Spokesperson for the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang (photo: VNA)

Starting Wednesday, the HKSAR will relax the visa policy in respect of employment for Vietnamese talents and the criteria for Vietnamese applying for "multiple-entry visas" for business and travel, HKSAR Chief Executive John Lee said Wednesday.

At a regular press conference on Thursday, the spokesperson for the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang said Vietnam welcomes and highly appreciates the decision of Hong Kong (China) to relax visa policies for Vietnamese citizens.

Vietnam and Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (China), are important economic partners of each other. Simplifying visa procedures will bring practical benefits to the two economies as well as the people and businesses of both sides.

In recent times, in meetings with partners, including Hong Kong partners, Vietnam has proposed to consider and simplify visa procedures or exempt entry visas for Vietnamese citizens in order to increase trade, travel, and people-to-people exchanges, contributing to promoting friendly and cooperative relations between Vietnam and its partners.