🔄 Last updated: 13 July 2026
You board the bus to Moc Bai at 5 a.m.
In your bag: USD 6,000 in cash — because you just withdrew it, because your bank card doesn't work here, because you plan to buy something on the way back.
You're not smuggling. You're not hiding anything. You simply didn't know you had to declare it.
That is the only thing standing between you and a fine of up to VND 50 million.
📌 FOUR NUMBERS TO REMEMBER
Only four. Remember them and this will never happen to you.
| # | Number | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| 1️⃣ | USD 5,000 | Carrying foreign cash above this → you must declare it to Customs |
| 2️⃣ | VND 15,000,000 | Carrying Vietnamese dong in cash above this → you must declare it |
| 3️⃣ | 300 GRAMS | Carrying gold jewellery / artistic gold at or above this → you must declare it |
| 4️⃣ | 1 July 2026 | The date Decree 169/2026 took effect, with new penalties |
Circular 15/2011/TT-NHNN (State Bank of Vietnam): every individual entering or exiting Vietnam through an international border gate on a passport carrying more than USD 5,000 in foreign cash (or the equivalent in other currencies) or VND 15 million in Vietnamese dong must declare it to border Customs.
Circular 11/2014/TT-NHNN (State Bank of Vietnam): Vietnamese individuals AND FOREIGN individuals exiting or entering on a passport carrying gold jewellery or artistic gold with a total weight of 300g (three hundred grams) or more must declare it to Customs.
⚠️ Note: the declaration thresholds have NOT changed.
Decree 169/2026 did not raise the thresholds. It changed the PENALTIES for crossing them without declaring.
The thresholds remain USD 5,000 / VND 15 million / 300g of gold.
🔴 THE FACT ALMOST NOBODY MENTIONS
The penalty for LEAVING is far heavier than the penalty for ARRIVING.
Most news summaries merge the two tables and you never see the difference. Here it is:
🛬 ENTERING — failing to declare / declaring incorrectly
A person entering on a passport (or an equivalent travel document or laissez-passer) who fails to declare or declares incorrectly the foreign cash, Vietnamese dong cash, or gold carried above the permitted threshold:
- VND 1,000,000 – 2,000,000 — where the value is VND 5m to under 50m
- VND 5,000,000 – 10,000,000 — where the value is VND 50m to under 100m
- VND 10,000,000 – 20,000,000 — where the value is VND 100m or more, and no criminal liability arises
Ceiling: VND 20 million.
🛫 EXITING — failing to declare / declaring incorrectly
A person exiting who fails to declare or declares incorrectly the foreign cash, Vietnamese dong cash, or gold carried above the threshold:
- VND 1 – 3 million — where the value is VND 5m to under 30m
- …
- A maximum penalty of up to VND 50 million where the value is VND 100 million or more and the case does not reach the threshold for criminal prosecution
Ceiling: VND 50 million.
💥 SAME MONEY. SAME MISTAKE. 2.5× THE FINE — SIMPLY BECAUSE YOU WERE GOING OUT INSTEAD OF COMING IN.
⚠️ On the middle bands for exit: press summaries do not cite the intermediate bands consistently. We won't guess. If you need the precise figure for a specific situation, check the corresponding article of the full text of Decree 169/2026/NĐ-CP, or ask Customs at the border gate.
🚨 WHY THIS MATTERS MORE TO YOU THAN TO A TOURIST
If you're doing a visa run or border run — you are EXITING.
You cross at Moc Bai. Or Bo Y. Or Lao Bao.
Your outbound leg is the expensive leg.
And you are quite likely carrying cash, because:
- 💵 You must pay for the Cambodian visa at the border (~USD 35 depending on nationality — cash)
- 💳 Your home bank card may not work in Vietnam
- 🇷🇺 If you use a Russian / MIR / UnionPay card, you're effectively forced to live on cash
- 🏠 You just withdrew money for rent, school fees, or medical bills
None of this is illegal. But if you're over the threshold and don't declare it, you're still fined.
🛑 And LAND border gates count
This applies at EVERY international border gate — not just airports.
Moc Bai is an international border gate. Bo Y is. Lao Bao is.
Plenty of people believe "nobody checks on the land route." That is an assumption, not a rule.
→ 7 mistakes that wreck a visa run
🔔 A trip rarely goes wrong for just ONE reason
People stopped at the border seldom made a single mistake. They made three at once: a visa about to expire, a passport short on validity, and undeclared cash over the limit.
You can't control Customs. You can control your calendar.
👉 Turn on free visa expiry reminders with Visa Tracker — free, no account needed.
✅ WHAT TO DO — it's very simple
🔹 If you're UNDER the threshold
Nothing to do. No form, no procedure.
🔹 If you're OVER the threshold
📝 DECLARE IT. That's all.
Declaring is not a confession. Declaring does not mean your money is confiscated.
Carrying cash above the threshold is LEGAL. NOT DECLARING it is the offence.
Go to the Customs desk at the border gate, ask for the customs declaration form, write down the amount / weight, hand it in.
Five minutes. Saves VND 50 million.
🔹 If you're not sure whether you're over
Declare anyway.
Over-declaring: no penalty. Under-declaring: up to VND 50 million.
This is not a hard decision.
💡 The three easiest traps to fall into
🥇 Wedding jewellery. A Korean, Indian or Middle Eastern family travelling with gold jewellery can easily exceed 300g — and nobody thinks of that as "carrying gold across a border." The law does.
💵 A large withdrawal before the trip. You take out VND 150 million to pay a year's rent, then do your visa run on the way. You just crossed the threshold tenfold.
🪙 Gold bars and raw gold. ⚠️ The rules for gold bars and raw gold DIFFER from those for jewellery and artistic gold, and are stricter. The 300g threshold above applies to jewellery / artistic gold. If you are carrying gold bars or raw gold, ask Customs directly BEFORE you go to the border. Do not infer it from this article.
⚠️ Common misconceptions
❌ "Carrying a lot of cash is illegal." → FALSE. Carrying cash above the threshold is legal. What's penalised is failing to declare or declaring falsely.
❌ "On the land route (Moc Bai) you don't need to declare." → FALSE. The rule applies at international border gates — including land crossings.
❌ "I'm only out for a few hours, so it's not really an exit." → IT IS. A border run is an exit plus an entry. You pass Customs twice.
❌ "The thresholds went up under Decree 169." → NO. Decree 169/2026 changed the PENALTIES, not the DECLARATION THRESHOLDS. Those remain USD 5,000 / VND 15 million / 300g of gold.
❌ "Entry and exit penalties are the same." → NO. Exit: ceiling VND 50m. Entry: ceiling VND 20m. A 2.5× difference.
❌ "Jewellery I'm actually wearing doesn't count." → CHECK. The rule refers to the total weight of gold jewellery / artistic gold carried. Don't assume — ask Customs.
❌ "I read an article about Decree 128/2020." → DECREE 128/2020 WAS ABOLISHED on 1 July 2026. Any article citing it for customs penalties is out of date.
→ 7 pieces of information that are now outdated
Sources
- Decree 169/2026/NĐ-CP — issued by the Government on 15 May 2026, on administrative penalties in the field of customs; 4 chapters, 40 articles; in force from 1 July 2026; abolishes Decree 128/2020/NĐ-CP (19 Oct 2020) and Article 2 of Decree 102/2021/NĐ-CP (16 Nov 2021)
- Circular 15/2011/TT-NHNN — State Bank of Vietnam: declaration thresholds of USD 5,000 in foreign cash (or equivalent) / VND 15,000,000
- Circular 11/2014/TT-NHNN — State Bank of Vietnam: Vietnamese and foreign individuals carrying gold jewellery / artistic gold of 300g or more must declare it to Customs
- Government Portal (
baochinhphu.vn·xaydungchinhsach.chinhphu.vn) — publication of Decree 169/2026/NĐ-CP - Customs Department — Ministry of Finance
Note: This article compiles publicly available information as of the update date and is NOT LEGAL ADVICE. Penalties depend on the value of the goods, the direction of travel, the type of asset and the specific circumstances; serious cases may attract criminal liability, not merely an administrative fine. The rules for gold bars, raw gold, other precious metals and gemstones differ from those for jewellery and artistic gold.
BEFORE CARRYING CASH OR GOLD ACROSS A BORDER GATE, CONFIRM DIRECTLY WITH THE CUSTOMS AUTHORITY AT THAT GATE. Do not rely on this article — and do not rely on whatever someone on the bus tells you.
ViEntry is a technology platform connecting you with independent service operators. ViEntry is not a customs authority, not an immigration authority, and does not provide any service relating to moving cash or assets across borders. We wrote this because visa-run and border-run customers cross international border gates and often carry cash — and they deserve to know beforehand, not afterwards.
Not sure whether your cash or gold is over the limit? Message us BEFORE your trip — and if we're not sure, we'll tell you plainly to ask Customs. Telegram @vientry_support · WhatsApp +84 963 091 001 · Hotline 0963 091 001
