Vietnam Expands Digital PAI Declaration to Cam Ranh: What Tourists Should Check Before Traveling

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Marta Skylar
Aviation News Editor
28.07.2026 01:39

Vietnam Expands Digital PAI Declaration to Cam Ranh: What Tourists Should Check Before Traveling

Vietnam continues to move border formalities online: after the launch of the Pre-Arrival Information system in Ho Chi Minh City and its subsequent expansion to other major airports, Cam Ranh International Airport, the main air gateway to the Nha Trang resort area, was added to the list in June. For tourists, this means that before flying to Vietnam, it is increasingly important to check not only the visa or visa-free regime, but also the availability of a digital pre-arrival declaration for the specific airport of arrival.

The news is important not because Vietnam has suddenly complicated entry. On the contrary, the authorities position Pre-Arrival Information, or PAI, as a tool to reduce queues at passport control, reduce paper forms and better prepare immigration services for peak waves of passengers. But for a traveler, any new digital step before the flight has practical significance: if the form is filled out incorrectly, the wrong airport is chosen, or flight data is confused, it can create a delay even before boarding or after arrival.

According to the Vietnam Immigration Department under the Ministry of Public Security, the PAI system was officially launched in pilot mode at Tan Son Nhat Airport in Ho Chi Minh City from April 15, 2026. The official explanation emphasizes that the service allows foreign air passengers to transmit part of the necessary travel information in advance, after which local immigration authorities can prepare entry procedures before the flight's arrival. In May, the department also noted that after the pilot phase, the system is planned to be deployed more widely at international checkpoints.

The latest practical turn is that Cam Ranh International Airport, which serves Nha Trang and a significant part of beach tourism in central Vietnam, now appears in the context of PAI expansion. The specialized publication VisasNews reported on June 22 that Cam Ranh has been added to the official pre-arrival declaration portal. For the market, this is a small but telling change: the system is moving from a test in one large hub to a tool that gradually covers mass tourism routes.

What is Pre-Arrival Information and How It Works

PAI is not a visa, an e-visa, or an entry permit. It is a digital declaration that collects basic traveler data before arrival: passport information, flight details, type of entry document, purpose of trip, and address of stay in Vietnam. After submission, the system generates a QR code, which the traveler must save on their phone or print for presentation during control.

The official notification from the Vietnam Immigration Department emphasizes that the declaration can be submitted via an internet device within three days before entering Vietnam. This window is key for tourists: the form should not be postponed until boarding the plane, but should not be filled out too early if the portal links data to a specific flight and arrival date. The safest approach is to check the official portal and airline requirements 72 hours before the flight, and after submission, save the QR code offline.

In the first 15 days of the pilot launch at Tan Son Nhat, from April 15 to April 30, according to the Vietnamese side, 161,596 declarations were submitted, of which 119,854 were successful. The authorities specifically drew attention to the fact that some errors were related to flight data, particularly the flight number and PNR. For a tourist, this is a practical signal: PAI looks like a simple online form, but it is sensitive to the accuracy of the booking, passport name, and itinerary.

Which Airports Most Affect Tourists

The initial launch point was Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City (SGN), one of the busiest arrival points in Vietnam. It is here that the problem of long queues at passport control is most noticeable for tourists, especially in the evening hours and during the high season. After this, other major gateways to the country appeared in the information field regarding PAI expansion, including Noi Bai Airport in Hanoi (HAN), Da Nang Airport (DAD), Phu Quoc and now Cam Ranh.

For beach holidays, two points are particularly important. First is Phu Quoc Airport (PQC), through which tourists arrive at island resorts. Second is Cam Ranh Airport (CXR), which serves Nha Trang, Cam Ranh, and popular hotel zones along the coast. If a tourist is flying to these destinations, they need to check before departure whether the PAI declaration is available or required for the specific flight and arrival point.

It is important not to confuse the list of airports in tourist instructions with a guarantee of an unchanging rule. The official system is developing in stages, and the status of an individual checkpoint can change faster than the reference materials of tour operators, blogs, or intermediary services are updated. Therefore, the main source for verification should be the official Vietnam Immigration portal, official notifications from Vietnamese authorities, and airline instructions before check-in.

Why PAI Does Not Replace a Visa

The biggest risk for travelers is to perceive Pre-Arrival Information as a new form of visa or as a permit that automatically opens entry to the country. This is a mistake. The Vietnam Immigration Department explicitly explains that PAI is used for submitting pre-arrival information, and not for the consideration or issuance of visas to foreigners. If a citizen of a certain country requires an eVisa, consular visa, or other document, it must be obtained separately.

For tourists from countries with a visa-free regime with Vietnam, the digital declaration also does not mean a change in the duration of the allowed stay. It only adds or recommends an additional pre-arrival step within the existing rules. For tourists who need an eVisa, the order should be logical: first obtain or check the visa document, and then within the established window fill out the PAI if it applies to the airport of arrival.

This is especially important for complex itineraries. For example, a tourist may arrive on an international flight in Ho Chi Minh City, pass immigration at SGN, spend the night in the city, and then fly on a domestic flight to Nha Trang. In this scenario, the application of PAI may depend specifically on the first international point of entry, rather than the final resort.

What to Check Before Flying to Vietnam

Practical preparation now includes several separate checks. First, ensure that the passport is valid for the period required by entry rules and the airline. Second, check the visa status: whether visa-free entry is available, whether an eVisa is needed, or if the purpose of the trip fits the tourist entry. Third, 72 hours before arrival, check the PAI portal and the requirements specifically for your airport.

  • verify the spelling of the first and last name against the passport;
  • use the exact flight number of the flight arriving in Vietnam;
  • choose the correct arrival airport, for example SGN, HAN, DAD, PQC or CXR;
  • prepare the full address of the first accommodation, rather than just the city or resort name;
  • save the QR code on your phone and make a backup copy if traveling as a family or group.

Separately, it is worth thinking about arrival logistics. If you arrive late in the evening or after a long long-haul flight, an additional 20-40 minutes for document verification can affect the transfer, check-in, or connection. For the route via Ho Chi Minh City, it is useful to look at hotels near SGN airport or transfers from Tan Son Nhat. For Nha Trang, it is similarly appropriate to check hotels near Cam Ranh and transfers from CXR airport, as the road to the resort area can take a significant amount of time.

What This Means for the Tourism Market

For Vietnam, PAI is part of a broader transition to digital management of tourist flows. The country is actively competing for travelers in Southeast Asia, where Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore are also simplifying or digitizing formalities. The faster passport control works in major airports, the easier it is to sell short vacations, package tours, combined itineraries, and trips with several domestic flights.

For airlines and tour operators, the expansion of PAI means the need to inform clients more carefully before check-in. During the high season, errors with digital forms can create queues at counters, as passengers often find out about the new requirement at the last moment. Group tours, family trips with children, charter flights to resorts, and itineraries where tourists have short connections after international arrival are particularly vulnerable.

For independent travelers, the main thing is not to panic, but to add PAI to the standard checklist. This is not a reason to refuse a trip to Vietnam and not a sign of the country closing to tourists. On the contrary, if the system works correctly, it can make arrival faster and more predictable. But digitization does not cancel basic attentiveness: passport, visa, address of stay, flight number, and correct airport must match in all documents.

Conclusion

The expansion of Pre-Arrival Information to Cam Ranh/Nha Trang shows that Vietnam is quickly moving from a pilot digital arrival in one airport to a broader system for the main tourist gateways of the country. The most important conclusion for travelers is simple: before traveling to Vietnam, it is now necessary to check not only the visa, but also the digital pre-arrival declaration for the specific point of arrival.

The safest strategy is to check the rules on the official Vietnam Immigration portal a few days before the flight, fill out the PAI within the allowed three-day window, save the QR code, and have hotel and flight confirmations handy. For tourists flying to Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Da Nang, Phu Quoc, or Nha Trang via Cam Ranh, this is no longer a secondary formality, but part of normal travel planning for Vietnam in 2026.