Australian tourist Lynne Johnston was left £378 out of pocket after a spelling mistake on her visa prevented her from boarding a flight to Vietnam. The incident occurred at the airport when officials noticed that her surname had been misspelled as “Johnstonton” instead of “Johnston” on the e-visa she had obtained through the official Vietnamese government website.
Ms Johnston, from Geelong West, Victoria, had carefully entered her personal details and received the visa a week later. She said nothing appeared amiss when she checked the document. However, upon arrival at the airport, authorities flagged the error and told her she could not fly unless the name matched her passport exactly.
In a hurry to make her flight, Ms Johnston was forced to pay for an emergency visa at a Flight Centre counter, costing the equivalent of £378. She noted that another traveller at the counter had a similar issue, having omitted her middle name from the visa, and was also left $500 poorer.
Ms Johnston warned fellow travellers to thoroughly check their visas, saying: “Don’t just glance at your visa and throw it in with your passport. Go over it carefully. You may be up-to-date with scams, but don’t think you are so clever that something else won’t trip you up.”
