Cat Ba Beyond · Tips

How to Pay by QR in Vietnam and Minimise Fees with Moreta Pay

QR payment is part of everyday life in Vietnam. Cafés, restaurants, hotels, tour operators and shops often display a code at the counter instead of using a traditional card terminal. For international travellers, the difficulty is that many local payment systems normally require a Vietnamese bank account.

Moreta Pay provides another option. Eligible travellers can fund a digital wallet, scan supported Vietnamese merchant QR codes and pay in Vietnamese dong without opening a local bank account. The process is simple, but obtaining the lowest possible cost requires choosing the right funding method and checking every fee before confirming.

Fees and features below were checked against Moreta’s published information on 9 October 2026 and may change. Always review the current terms and the payment screen inside the application.

How does Moreta Pay work in Vietnam?

Moreta holds the user’s wallet balance in US dollars. When you scan a supported merchant QR code, enter an amount in Vietnamese dong and approve the payment, the application converts the required balance and sends the merchant the local payment.

According to Moreta’s official Vietnam instructions, the basic process is:

1. Create an eligible account and complete verification.
2. Add money to the Moreta wallet.
3. Open the QR scanner inside the application.
4. Scan the merchant’s QR code.
5. Enter the price in Vietnamese dong if it is not filled automatically.
6. Review the merchant, amount, exchange rate and fee.
7. Confirm the transaction.

Moreta warns that a QR payment is final after confirmation, so the amount should always be verified with the merchant first.

What does a Vietnam QR payment cost?

Moreta currently lists a 1.5% fee on each QR payment. The fee should appear on the review screen before the transaction is confirmed.

For example, a payment equivalent to USD 20 would incur a Moreta payment fee equivalent to USD 0.30. This simplified example does not include any cost previously incurred when funding or converting money into the wallet.

The 1.5% charge is therefore only one part of the total cost. A traveller should consider:

• The QR payment fee
• The wallet funding fee
• Any currency-conversion cost
• Fees charged by the sending bank
• Possible withdrawal costs for unused funds

Moreta states that it has no monthly subscription and shows the payment fee before confirmation.

How can you minimise the funding fee?

Funding the wallet by card is convenient, but it may not be the lowest-cost method. Moreta currently lists a 2.5% fee for card, Apple Pay and Google Pay deposits; its deposit-fee help page also lists a USD 1.50 minimum for card deposits.

If you add money by card and later make a QR payment, you could pay both the 2.5% funding fee and the 1.5% payment fee, before considering any applicable currency conversion. This does not make the service unusable, but it means convenience has a measurable cost.

Moreta currently lists several bank-transfer options:

The threshold and fee details are listed on Moreta’s Vietnam payment-method page. Availability depends on the user’s country, eligibility and application version. Crypto introduces separate market, network and operational risks, so “free deposit” should not be interpreted as risk-free or automatically cheaper.

For many eligible users, funding the wallet through a supported bank transfer above the applicable free threshold may reduce the top-up cost. Check whether your own bank charges an outgoing-transfer fee before deciding.

Fund the wallet before arriving in Vietnam

Do not wait until a restaurant bill is due to create and fund the account. Verification can take time, and some bank transfers are not instant.

Set up Moreta before departure, complete identity verification and test the account with a modest amount. This allows you to resolve technical or eligibility problems while you still have access to your usual banking services.

Funding in advance also avoids repeated card deposits. Several small card top-ups can be less efficient than one carefully calculated transfer.

However, do not load far more than you expect to spend. Withdrawing unused money may involve a separate fee and processing conditions. Moreta’s published withdrawal charges vary by destination.

Consider the currency-conversion cost

The wallet balance is held in US dollars. If you deposit euros, pounds or Canadian dollars through supported local transfer methods, Moreta converts the funds into USD.

Its deposit-conversion guidance says these conversions use a live mid-market rate plus a bank spread of approximately 0.6%–0.75%, which can vary. The foreign-purchase exchange-rate guidance also describes a variable spread.

When paying in Vietnam, review the VND amount, exchange rate and final wallet deduction shown in the application. The cheapest funding method is not necessarily the one with the smallest visible deposit fee if it produces a less favourable total conversion.

Compare the final amount you will spend—not one percentage viewed in isolation.

How do you make a QR payment correctly?

Ask the seller to show you the merchant payment QR. Open Moreta’s scanner rather than using the ordinary camera application.

After scanning:

• Check the displayed merchant name.
• Confirm that the amount is in VND.
• Count the zeros carefully.
• Check whether the price was entered automatically.
• Review the exchange rate and fee.
• Confirm the total wallet deduction.
• Ask the seller to verify receipt.

Vietnamese prices can contain many zeros. Entering VND 1,000,000 instead of VND 100,000 is an expensive mistake, and Moreta states that confirmed QR payments are final.

Do not hand an unlocked phone to a stranger or allow another person to approve the payment for you. Use biometric or device security where available.

Why might a QR code fail?

Not every QR code in Vietnam is necessarily supported. Moreta’s troubleshooting guidance distinguishes merchant QR codes from personal receive-only codes; the latter may not work through Moreta.

If a payment fails:

1. Confirm that the application is updated.
2. Check the internet connection.
3. Verify that the wallet contains enough money for both the price and fee.
4. Ask whether the displayed code is a merchant QR.
5. Request another supported payment method.
6. Use in-app support if the problem continues.

Do not keep approving repeated attempts without checking whether an earlier transaction succeeded.

Is Moreta always the cheapest option?

No payment method is cheapest for every traveller or every purchase. Moreta’s QR feature may be less expensive than a foreign card carrying high transaction and exchange-rate charges, but a fee-free travel card or cash obtained at a favourable rate could cost less in another situation.

The best comparison includes the full cost:

Moreta total cost = funding fee + conversion cost + 1.5% QR payment fee + any bank charges

Compare that result with:

Card total cost = card exchange-rate margin + foreign transaction fee + merchant surcharge

For cash, consider ATM fees, your bank’s withdrawal fee, exchange rates and the inconvenience or risk of carrying large amounts.

The real benefit of Moreta may be access and convenience rather than an absolute guarantee of the lowest price. It enables eligible visitors to use supported local merchant QR codes where an international card may not be accepted.

Keep a backup payment method

Moreta should not be your only way to pay. Internet access can fail, a merchant may display an unsupported personal QR, the wallet may have insufficient funds or the application may experience a technical issue.

Carry:

• A reasonable amount of Vietnamese cash
• A physical debit or credit card
• Access to a second funding source
• Your bank’s emergency contact information

Use cash for vendors whose QR codes are unsupported and keep your card available for hotels, larger restaurants or emergencies.

The simplest low-fee strategy

For an eligible traveller, a practical approach is:

1. Download Moreta before travelling.
2. Complete verification at home.
3. Estimate your likely QR spending.
4. Compare the available funding methods.
5. Use an eligible low-cost bank transfer where appropriate.
6. Avoid repeated card top-ups carrying a 2.5% fee.
7. Keep the wallet balance modest to reduce withdrawal needs.
8. Scan only supported merchant QR codes.
9. Check the merchant, VND amount, rate and 1.5% fee.
10. Retain cash and a card as backups.

This approach minimises avoidable costs within Moreta, but it does not prove that Moreta is the cheapest payment product for every visitor. Fees, thresholds, supported codes and eligibility can change, so the application’s live review screen should always be treated as the final source before payment.

Set up and verify Moreta before departure, compare funding methods and review every VND amount and fee before confirming your payment in Vietnam.

Check Moreta’s current Vietnam information