This is my first time going abroad. I will go to Nha Trang, Vietnam the day after tomorrow. I don’t want to tip the customs. What suggestions do you have?

I would like to share my practical experience of arriving in Vietnam without applying for a visa in advance and being asked for a tip when crossing the border.

Share my practical experience of passing customs in Vietnam

From the first time I traveled to Vietnam to this day, I have encountered the problem of asking for tips every time I go through customs. I have gained a lot of practical experience, and now I have developed the decency to laugh it off when faced with this problem; but when I entered Vietnam for the first time, the situation was completely different.

My first trip to Vietnam was with my mother and two other people, and we took a plane and entered the country from Ho Chi Minh City.

Since that trip was also an impromptu trip, the entire travel decision-making period from travel preparation, purchasing air tickets, to finalizing the trip took less than 5 days, so I was unable to apply for a Vietnam visa in advance.

Anyone who is familiar with Vietnam tourism knows that this country’s visa is relatively “flexible”. In addition to applying for a visa in advance, there are other ways to enter the country. For my first trip to Vietnam, I chose the visa-on-arrival method. Therefore, there was no proof of permission to enter Vietnam in my passport at that time, which was also the reason for my panic.

When I entered Ho Chi Minh City, I went to the customs to apply for a visa on arrival with my passport, photo, Vietnam visa approval document, entry form and visa fee. At that time, I was prepared for the "visa on arrival fee", which was US$25 per person, and I did not prepare for any other fees other than the visa fee.

At the counter of Visa on Arrival, I handed the documents in my hands directly to the customs officer, and he accepted my documents naturally. He opened my passport, looked at the relevant documents, and then looked up at me. All this is quite logical, and based on my experience of entering and exiting customs of various countries many times, and having successfully applied for relatively difficult visas such as Japanese visa, Schengen visa, and US visa, I am one of those people who have easy access to visas.

However, after checking the information, the customs official stopped and became silent. I didn't know what happened at that time, so I just stood there in a stalemate. The two sides were in a stalemate for about 20 seconds.

Then, when he saw that I was motionless, he looked up at me again. I still didn't react at the time, so I just looked back at him. Maybe he couldn't stand my long reaction chain, so he finally spoke, speaking in unauthentic Mandarin, and only said one word, "Ten yuan, ten yuan!" At this time, I finally understood that he was asking for a tip!

Since I didn’t have a visa in my passport at the time, and it was my first time entering Vietnam, I was always a little worried. However, having traveled to and from Southeast Asian countries many times, I also know what customs tips are all about. In the customs area, the roll-up banner placed in the corner proclaimed in Chinese "No tips are accepted here" which also gave me confidence.

So, I played a trick and replied directly in Cantonese: "What are you talking about?" (What did you say?) He was stunned for a moment, and then repeated "Ten yuan!" ” I still responded with the same sentence. This went back and forth, and after two rounds, he gave up. I was quickly issued a visa and released, and I was able to enter the country for tourism as I wished.

This was my first customs clearance experience, and after that, I gradually learned the details of the customs. Now that I pass the customs, I still encounter the problem of asking for tips. I also enter the country with the visa approval document, but it seems much more generous. I would look directly at the person with a smile and firmly shake my head, indicating that I would not tip. This has become my way to correctly enter Vietnam.

What should you pay attention to when entering Southeast Asian countries?

In fact, being asked for a tip when entering the country is not unique to Vietnam. The same is true for Cambodia. In Thailand, a country that Chinese people like to go to very much, things are done quickly if you tip, but if you don’t tip, you wait in line slowly.

In the face of these common "customs tipping" phenomena, if we are unwilling to give it, we can refuse it. However, the first prerequisite is of course that you are an international tourist whose conditions and behavior comply with regulations. As the saying goes, "Be upright even if your shadow is slanted." It is a prerequisite to regulate yourself first and not leave any excuses for others. Because they tip when going through customs, most tourists do so out of fear of not being able to successfully obtain a visa and enter the country. Therefore, if your customs clearance certificates and documents are in compliance with the regulations, there will be no unexpected situations such as being refused a visa at the customs.

On the other hand, customs is also the national gate of a country. The national gate has the dignity and regulations of the country. It is everyone's obligation to abide by the regulations. For example, taking photos is not allowed when passing through customs. We must not video collect evidence when the customs asks for tips. This will put ourselves in a disadvantageous situation.

To be fair, tipping is a voluntary monetary reward given to service staff. As long as it is voluntary, there is nothing right or wrong in itself. So if you really want to tip the customs officers, you can. But this kind of tipping has nothing to do with "bribery". If you hope to get a visa or get a visa quickly by relying on the tipping relationship, then your motive is not pure. As a result, the counter-active phenomenon of customs officers in Southeast Asian countries asking for tips from Chinese tourists should not be promoted.

Vietnam is okay, not as rampant as Cambodia’s customs. First of all, remember that customs are not allowed to charge tips. If they have this concept, they would not dare to charge tips.

I didn’t encounter them when I was leaving the country in Da Nang, Vietnam, but when I met them in Cambodia, they even said in Chinese that the tip was 10 RMB or two US dollars. I pretended not to understand, but even though the customs kept telling me, there was nothing they could do but let me go without paying attention. There was an old man who started a conflict with the customs. The customs indeed threw his passport out and refused to sign it, but he passed it through the customs counter next to him. So in other countries, don’t start a conflict. If they don’t give it to you, ask why or Change the counter. You can always get out, but be sure to remember that it is illegal to charge a tip at customs.

Secondly, customs tipping is also a habit developed by a large number of Chinese group tours for convenience. As a result, this culture is only for Chinese people and Western guests never dare. You can also get off the plane and follow the Western guests and queue behind them.

Third, try to avoid group tourists traveling together. For group tours, the tour guide prepares tips for guests to pay in order to save trouble. Try to leave the country as early as possible on the same flight. Customs is not very good at handling it, and there will be a bunch of people behind you waiting to leave the country.

Anyway, there are many ways. Generally, customs can collect tips and have experience. Young people are not so good at it. They basically need to travel in groups, especially elderly immigrants, because they do not understand English and are afraid of getting into trouble in a foreign country. So always remember that it is illegal to charge any tip at customs. You don’t need to be afraid. At worst, ignore it. If you are unlucky, you can change the counter and leave the country.

I wish you a pleasant trip

In fact, tour guides are used to tipping at customs. Some people are willing to tip in order to pass quickly, and it becomes a habit over time. I have been to most countries in Southeast Asia, and I have never encountered anyone asking for tips from individual tourists. I have also been to Nha Trang, Vietnam, and I have never encountered customs asking for tips. What I saw with my own eyes is that when going through customs in Cambodia, it is an unwritten rule for group tours. The customs will say in Chinese that a tip of 10 yuan is given to all tourists in the group, including me and the European and American individual tourists behind. At that time, the customs did not mention tipping at all. It was obvious that the group tour had already reached a consensus with the customs to pay tips in order to pass the customs smoothly.

As for Thailand, there have been many customs incidents in Thailand that failed to ask for tips, resulting in conflicts. Since the video was leaked, Thailand’s Customs Entry Department in Bangkok now explicitly prohibits the collection of tips. Therefore, it is illegal to ask for tips. Secondly, tourists who want to clear customs quickly, mainly traveling in groups, have developed bad habits at customs. If they encounter a situation where they are asked for tips, they can completely refuse.

When I traveled from Tibet to Nepal by land, I had to check my luggage more than a dozen times along the way. Many border inspectors would want something they liked, but it was understandable if you didn’t want to give it to them. I won’t force you to give.

I traveled from Dongxing to Vietnam last month and no one asked me for a tip. When I returned to Laos in 2017, I was probably the only one on the bus who didn’t give it to me. I spoke French directly, and the customs stamped it after looking at it. Others gave 20,000 yuan, equivalent to RMB 16, which was all encouraged by the bus driver. When I entered Laos from Thailand, the customs didn’t ask anyone for a tip.

I have been an outbound tour leader for nearly ten years. I have been to Vietnam and Cambodia more times than I can count.

Before passing customs, you must first have complete information and procedures! The information must be complete and do not give people any clues. Nowadays, due to the increasing awareness of the Chinese people and negotiations at the national level, neither Vietnam nor Cambodia dares to "force" tips from the Chinese people anymore.

While preparing all the information, I and my team will tell the group members that there is no need to worry about the situation at the customs. At most, they can ignore it. However, it is absolutely not allowed to use a camera to take pictures and collect evidence. It will violate the customs regulations and will be punished instead. Got the handle. Don't conflict, just spend some time and you'll get over it. There are also many customers who think it's okay to tip a little. That's a personal wish. Originally, tipping should be given if you like it, and if you don't like it, don't give it. There is no right or wrong for customers. What is wrong is "forced" asking. Since the last incident of beatings at Vietnamese customs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has put a lot of pressure on them, and now they dare not force it. Even if he says "RMB, RMB, tip, tip" and you refuse, he will still have to let you go.

As for why tipping is only for Chinese people and is caused by tour groups, I have an opinion and there are different opinions that can be discussed.

Why don’t other countries get tipped? There are two main types of tourists from other countries in Southeast Asia: one is the ten ASEAN countries, and the other is relatively developed distant countries. They are basically visa-free or are English-speaking countries. In the early days, Southeast Asian customs did not have Chinese, but they had English, so they were visa-free. Both countries and English-speaking countries can pass smoothly. In China, before there were tourist groups, there were a large number of people going south to do business. Many of these people did not know English or the local language, could not handle entry and exit procedures, and even carried many items that were not in compliance with the regulations, so there was a problem of "taking money". The concept of clearing levels quickly without being embarrassed. Today's tour groups do recommend tipping in order not to delay the entire group waiting for some people. However, the situation of the team is indeed different from that of the independent travel. It does not matter how long the independent travel is delayed. The team will make more people wait, and there are many elderly people who are not very strong and cannot afford to wait. So there is no right or wrong.

Let me say: This is a product of the times. With the improvement of people’s education level (everyone can go through immigration procedures), the increase in the flow of people entering and exiting, the changes in public consciousness and the Under the negotiation of our Ministry of Foreign Affairs, one day, this phenomenon will disappear from the stage of history!

Hello, Xiaoyu will answer your question in Vietnam.

Nha Trang is a popular city for Chinese tourists. It is known as the most beautiful seaside city in Vietnam. It also has exciting and fun mud baths. The only drawback is that Nha Trang customs collects tips.

Regarding not wanting to tip the customs, Xiaoyu would like to share his personal opinion. If you don’t like it, don’t complain.

1. If there is no problem with your passport and visa, and you are not carrying illegal luggage, you don’t need to tip at all. Just refuse to tip. The customs can’t do anything. It’s just delaying some time. As long as you stay calm and don’t do anything. Excessive behavior is enough. Xiaoyu has entered the customs many times and has never been asked for a tip.

2. When queuing up at customs, stay away from tour groups, because tour groups are more likely to be charged tips.

3. Before queuing up to enter the customs, check the customs officers first. Try to choose female customs officers, as the chances of receiving tips are lower.

4. Look for customs officers who can clear customs quickly, and queue up in teams with more European and American independent travelers.

Xiaoyu introduces and shares more authentic Vietnamese customs in Vietnam. If you want to know about Vietnam visa application, travel guide, Vietnamese brides, specialties and food, etc., please follow Xiaoyu in Vietnam, leave a message or private message for consultation, Xiaoyu will reply one by one.

Just insist on not giving it, he can’t do anything to you. The main reason is that the Chinese are slaves. When you see others in trouble, you will give it to yourself. Anyway, I won’t give it to you. You want Slow down, just slow down

I think Vietnam is okay, not as rampant as Cambodia’s customs. First of all, remember that customs are not allowed to charge tips. If they have this concept, they would not dare to charge tips.

I will analyze it in detail below.

First of all, I didn’t encounter them when I was leaving the country in Da Nang, Vietnam, but when I met them in Cambodia, they even said in Chinese that the tip was 10 RMB or two US dollars. I pretended not to understand, but even though the customs kept telling me, there was nothing they could do but let me go without paying attention.

There was an old man who started a conflict with the customs. The customs did throw his passport out and refused to sign him, but he passed by the customs counter next to him, so in other countries, don’t start a conflict first, in case he doesn’t get it. If you go, you can ask why or change the counter. You can always get out, but be sure to remember that it is illegal to charge a tip at customs.

Since customs tipping is also a habit developed by a large number of Chinese group tours, it is convenient to stuff money into trouble. As a result, this culture is only for Chinese people and Western guests never dare. You can also get off the plane and follow the Western guests and queue behind them.

Finally, try to avoid traveling abroad with group tourists. In order to save trouble, the tour guide prepares tips for guests to pay for group tours. Try to leave the country as early as possible on the same flight. Customs won't be able to deal with it, and there will be a bunch of people behind you waiting to leave the country.

Anyway, there are many ways. Generally, the customs can collect tips and have experience. Young people are not very good at it. They basically need to travel in groups, especially elderly immigrants, because they do not understand English and are afraid of getting into trouble in a foreign country. So always remember it is illegal to charge any customs tip.

The above answers to this question are all my personal opinions. I hope you can point out any shortcomings.

The country is out of the country, why do you still care about this little tip? A little consumption can save unnecessary trouble. Is this a compelling question worth asking? At first glance, you seem to be a picky person in life.

Be generous when you go out and be calculating at home.