Who has to pay the $19 camera fee at Ho Chi Minh City's Independence Palace?

The Independence Palace, also known as the Reunification Hall, introduced a new photography service fee structure on August 1.

Under the new fee structure, a VND500,000 fee applies to each camera or equivalent device used for commercial photography at the palace.

The new fee initially caused concern among visitors who regularly bring personal cameras to the landmark to take photos.

Nguyen Mai Linh, a student at Ho Chi Minh City University of Education, said she and her friends often bring cameras to the Independence Palace to take photos in ao dai on holidays and weekends.

Her group mainly takes photos for personal use rather than commercial purposes.

She said they might consider leaving their cameras at home and using phones instead if they had to pay VND500,000 simply to take a few photos.

Tran Hoang Nam, 25, an office worker in Dien Hong Ward, also regularly takes his camera to locations with attractive architecture to photograph friends.

He said he was concerned after hearing about the new fee, particularly if it applied to people taking personal photos.

Nam said he believed there should be a clear distinction between visitors taking photos for themselves and professional crews entering the site to provide photography services.

Fee does not apply to regular visitors

Tran Huu Phuoc, acting director of the Reunification Hall, said the VND500,000 fee was introduced to regulate photographers and studios that enter the Independence Palace to conduct paid photo shoots.

It does not apply to ordinary visitors.

According to Phuoc, professional photographers and crews, including those shooting wedding and artistic photography, have frequently used the site as a backdrop for commercial work.

In the past, many of them simply purchased regular admission tickets like other visitors while using the heritage site's facilities and space for income-generating activities.

Some photographers enter the site two or three times a week, or even daily, to work with clients, Phuoc said.

He said charging a separate service fee for commercial use of the site's space was intended to ensure fairness.

Security guards at the Independence Palace are experienced in distinguishing visitors taking souvenir photos from photographers and crews conducting commercial work, he said.

Tourists, families and groups of friends who bring cameras while visiting and take a few souvenir photos will not be charged the additional fee, according to Phuoc.

Regular visitors will continue to pay the applicable admission fee and will not have to pay an additional VND500,000 simply for bringing a personal camera to take souvenir photos.

The VND500,000-per-camera fee applies when equipment is used for photography services covered by the palace's regulations.

Fees vary by type of shoot

Under the new fee structure, photography fees vary depending on the type of shoot and the areas used.

For a camera or equivalent device subject to the fee, the charge is VND500,000 per camera. 

The fee allows the equipment to be used both outdoors and inside the palace and is valid until 6:00 pm on the same day.

An outdoor photography package costs VND1.5 million ($57.4) for a crew of up to eight people, including models and crew members.

It covers only outdoor areas and is intended for wedding, artistic and couple photography.

Crews using this package may bring cameras, video cameras, lenses and compact tripods. LED lights, suitable supplementary lighting and small reflectors are also permitted.

The package includes access to a makeup room and is valid until 6:00 pm on the day of purchase.

For shoots covering both outdoor and indoor areas, the fee is VND3 million ($114.8) for a crew of up to eight people.

Inside the palace, crews are not allowed to use light stands or reflector stands. Only handheld supplementary lights are permitted, while flash photography is prohibited to protect artifacts and avoid disturbing other visitors.

The Independence Palace also offers a monthly photography pass costing VND10 million ($382.5). The pass is for crews of up to eight people, is valid only for outdoor areas, lasts 30 days from the date of purchase and can be used up to 10 times during that period.

Those planning group photography for schools or companies, as well as commercial projects such as music videos, TV commercials, high-end fashion shoots and lookbooks, are required to contact the site's management directly for advice.

The Independence Palace requires models and crew members to dress appropriately and prohibits inappropriate poses or behavior that does not suit the heritage site's setting.

Setting up scenes indoors or outdoors and using drones are also prohibited.

Before the new fee schedule took effect, the Independence Palace had already charged fees for certain professional photography activities, including wedding, fashion and other commercial photo shoots.