nguyen Tat Thang, Deputy General Director of Hong Ngoc Ha Travel, also said that in September, the company had 10 tour groups going to Europe. The most popular European tour itinerary among tourists was France - Italy - Germany - Spain - Greece.
Therefore, the fact that two of the most popular destinations do not accept Vietnam's new passport design has caused confusion among tour operators. "For now, we advise customers not to renew their passports early, especially those with more than six months remaining validity. For customers already using the new passport design, we will advise them to change their itinerary to another country; if that's not possible, we will refund their money," Mr. Thang stated as a solution.
However, the Deputy General Director of Hong Ngoc Ha Travel also stated that since all tour services were pre-booked, refunds or schedule changes would inevitably affect the business to some extent.
Spain is one of the favorite destinations for Vietnamese tourists when visiting Europe.
Similarly, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc An, Deputy General Director of Fiditour – Vietluxtour Travel, expressed concern that Germany and Spain are both members of the Schengen Area with common regulations. Therefore, Mr. An assessed that it is very likely that the entire Schengen Area will issue an announcement regarding the new Vietnamese passport design in the near future.
However, Mr. An believes that tourists whose old passports still have pages and are valid for less than six months usually don't need to switch to the new passport format. Furthermore, having stamps from places they've visited before in their passports can also make it easier for them to apply for a new Schengen visa.
“Tourists on European tours usually have a 9-10 day itinerary covering France, Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands. In the current situation, if entry is not possible, the tour company may have to change the itinerary. Typically, Schengen visas are issued for about 30 days, or some are issued for the exact duration of the tour program, so if the itinerary changes, the tour company must update the visa-issuing authority,” said Mr. Nguyen Ngoc An.
