Regulations Foreign Workers in Vietnam Should Be Aware Of: Foreign Employment Regulations (Obtaining a Work Permit)
Attorney admitted in Japan and Vietnam
Kazuya Mori, Senior Advisor (Japanese Law) to the same firm
NEXORA LAW FIRM Managing Partner
Vietnamese Attorney
Mediator, Bankruptcy Trustee, and Outside Statutory Auditor
Table of Contents
01 - Requirements for Working in Vietnam
02 - Foreign Workers Not Required to Obtain a Work Permit
03 - Procedures Required Where a Work Permit Is Necessary
A Vietnamese attorney provides an accessible explanation of the latest laws and practical procedures (work permits, secondment procedures, and hiring requirements) for foreign nationals working in Vietnam. This article covers trends in the Ministry of Labor's guidance and points companies should be aware of, and introduces measures to minimize the risk of legal violations. NEXORA LAWFIRM has extensive experience supporting Japanese companies with matters relating to expatriates, secondees, and the employment of foreign nationals, providing integrated support covering work permits, license acquisition, internal rule-setting, and immigration matters — with practical, hands-on advice grounded in real-world operations.
01 - Requirements for Working in Vietnam
A local employer in Vietnam is not free to hire foreign workers without restriction. Vietnam imposes a restriction requiring priority to be given to hiring Vietnamese nationals, in order to protect Vietnamese employment. Foreign workers may be hired only for positions that Vietnamese workers cannot fill, or for which Vietnamese workers are otherwise unavailable. Moreover, not just any foreign worker may be hired — eligibility is limited to individuals who meet certain conditions (they must qualify as a manager/executive, an expert, or a technical worker).
A foreign worker permitted to work in Vietnam (in the case of direct employment) must qualify under one of the following categories: manager, executive, expert, or technical worker.
Position
Requirements
Manager
Falls within the definition of a manager under Article 4(24) of the Enterprise Law No. 59/2020/QH14 (※), or is the head or deputy head of a company or organization. Includes the owner of a sole proprietorship, the chairman of the Members' Council, the chairman of the Board of Directors, a director, and a (general) director, among others.
※ "Manager" of a company refers to a manager of a sole proprietorship and a manager of a company, and specifically includes: the owner of a sole proprietorship, a member of a partnership, the chairman of the Members' Council, a member of the Members' Council, the chairman of the company, the chairman of the Board of Directors, a director or general director, and any other individual holding a managerial position under the company's charter.
Executive
The head of a branch or business location of a company, or a person who manages at least one department and acts under the direction of the head of the organization.
Expert
A foreign national with a bachelor's degree or higher, or an equivalent qualification, plus at least three years of relevant work experience; or a foreign national with at least five years of relevant experience together with a supporting qualification certificate. Certain exceptions also apply.
Technical worker
A person who has received at least one year of specialized technical training and has at least three years of relevant work experience, or who has at least five years of relevant work experience.
02 - Foreign Workers Not Required to Obtain a Work Permit
2‐1
Who Is Exempt
The following foreign nationals are not required to obtain a work permit to enter Vietnam (even if working for a company, etc.) — i.e., they are exempt from the work permit requirement:
① The owner or a member of a limited liability company with charter capital of VND 3 billion or more
② The chairman of the Board of Directors or a director of a joint-stock company with charter capital of VND 3 billion or more
③ A foreign worker on an intra-corporate transfer within one of the 11 service sectors covered by Vietnam's WTO commitments (business, information, construction, distribution, education, environment, finance, healthcare, tourism, culture/entertainment, and transport)
④ A foreign worker entering Vietnam to provide professional or technical consulting services, or to carry out survey, design, appraisal, monitoring and evaluation, management, or implementation duties for an ODA-funded program or project under an international agreement on ODA concluded between the competent Vietnamese and foreign authorities
⑤ A foreign worker who has been granted permission by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to engage in press or public relations activities under Vietnamese law
⑥ A foreign worker dispatched by a competent foreign authority to teach or conduct research at an international school under the management of an international organization or a foreign representative office, or at an institution or organization established under an agreement to which Vietnam is a party
⑦ A volunteer recognized by a foreign diplomatic mission or international organization in Vietnam
⑧ A foreign worker who enters Vietnam to work as a manager, executive, expert, or technical worker for a period of less than 30 days per visit, not exceeding three visits per year
⑨ A foreign worker performing duties under an international agreement entered into by a central or provincial-level agency or organization pursuant to Vietnamese law
⑩ A student at a foreign school or educational institution (including trainees or apprentices aboard a Vietnamese vessel) who enters Vietnam under an internship contract with a Vietnamese agency, organization, or company
⑪ A family member of a member of a foreign representative office in Vietnam who is permitted to work in Vietnam under an international treaty to which Vietnam is a party
⑫ A foreign worker holding an official passport who enters Vietnam to work for a state agency, political organization, or socio-political organization
⑬ A person responsible for establishing a commercial presence
⑭ A foreign worker engaged in education or research recognized by Vietnam's Ministry of Education and Training
⑮ The head of a representative office or the head/representative of a project of an international organization or foreign non-governmental organization in Vietnam, or a person formally responsible for its operations, who stays in Vietnam for less than three months for promotional activities
2‐2
Required Procedure
The individuals listed above are not required to obtain a work permit to enter Vietnam. Instead, however, they must apply for confirmation of work permit exemption. The confirmation of exemption must be obtained at least 10 days before the intended start of work in Vietnam. The following documents, among others, are required to obtain the confirmation of exemption:
① Application form
② A health check-up report or health certificate for the applicant (foreign worker)
③ An approval of the demand for foreign labor use (the same procedure as required where a work permit must be obtained)
④ Passport
⑤ Documentation proving that the individual qualifies for the work permit exemption
※ Where the above documents are issued in Japan, they must be consularly legalized in Japan.
03 - Procedures Required Where a Work Permit Is Necessary
3‐1
Requirements for Obtaining a Work Permit
A foreign worker working in Vietnam must satisfy the following conditions in order to obtain a Vietnamese work permit:
· Be at least 18 years old and have full civil capacity
· Possess the relevant professional/technical competence and experience, and satisfy the health requirements set by the Ministry of Health
· Not be serving a criminal sentence, have a criminal record, or be subject to ongoing criminal liability under foreign or Vietnamese law
· Have been issued a work permit by the competent Vietnamese authority (unless exempt from the work permit requirement)
3‐2
Procedures Required to Employ a Foreign Worker
（1）Recruiting Vietnamese nationals for the position the company intends to fill with a foreign worker
① As noted above, the company must demonstrate that it is unable to hire a Vietnamese worker for the position. Specifically, it must post the recruitment on the employment website operated by the Employment Center under the Department of Labor, using the same requirements it intends to apply to the foreign hire.
② The job posting must be kept open for at least one continuous month.
③ Because this process takes approximately one month, companies planning to hire a foreign worker should begin the procedure well in advance.
（2） Obtaining approval of the demand for foreign labor use
① After completing the above procedure, the company must obtain approval of its demand to use foreign labor. The competent authority for this approval is the provincial or municipal People's Committee, though applications are filed through the Department of Labor under that People's Committee. Because a final decision from the People's Committee is required, some margin should be allowed in scheduling; the average processing time is typically around three weeks to one month.
② Where an approval of the demand for foreign labor use has already been obtained and the company is renewing a work permit, it must report the number and details of the existing approval to the competent authority. The approval document should therefore be kept in proper order.
（3）Obtaining the Work Permit
The documents required to obtain a work permit are as follows:
① Work permit application form
② Health check-up report
※If the health check-up is conducted in Vietnam, a certificate from a designated hospital is required.
A health check-up conducted in Japan may be used in Vietnam, but it must be consularly legalized in Japan.
③ Criminal record certificate
This may be obtained in Vietnam if the individual has resided in Vietnam for six months or more.
If obtained in Japan, it must be consularly legalized in Japan.
④ Investment Registration Certificate, Enterprise Registration Certificate, or the establishment license of the representative office
⑤ A passport photo (4.0 x 6.0 cm, white background, no hat or glasses)
⑥ The approval of the demand for foreign labor use (obtained under procedure (2) above)
⑦ A copy of the passport (must be notarized within Vietnam)
To have the copy notarized in Vietnam, an entry stamp showing the individual has entered Vietnam is required.
⑧ Documentation proving qualification as a manager/CEO, expert, or technical worker
Manager/CEO
A document proving the position (employment contract / letter of appointment / secondment agreement / previously obtained work permit)
or a certificate of employment history issued by the institution, organization, or company where the individual previously worked
Expert
A degree certificate showing a bachelor's degree or higher in the relevant field, together with a certificate of at least three years' work experience in that field
or documentation from a foreign company certifying the individual's status as an expert (including the issuer's name, the expert's personal details — name, date of birth, nationality — and the field of work to be performed in Vietnam)
Technical worker
A certificate of at least three years' work experience in the relevant field or another field
and documentation showing that the competent authority or a foreign company has provided at least one year of training in that field or another field
⑨ A letter of appointment or secondment agreement (for intra-corporate transfers), or an employment contract (for local hires)
⑩ Documentation showing that Vietnamese workers were recruited for the position
※ For documents other than the passport, if issued in Japan, they must be consularly legalized in Japan.
※ When obtaining consular legalization in Japan, it is more efficient to do so in Japanese first and then have the translation notarized in Vietnam.
3‐3
Other Points to Note
① The Vietnamese employer must submit the employment contract to the Department of Labor within 7 days of signing it with the foreign worker.
② The term of the work permit and the term of the employment contract must match. If an employment relationship exists outside the valid period of the work permit, the salary paid by the employer to the foreign worker will, in many cases, not be deductible as a business expense for tax purposes.
When renewing a work permit, the recruitment of Vietnamese workers and the approval of the demand for foreign labor use are required again, so it is advisable to begin the renewal process with sufficient lead time (at least around two months) before the work permit expires.