The number of foreigners in Ho Chi Minh City has decreased by 50 percent year-on-year to about 60,000 as of early December due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to statistics.

The information was announced during a meeting organized by the Ho Chi Minh City Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs on Wednesday, the Vietnam News Agency reported.

More than 800,000 foreigners, including approximately 80,000 overseas Vietnamese, have arrived at Tan Son Nhat International Airport in the southern metropolis so far this year, Senior Lieutenant Colonel Vo Chien Thang, deputy head of the city’s immigration office, said at the gathering.

The number of foreign arrivals in Ho Chi Minh City in 2019 was over four million, including 400,000 overseas Vietnamese, Thang continued.

About 60,000 foreigners currently stay in the southern metropolis, down by 50 percent compared to the same period last year, the official said, adding that the number is expected to continue decreasing in the coming time.

According to a representative of the Southern Airports Authority, the COVID-19 pandemic has directly impacted aviation operations at Tan Son Nhat.

As of November 15, the number of flights to and from the airdrome was 153,654, down by 49.39 percent year-on-year.

The number of passengers on these flights was 20.8 million, deceasing by 50.61 percent compared to 2019.

The number of international flights to and from Tan Son Nhat in 2020 reduced by 65,000 compared to 2019.

In 2020, more than 17,000 international flights arrived at the airport, carrying over 1.2 million passengers including stranded Vietnamese citizens, experts, and diplomats.

At the meeting, competent authorities also answered questions from representatives of overseas Vietnamese communities regarding immigration and quarantine procedures, investment policies, and dual nationality policies.

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