Colombia Visa for Vietnamese Passport Holders in Dubai — Complete Guide 2026

Run both steps to know your real answer. Step one is your passport; step two is the conditional exemption based on a qualifying US or Schengen document.

Colombia grants a conditional visa exemption to eight nationalities, Vietnam among them. A Vietnamese national who holds a permanent residence permit, or a visa valid for at least 180 days, issued by the United States or any Schengen-area country, can enter Colombia without a Colombian visa and stay up to 90 days. Carry the qualifying document with your passport, as Migración Colombia may ask to see it.

Four traps catch travellers: the UK is not part of the rule; a UAE residence visa does not help; the residence permit must be permanent (not a temporary card); and the visa must be valid for at least 180 days at arrival, so a near-expiry or transit visa will not qualify.

The process is entirely online — Colombia issues an electronic visa, with no over-the-counter submission, even though it has an embassy in Abu Dhabi. The main practical hurdle for Vietnamese applicants is language: the portal is in Spanish, and Vietnamese-language documents need translation.

1. 1Confirm you actually need a visa — if you hold a qualifying US/Schengen document, you are visa-free and can skip the application.
2. 2Open visa.cancilleria.gov.co (Spanish; use a browser translation tool) and select the V (Visitante) visa, Turismo subcategory.
3. 3Complete the form with your details exactly as on your Vietnamese passport (Latin-alphabet spelling from the bio page).
4. 4Translate where needed: Vietnamese-language bank statements or employment letters should carry a Spanish or English translation, as the officer reviews in Spanish.
5. 5Pay the government fee online — USD 50 study, then USD 45 issuance after approval. OraVisa confirms current amounts.
6. 6Wait up to 30 calendar days (official legal time; often faster). Apply early — there is no visa-on-arrival.
7. 7Receive the electronic visa by email; carry a printout. Complete the free Check-Mig form before each flight.

• Assuming a UK visa or a UAE residence visa qualifies — only US or Schengen documents do.
• Relying on a temporary residence card or a near-expiry visa — the permit must be permanent and the visa valid at least 180 days at arrival.
• Treating Colombia as a visa-on-arrival country — it is not; the visa must be approved before travel.
• Submitting Vietnamese-only documents — provide a Spanish or English translation of any Vietnamese bank statement or employment letter.
• Skipping Check-Mig, or using a look-alike paid site — it is free and filed only on migracioncolombia.gov.co, 1–72h before each flight.
• Overlooking yellow fever for national parks (Tayrona, Sierra Nevada, Amazon) — vaccinate at least 10 days before; not needed for city-only trips.

OraVisa checks first whether you even need a visa — a qualifying US or Schengen document makes you visa-free. If you do need one, we prepare and submit the online application, handle the Spanish-language portal and Vietnamese document translation, and guide you through Check-Mig and entry rules such as yellow fever for national parks.