Vietnam eVisa payment failed, or charged but still Unpaid
Do not pay again yet. A failure screen can still come with a charge on your card, and a charge does not mean the portal recorded your payment. Check two things first: the status on the official lookup page (evisa.gov.vn status page), and whether your bank shows the charge as pending or posted. If the status is Unpaid and your card was not charged, use the Payment button on the status page, which the portal's own guide shows. If there is no button, start a new application.
What to do, in this order
1. Find your e-Visa code, which the portal also calls the registration code. It looks like E241029AUSPA693937507. (portal instructions, read 4 Nov 2026) If you lost it, use the Don't remember registration code link on the lookup page.
2. Open the status page. It asks for the code, the email on the application, your date of birth and a security code.
3. Open your banking app. Pending usually means the bank has authorized the charge and has not settled it. Posted means the money has gone.
4. Read your two answers against the table before you type your card number again.
| Status page + your bank | What to do |
|---|---|
| Not paid or Unpaid + No charge | Pay from the status page if it shows a Payment button. If it does not, start a new application. |
| Not paid or Unpaid + Pending | Wait one or two working days if your flight allows it. That figure is our own advice, because we found no official one. Ask your bank how long the hold lasts. |
| Not paid or Unpaid + Posted | Keep the receipt and a screenshot of the status. Email [email protected] with your e-Visa code. Ask your bank about a dispute. A second payment may not come back. |
| Processing, Amendment required or Approved + Any | The application has moved past payment. Do not pay again and do not file a second one. |
What applicants have reported
These are posts by applicants, not official statements. Most of the Expat.com threads are two or three years old, so details may have changed.
Same card, two results. In a post published in January 2026 and updated in March, two travelers used one card. One payment went through. The other timed out on a Vietcombank gateway page, and the portal then told them to recreate the profile and pay again. (Intentional Travelers, 2026)
Failure screen, visa anyway. One applicant saw a failed-payment notice with no way to pay again. The charge then posted, Vietcombank emailed a receipt, and the visa was approved the same day. Nothing new was filed. (Expat.com thread)
Money gone, still unpaid. Another applicant reported the application failing as unpaid while the money left the account. (Expat.com thread)
Paid later from the status page. A third hit a broken payment link and later paid by reopening the file from the lookup page. (Expat.com thread)
The payment page will not load. In one thread a VPN fixed it for one poster, a phone hotspot fixed it for another after a VPN did not help, and moving from Safari to Chrome fixed it for a third. (Expat.com thread) In an older thread, turning a VPN off was the fix. (Expat.com thread) So no single browser or VPN trick holds for everyone.
What the payment page asks for
The portal lists the steps: check the details, agree, choose a method, enter the card, confirm the terms, pass your bank's one-time code, then a Payment successful screen that says the result comes by email. (portal instructions, read 4 Nov 2026)
In the portal's own screenshot the gateway shows the fee in Vietnamese dong, 631,250 VND at 25,250 VND to the dollar in that example. It names a Vietcombank merchant and offers Apple Pay, QR, ATM card, internet banking, and Visa, Mastercard, JCB or AMEX. The screenshot may be older than today's gateway, but it explains two surprises. Your bank sees a foreign charge in dong, and the amount in your own currency will not be exactly US$25.
Before you try again, tell your bank a charge from Vietnam is coming, keep the phone that receives the bank's code beside you, and finish the payment in one sitting.
Indian cards, RuPay and UnionPay
India has one rule worth checking first. Under a Reserve Bank of India circular in force since 16 March 2020, new and reissued cards work only at contact points in India until the holder switches on online and international use. (RBI/2019-20/142) Do that in your bank's app before you pay, and check the limit too.
We found no official statement about RuPay or UnionPay. Neither is named on the portal's screenshot, and agent blogs disagree about RuPay, so treat flat claims with care. If you hold a Visa or Mastercard, use that one.
Is a second application safe?
Sometimes it is the only way forward. Applicants have been told to recreate the profile, and at least one resubmitted and received a visa. (Expat.com thread) The risk is paying twice. The portal says the fee is non-refundable if the visa is not granted, Circular 28/2026/TT-BTC says the same about refused applications, (Circular 28/2026, Article 6) and we found no official process for refunding a duplicate payment.
We also found no official rule on holding two applications for one passport. If you refile, enter the same data carefully and keep both e-Visa codes, so you can see which one moves.
If your flight is close
Processing starts only after the fee is in, so every failed attempt costs time you may not have. Plan 3 to 5 working days from a successful payment for the standard route, and see Vietnam eVisa stuck in processing if you have already paid and are waiting.
If no card works, the fee can reach the portal another way. Our all-in price includes the government fee, which we pay on your behalf, and you pay us by PayPal or the other options on our payment screen. Prices and cut-offs are at Compare urgent eVisa tiers and ICT cut-offs. If your application is already lodged, use Request assessment of an existing application and we will quote before you pay anything. InTimeVisa is an independent private agent, not the Vietnamese government, and the decision stays with Immigration.
Frequently asked questions
Can I pay again for the same application?
Sometimes. The portal's guide shows a Payment button on the status page for an application marked Unpaid. Applicants report both outcomes: some paid from there, others saw no button or were told to recreate the profile.
My card was charged but the status says Unpaid. Is the money gone?
Not always. A pending charge can drop off, and one applicant on Expat.com received the visa on the day the charge posted. If the charge has posted and the status stays Unpaid, write to [email protected] and ask your bank. We found no official refund process for this case.
Which cards does evisa.gov.vn accept?
The portal's instruction screenshot lists Visa, Mastercard, JCB and AMEX alongside Apple Pay, QR, ATM card and internet banking. It does not name RuPay or UnionPay. We found no separate official list.
Is the fee refunded if my eVisa is refused?
No. The portal says the fee is non-refundable if the visa is not granted.
Does a VPN help with the payment page?
Reports go both ways. One applicant fixed a page that would not load by turning a VPN on, another by turning it off, and a third by using a phone hotspot. Try another browser and network before you touch your card again.
Card still failing and a flight coming up?
We prepare, lodge and pay the government fee for you. InTimeVisa is a private agent; the issuing authority decides.