Work Permit for Foreigners in Vietnam – Full-Service Consulting with YongXia

Work Permit for Foreigners in Vietnam – Full-Service Consulting with Vĩnh Hà

In the context of Vietnam increasingly attracting foreign experts, managers and technical workers, the work permit has become a mandatory condition for foreigners to legally work in Vietnam. However, not everyone is clear on the duration, procedure, or formalities for initial issuance, re-issuance or extension of this type of permit.

Below is a summary and detailed explanation provided by Vĩnh Hà Investment Consulting Co., Ltd. — a unit with many years of experience in obtaining work permits for foreigners.

1. How long is a work permit for a foreigner valid?
   According to current regulations (Decree 152/2020/ND-CP), a work permit for a foreigner may be valid for up to 2 years.
   If the employment contract or the approval for foreign labour usage has a shorter term, the work permit will also be issued for that shorter term.
   After expiry, it may be extended once for a maximum of another 2 years.

2. If you handle the procedure yourself, how long does it take?
   If your enterprise or individual handles the paperwork themselves, the average time is:

   • Phase 1: Approval of foreign labour usage
     ⏱ Time: about 10 – 15 working days
     Submission to the Department of Labour – Invalids & Social Affairs where the foreigner will work.
     Documents include: request form, explanation of why foreign labour is needed, business registration certificate etc.
     After receipt, the authority will consider and issue an approval document in about 5-10 working days.

   • Phase 2: Prepare documents for the work permit
     ⏱ Time: 10 – 20 working days (depending on nationality and completeness of papers)
     Documents include: application form (Form No. 11/ PLI), health certificate, criminal record, diplomas/certificates/experience confirmation (min. 3 years), copy of valid passport, approval of foreign labour usage.
     📎 Note: Foreign-issued documents must be consular-legalised, translated and notarised into Vietnamese. The legalisation process usually takes 5 – 10 days depending on the country — a frequent cause of delay.

   • Phase 3: Submit application for the work permit and receive result
     ⏱ Processing time: 5 – 7 working days
     When the file is complete, the authority issues the work permit in about 5 working days. If additional documents are needed, it may take another 3-5 days.
     ⚙️ Real total time (if handling by yourself):
     | Phase | Task | Avg. time |
     |-------|------------------------------------------|-----------------|
     | 1 | Approval for foreign labour usage | 10 – 15 days |
     | 2 | Document preparation (legalisation etc.) | 10 – 20 days |
     | 3 | Submit & receive permit | 5 – 7 days |
     Total: ~25 – 40 working days
     👉 The total time can stretch to 25 – 40 working days if you proceed on your own, especially for complex or incomplete documents.

3. How much faster when done via Vĩnh Hà?
   By delegating to Vĩnh Hà, processing time can be reduced to about 10 – 15 working days thanks to:

   • A team of specialists working in parallel on legalisation, translation and registration for foreign labour usage.

   • Experience working directly with management authorities across many provinces.

   • Pre-checking the file to minimise requests for supplementation.

   • Representing submission, monitoring and collecting the result on behalf of the client.
     👉 In practice, Vĩnh Hà helps enterprises save on average 15-20 days and avoid errors causing delays or permit rejection.

4. When must a foreigner re-apply for a work permit?
   A foreign worker must apply for a re-issuance of the work permit in cases such as:

   • The work permit is lost, damaged, torn or no longer intact.
     👉 Then the enterprise or the foreign worker must submit a re-issue application immediately upon discovery to avoid administrative fines for working without a valid permit.

   • A change of information on the work permit, such as: change of passport or passport number; change of enterprise name, registered address, work location; change of job position, title or form of work (e.g., from expert to manager).

   • The work permit is about to expire but the foreigner continues working in Vietnam.
     👉 In this case the re-issuance application must be filed at least 5 – 15 working days before the old permit expires. If past the deadline, the foreigner must go through the entire new-issuance process.

5. Initial issuance process for a foreigner’s work permit
   Standard procedure in 3 steps:

   • Step 1: Register the need for foreign labour: enterprise submits the file to the Department of Labour – Invalids & Social Affairs.

   • Step 2: Prepare documents for permit issuance: application, health certificate, criminal record, diplomas/certificates/experience, legalised documents, passport copy.

   • Step 3: Submit application & receive result: within ~5 working days the authority issues the permit.

6. Re-issuance process of a foreigner’s work permit
   Prepare: re-issuance application, old permit copy, passport copy, and documents proving the reason for re-issuance (lost, passport change…). Submit to the original issuing authority. In ~3 – 5 working days, a new permit is issued.

7. Extension process for a foreigner’s work permit
   Submit the docket at least 5 – 45 days before the old permit expires. Documents: extension application, copy of old permit, new labour contract or new approval for foreign labour usage. After vetting, the authority will extend for a maximum of 2 more years.

8. How many types of work permits for foreigners are there?
   Under Decree 152/2020/ND-CP, work permits for foreigners in Vietnam are classified based on the nature of work and position. This classification helps authorities determine the conditions for issuance and the documents to prepare for each group.
   The main types are:

   • Manager: for foreigners who hold leadership or management roles in a business, branch, representative office.

   • Executive Director: directly manages and makes strategic decisions and bears responsibility for the performance of a department or entire company.

   • Expert: for those with high technical or professional qualifications (university level or higher) and at least 3 years’ experience relevant to the job in Vietnam.

   • Technician: for those with at least 1 year of technical training and at least 3 years of relevant experience; common in manufacturing, maintenance, operations.
     Beyond the four above, there are special cases where the foreigner may work in Vietnam without a work permit, e.g., capital-contributing members, heads of NGO representative offices, intra-company transfers in WTO-committed services.

9. Why choose Vĩnh Hà when applying for a foreigner’s work permit?
   ✅ Accurate consultancy – fast processing: our legal specialists understand Vietnamese regulations and local requirements.
   ✅ Full-service support: from consular legalisation, translation & notarisation, to submission and result collection.
   ✅ Maximum time savings: reduce processing time by up to 50% compared to DIY.
   ✅ Clear cost, no hidden fees.

Contact for support
Vinh Ha Investment Consulting Co., Ltd.
Hotline: 0918 962 221
Website: https://yongxia.com.vn/
Email: [email protected]
Address: No. 2 Nguyễn Tất Thông, Kinh Bắc Ward, Bắc Ninh, Vietnam