Cambodia Visa for Australian Dual Citizens: 2026 Same-Passport-Rule Guide

AU + Vietnam: why the Vietnamese passport is not an option for Cambodia

AU+Vietnam is the largest dual-citizen cohort in Australia after AU+UK, and the question we field weekly is identical — can I use my Vietnamese passport for the short hop from Ho Chi Minh City to Phnom Penh? The answer in 2026 is no, not via the eVisa, and that single fact almost always pushes AU+Vietnam duals onto the Australian passport for the whole Cambodia leg.

Cambodia's official eVisa portal does not accept Vietnamese passport holders. The nationality dropdown has a long list of eligible countries; Vietnam is not on it. Vietnamese nationals who want to enter Cambodia must apply through the Royal Embassy of Cambodia in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City, submit physical documents, and wait 5-7 business days for a passport-sticker visa. From Australia, the equivalent embassy is the Cambodia embassy in Canberra, but it only handles applications for AU-resident foreign nationals — see the Cambodia Embassy Canberra guide for the full embassy-route process.

For an AU+Vietnam dual sitting in Melbourne or Sydney planning a Vietnam-then-Cambodia trip, the simplest path is Vietnamese passport into Vietnam, then Australian passport from Vietnam to Cambodia and onwards. You apply for the Vietnam eVisa on the Vietnamese passport (or use it visa-free as a Vietnamese national), then apply for the Cambodia eVisa on the Australian passport. The two visa records sit on two different passports, but neither leg involves a switch mid-country, so the rule is preserved. The Vietnam-Cambodia combo for Australians guide walks through the practical logistics of that pairing.

AU + India, AU + UK, AU + China — the practical notes

The three remaining major AU dual-citizen pairs each have a small twist worth knowing, even though the recommendation (use the Australian passport) is the same for all of them.

AU + India

Indian passport holders are eligible for the Cambodia eVisa at the same $80 USD Tourist tier as Aussies, so on paper either passport works. In practice, two factors push AU+India duals onto the Australian passport. Indian passport holders sometimes hit additional airline-system checks even when the Cambodia visa is approved; the Australian passport avoids that friction. The second factor is the OCI card — Aussie-Indian duals often hold OCI rather than full Indian citizenship, in which case the question is moot. OCI is not a passport; use your Australian passport.

AU + UK

The AU+UK pair is the cleanest of all six — both passports use the same Cambodia eVisa portal, same $80 USD fee, same 3 business days, same documents. The decision usually comes down to which passport you fly out of Australia on, since that is what DFAT records as your departure. Most AU+UK duals living in Australia use the Australian passport simply because they boarded the flight on it. If you happen to be flying via the UK before Cambodia, the UK passport has a marginal case (since you'd be re-entering the UK on it), but it is genuinely a coin-flip — the How to Apply for the Cambodia eVisa from Australia guide covers the practical form-filling steps and applies to either passport.

AU + China (PRC)

PRC passport holders use the same eVisa portal as Aussies, but the fee tier runs slightly differently — there is a small surcharge on PRC-issued passports that brings the all-in cost up by a few USD. The recommendation for AU+China duals is still the Australian passport, not because of the fee delta, but because Chinese passport holders sometimes face additional bilateral checks that the Australian passport does not trigger. HK SAR passport holders use the eVisa at the same tier as Aussies; AU+HK SAR is less common in our caseload than AU+PRC.

Returning home: DFAT exit record, customs, and AU re-entry

The dual-citizen rule for Cambodia continues all the way back to Australia. Whichever passport you used to leave Australia, DFAT recorded your departure on that passport. When you re-enter Australia, SmartGate or the manual booth needs to see the same passport — or it will process you cleanly but flag the inconsistency on your travel record.

If you entered Cambodia on your Australian passport, used it to exit Cambodia, and re-enter Australia on it, the loop is closed and the record is clean. This is the default we recommend for five of the six AU dual pairs, and it is the path of least resistance for everyone involved. DFAT has a complete record, your AU customs declaration matches the passport you departed on, and there are no hanging threads.

If you entered Cambodia on a foreign passport (legitimately — say you are AU+UK and chose the UK passport for the Cambodia leg), there is a wrinkle on the AU side. DFAT may not have an exit record for that trip, because you departed Australia on your Australian passport but Cambodian Immigration only saw the UK one. It is rare and almost never causes practical problems, but the Smartraveller Dual Nationals page flags it as something to be aware of, particularly if you are also dealing with consular registration or emergency contact records.

On the customs side, the Incoming Passenger Card (the yellow form they hand out on the plane) asks for the passport number you are presenting on arrival. Use the passport you are about to hand over at SmartGate — that's it. Cambodia does not appear anywhere on the form unless you are declaring goods bought there, and the form does not ask about other citizenships you hold. The Smartraveller Cambodia advisory is the canonical reference for the rest of the trip-side rules.

Edge cases within the dual-citizen space

Five smaller situations that come up often enough to need a quick paragraph each.

• Triple citizens (AU + UK + India is the most common combo we see): the rule does not change — pick one passport and use it for entry and exit. Most AU triples use the Australian passport for the same reasons as AU+UK and AU+India duals.
• Children of dual-citizen parents: each child needs their own Cambodia eVisa under their own passport. If the child has only one passport, use that one. The eVisa is per passport, not per family.
• Recently-naturalised Aussies on their first international trip: you can use either your original passport or your new Australian passport, but the new AU passport is almost always smoother. Make sure it has 6 months of validity from your Cambodia arrival date.
• Aussie-born duals who have never used the second passport: the second passport works fine for Cambodia, but the Australian passport is the safer choice — fewer unknowns, no chance of an unexpected gate check.
• Stateless or refugee-document holders with AU citizenship: use the Australian passport. Refugee Convention and stateless travel documents are not accepted by the Cambodia eVisa portal in 2026.

Pulling it together

One rule, six common pairs, one consistent answer. Pick the passport, apply on it, enter on it, exit on it. For five of the six pairs the Australian passport is the easier choice; for AU+NZ either works equally well. If your situation does not fit cleanly, our Aussie-timezone team will walk it with you. The Cambodia eVisa Documents Required guide and the Edge Cases for Australians guide cover the surrounding logistics, and the apply flow is ready when you are.

Next steps and related reading for Australians: apply for your Cambodia eVisa when you are ready to lodge, bookmark our Cambodia visa hub for Australian citizens as the single canonical reference, skim the FAQ on Cambodia visa eligibility for quick answers, and use our glossary of Cambodia visa terms to decode any acronym in this guide.