Hanoi, (IANS) : The Vietnamese government has decided to continue waiving visas for citizens of Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain for one year starting July 1, Vietnam’s tourism watchdog said on Tuesday.

Earlier, Vietnam had waived visas for people from these five countries for one year from July 2015, and extended the period for another year, said the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism.

Vietnam hosted nearly 5.3 million international arrivals in the first five months of 2017, up 29.6 per cent against the same period in 2016. The country received 873,400 European visitors, up 23.7 percent, Xinhua news agency reported.

In the five-month period, Vietnam welcomed 126,400 visitors from Britain, 123,600 from France, and 94,200 from Germany, posting year-on-year rises of 12.7 per cent, 10.1 per cent and 17.4 per cent, respectively, said the administration.