Changes in work permit issuance for foreign professionals in Vietnam

The Government issued Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP dated August 7, 2025, regulating foreign workers working in Vietnam. This Decree has a number of new regulations on granting permits for foreign workers in Vietnam.

In recent times, the system of legal regulations on foreign workers working in Vietnam has been issued relatively fully and synchronously, contributing significantly to attracting foreign workers, especially human resources with high technical expertise and experience in management and operation, and investors to work in Vietnam, making up for the shortage of highly qualified workers in Vietnam.

However, in the context that Vietnam is attracting capable, financially capable investors, experts, and highly skilled workers to work in new industries and professions such as the semiconductor industry, artificial intelligence, and digital transformation, it is necessary to have more flexible policies and reduce the time to issue work visa compliance obligations for hiring expats to meet the production and business needs of enterprises.

Therefore, the Government has issued Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP on foreign workers working in Vietnam with many changes compared to Decree No. 152/2020/ND-CP and Decree No. 70/2023/ND-CP.

I.  Amending the application for a work permit

Specifically, Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP is amended in the direction of integrating the procedure for reporting and explaining the need to use foreign labor into the procedure for submitting the application for a work permit. According to the new regulations, the application for new visa regulations impacting overseas recruitment activities includes:

1- Document of the employer reporting the need to use foreign labor and requesting the issuance of a work permit according to Form No. 03 of the Appendix issued with this Decree.
 

Fresh regulations on work permits for foreign workers in Viet Nam

2- Health certificate issued by a qualified medical examination and treatment facility, except in cases where the health examination results have been connected and shared on the Information System on management of medical examination and treatment activities or the national health database. Health certificates issued by competent foreign medical facilities are used in cases where Vietnam and the country or territory issuing the health certificate have a treaty or agreement on mutual recognition and the validity period of such health certificate is not more than 12 months from the date of issuance.

3- Valid passport.

4- A criminal record or a document confirming that the foreign worker is not serving a sentence or has not had his/her criminal record expunged or is being prosecuted for criminal liability by a foreign country or by Vietnam, issued within 6 months from the date of issue to the date of application submission, except in cases where the administrative procedures for issuing a criminal record and work permit have been completed as prescribed.

5- 02 color photos (4 cm x 6 cm in size, white background, face looking straight, bare head, no glasses).

6- Documents proving the working form of foreign employees are one of the following documents:

a) Document of the employer abroad sending foreign employees to work for a limited period at a commercial presence in Vietnam and confirming that they have been recruited by the employer abroad for at least 12 consecutive months immediately before entering Vietnam to work in the case specified in Point b, Clause 1, Article 2 219/2025/ND-CP;

b) Document of the employer sending foreign employees with a signed contract or agreement in the case of foreign employees working in Vietnam in positions to perform economic and social contracts or agreements and participate in the implementation of bidding packages and projects in Vietnam;

c) Service provision contract signed between Vietnamese and foreign partners and documents proving that the foreign employee has worked for a foreign enterprise without a commercial presence in Vietnam for at least 24 months in the case of foreign employees working in Vietnam as service providers under a contract.

d) In the case of foreign employees offering services in Vietnam, there must be a document from the service provider sending the foreign employee to Vietnam to negotiate the provision of services;

d) Document from the foreign employer sending the foreign employee to work in Vietnam and suitable for the expected working position in the case of being transferred from an agency, organization or enterprise abroad to work in Vietnam, except for cases of internal transfer within the enterprise;

e) Foreign employees working in Vietnam in the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors, member of the Board of Directors of a joint stock company, owner, member of a limited liability company with a capital contribution value of less than 3 billion VND must have documents proving that they are managers according to regulations.

7- Documents proving that the foreign employee is a manager, executive director, expert, or technical worker according to regulations.
 

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II.  The time limit for granting a work permit is 10 days

Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP clearly states: Within 10 working days from the date of receipt of a complete application for a legal requirements for renewing expat work authorizations, the competent authority shall consider and approve the request and issue a work permit to the foreign worker. In case of disapproval of the request for a foreign worker or refusal to issue a work permit to the foreign worker, a written response must be provided stating the reasons within 03 working days from the date of receipt of the complete application.

Regarding the authority to issue permits, Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP stipulates:

The provincial People's Committee is competent to issue, reissue, extend, revoke work permits and certificates of non-exemption from work permits for foreign workers working for employers with headquarters, branches, representative offices or business locations in the locality where the foreign worker is expected to work.

In case a foreign employee works for an employer in many provinces or centrally run cities, the People's Committee of the province where the employer has its head office has the authority to issue, reissue, extend, and revoke updated work permit rules for foreign employees and certificates of non-work permit issuance.

The People's Committee of the province decides to delegate authority to the competent authority to issue, reissue, extend, and revoke work permits and certificates of non-work permit issuance in accordance with the provisions of law.

According to the old regulations in Decree 70/2023/ND-CP, within 05 working days from the date of receiving a complete application for a work permit, the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs or the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs (old) where the foreign employee is expected to work shall issue revised documentation needed for foreign work permits.

Above is all about changes in work permit issuance for foreign professionals in Vietnam in 2026. If you had any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

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