Vietnamese citizens can now apply for passports at the Department of Immigration's website, instead of having to go to the department's offices in person. The new service is available in Hanoi, Danang and HCMC at first.

This is applicable to those applicants defined in Clause 1 of Article 3, and Clauses 2 and 4 of Article 4 of the Ministry of Public Security's Circular 29/2016/TT-BCA dated July 6, 2016.

These applicants are holding passports that expire soon, lack adequate space for entry or exit visa stamps, or got damaged or lost. 

Others eligible for online application include those applying for passports for the first time, public servants and employees at state agencies, teachers, staff and students of educational institutions, and workers having a labor contract of one year or longer.

Applicants just need to go to the website at hochieu.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn to submit their applications, make an appointment and pay a fee, if any, following the instructions provided on the website.

If the online application process is accurate, applicants will be given a code.

On the date of appointment, they will just bring this code to one of the Department of Immigration's offices at 44-46 Tran Phu Street, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi; 7 Tran Quy Cap Street, Danang City, and 254 Nguyen Trai Street, HCMC to have their photographs taken, produce the required documents and pay the fee. 

Applicants may use a mail delivery service if they do not want to come to the department to collect their passports.

Online procedures not just save time but also create other benefits such as flexibility to choose an appropriate date for an appointment with an immigration officer.

Hanoi and HCMC have spent a year piloting the online passport application procedure but the number of online applicants is small. 

The new website directly managed by the Department of Immigration is user-friendly, so those who are not computer-savvy and the elderly can still apply online.

SGT