- Conditions for foreign investors to work in Vietnam
Foreign investors who are individuals to work in Vietnam need to meet the following conditions:
- Be at least 18 years old and have full civil act capacity;
- Have professional, technical, skilled and work experience; be in good health as prescribed by the Minister of Health;
- Not being a person who is serving a penalty or has not had his/her criminal record cleared or is being examined for penal liability in accordance with foreign or Vietnamese laws;
- Have a work permit issued by a competent state agency of Vietnam, except for the case specified in Article 154 of this Code.
Accordingly, one of the conditions for working in Vietnam is that foreign investors must have a work permit issued by a competent state agency of Vietnam, except for cases where they are not eligible for a work permit as prescribed in Article 154 of the Labor Code 2019. Thus, if foreign investors are individuals, if they are not eligible for work permits, they will not have to apply for a work permit when working in Vietnam. On the contrary, if it does not fall into the above cases, foreign investors who are individuals who want to work in Vietnam must apply for a work permit according to regulations.
The maximum term of a foreign investor’s work permit is 02 years, in case of extension, it can only be extended once with a maximum term of 02 years.
- Procedures for issuance of work permits
Step 1:
At least 15 days before the date the foreign worker is expected to start working in Vietnam, the foreign worker submits an application for a work permit to the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs where the foreign worker is expected to work.
Step 2:
Within 05 working days after receiving a complete application for a work permit, the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs where the foreign worker plans to work shall issue a work permit to the foreign worker according to Form No. 12/PLI Appendix I promulgated together with Decree No. 152/2020/ND-CP. In case of refusal to issue a work permit, a written reply clearly stating the reason shall be given.
A dossier of application for a work permit for a foreign investor includes:
- Application for work permit in Form No. 11/PLI
- A written notice of approval of the job position employing foreign workers has been issued
- Certified copy of business registration certificate, operation license or investment registration certificate (01 copy)
- Certified copy of passport or other valid document issued by a foreign country (01 copy)
- Certified copy of documents proving professional, technical and professional qualifications (01 copy)
- Health proof issued by a competent health authority of a foreign country (original or certified copy)
- Written commitment of foreign investors on compliance with Vietnam’s labor laws (02 copies).
- Work permit exemption cases
– Being the owner or capital contributing member of a limited liability company with a capital contribution value of VND 3 billion or more.
– Being the Chairman of the Board of Directors or a member of the Board of Directors of a joint-stock company with a capital contribution value of VND 3 billion or more.
– Be the head of a representative office, project or take main responsibility for the operation of international organizations or foreign non-governmental organizations in Vietnam.
– Entering Vietnam for less than 03 months to offer services.
– Entering Vietnam for less than 03 months to handle incidents, complex technical and technological situations that arise that affect or threaten to affect production and business that cannot be handled by Vietnamese experts and foreign experts currently in Vietnam.
– Being a foreign lawyer who has been granted a license to practice law in Vietnam in accordance with the Law on Lawyers.
– Cases prescribed by international treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a contracting party.
– Foreigners who marry Vietnamese and live in the territory of Vietnam.
– Internal company transfers within the scope of 11 service sectors in Vietnam’s service commitments to the World Trade Organization, including business, information, construction, distribution, education, environment, finance, health, tourism, cultural entertainment, and transportation.
– Entering Vietnam to provide professional and technical consultancy services or perform other tasks serving the research, construction, appraisal, monitoring, evaluation, management, and implementation of programs and projects using official development assistance (ODA) according to regulations or agreements in international treaties on ODA signed between competent authorities of Vietnam and foreign countries.
– Granted a license by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for information and press activities in Vietnam according to the law.
– Sent to Vietnam by a foreign competent authority to teach or research at international schools under the management of foreign diplomatic missions or the United Nations; establishments and organizations established under agreements to which Vietnam is a signatory.
– Volunteers as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 3 of Decree 152/2020/ND-CP.
– Entering Vietnam to work in managerial positions, executive positions, experts, or technical workers for less than 30 days and not more than 3 times a year.
– Entering Vietnam to implement international agreements signed by central or provincial agencies or organizations according to the law.
– Students studying at schools or training institutions abroad with internship agreements in agencies, organizations, or enterprises in Vietnam; interns, and apprentices on Vietnamese ships.
– Relatives of members of foreign representative missions in Vietnam as stipulated in Point l, Clause 1, Article 2 of Decree 152/2020/ND-CP.
– Holders of diplomatic passports working for state agencies, political organizations, or socio-political organizations.
– Persons responsible for establishing a commercial presence.
– Recognized by the Ministry of Education and Training as foreign workers entering Vietnam to teach or research.
This is KALF’s advisory content on work permit issues for foreign investors in Vietnam. All our advisory opinions are based on current legal regulations. If you have any questions or legal requests, please contact us for timely clarification.
