Vietnam eases rules for foreign employees: key changes and implications

As a remarkable stride to create a stronger legal framework that fosters favourable conditions for attracting high-skilled foreign personnel, the government on August 7 passed Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP (Decree 219) on foreign employees working in Vietnam, which took effect on the same date and replaced Decree No.152/2020/ND-CP (Decree 152) regulating foreign employees working in Vietnam and Vietnamese employees working for foreign entities in Vietnam.

Le Vu Bang, partner, and An Nguyen, associate, at Nishimura & Asahi (Vietnam) Law Firm

In light of this recent development, Le Vu Bang, partner, and An Nguyen, associate, at Nishimura & Asahi (Vietnam) Law Firm examine the significant changes introduced under Decree 219 in comparison to Decree 152, highlighting measures aimed at streamlining previously complicated administrative procedures and conspicuously reducing the regulatory burdens for the affected parties.

1. New opportunities to be a foreign employee in Vietnam

With the target of detailing the scope of applicable subjects, Decree 219 added new categories which had not been mentioned at all before. Particularly,

1. being transferred from an agency, organisation, or enterprise abroad to work in Vietnam, except in the case of intra-corporate transfer (Article 2.1(h) of Decree 219)

This category has been developed based on the earlier working form working for foreign non-governmental organisations and international organisations in Vietnam that are permitted to operate under the provisions of Vietnamese law (Article 2.1(e) of Decree 152). Concurrently, it also resolves the common confusion regarding the interpretation of the working form managers, executive operators, experts and technicians (Article 2.1(i) of Decree 152), which are often mistakenly regarded as either working form or working position of the foreign employees, thus causing difficulties in identifying the components of the supporting documents in the licensing process, as explained by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA).

2. BOD chairman, BOD member of a joint stock company, owner, member of a limited liability company with a capital contribution value of less than VND3 billion (Article 2.1(l) of Decree 219)

This category could be viewed as a clarification intended to encompass all cases related to managerial persons as defined under the Law on Enterprise. Previously, these roles (i.e., BOD chairman, BOD member of a joint stock company, owner, member of a limited liability company) were not explicitly defined as a working form under Decree 152; however, the foreign employees in such roles were considered eligible for the confirmation on exemptions from work permit (‘WPE’) if their respective capital contribution is VND3 billion ($120,000) or more. With this new category, Decree 219 becomes more comprehensive and recognises the specific situation where the managerial persons with a capital contribution fall below VND3 billion ($120,000) are subject to obtain the work permits (WP).

3. implementing labour contracts with foreign diplomatic missions and foreign organisations in Vietnam (Article 2.1(m) of Decree 219).

This category has finally been introduced to address formerly unregulated cases in which such entities are also among the category of employers as defined under Decree 219. While not yet been clearly explained by MoHA, this new addition may suggest the intention of extending the foreign labour management framework to cover them and their employees.

2. Clearer and harmonised working positions standards

Decree 219 clearly defined that foreigners may only be employed in Vietnam if they fall within one of the four eligible categories: (i) expert, (ii) executive director, (iii) manager, or (iv) technician. While the conditions to work as a ‘manager’ remain relatively unchanged, the remaining roles have significant updates as follows:

Experts: Decree 219 reduced the requirement on working experience to at least two years and added a category of foreigners who qualify as experts by having a university degree or higher (or an equivalent qualification) in a speciality appropriate for their intended job in Vietnam, specifically in the fields of finance, science, technology, innovation, national digital transformation, or other sectors prioritised for development by Vietnam, or pursuant to cooperation agreements of the Vietnamese government.

This new category has observed the government’s approach in high-tech fields in accordance with Resolution No. 57-NQ-TW of the Politburo dated December 2024 on breakthroughs in science, technology, innovation, and national digital transformation with a vision to 2045.

This new category imposes the requirement of having at least one year of relevant work experience, unlike experts in other sectors, indicating a more favourable access for foreign experts to Vietnamese labour market.

Executive directors: Conditions to work as ‘executive director’ under Decree 219 is stricter than those under Decree 152 due to supplementation on the requirement of having at least three-year-working experience in the field suitable to their intended working position, if they are not the heads of branches, representative offices or business locations of the enterprises. According to the MOHA’s view, this provision would prevent employers taking advantage of the former, more lenient, regulation that allowed recruitment of unqualified or inexperienced foreign employees.

Technicians: Decree 219 has loosened the condition to work as ‘technician’ than Decree 152 from at least five-year to three-year-working experience in the field suitable to their intended working position.

For the case of having only two-year-working experience, the requirement for one-year-training shall be met. It is evident that Decree 219 continues to uphold the removal of the requirement for working experience in the trained major, which was first introduced by Decree No.70/2023/ND-CP amending Decree 152.

As explained by the MoHA, this change reflects the practical demand for technicians across various fields, not limited to those with technical academic backgrounds. At the same time, Decree 219 lowers certain qualification standards to promote job opportunities for a category that constitutes a relatively high proportion of foreign employees in Vietnam.

3. New labour licensing authority

Adapting the recent restructuring of the government’s agencies, provincial people’s committees have now assumed responsibility for the management of labour-related matters, as per Article 4 of Decree 219..

Especially, the committee (where the respective agency, organisation, or enterprise is located) is now in charge of the issuance, renewal, extension, revocation of the WP, and work permit exemption (WPE) for foreign employees.

In case a foreign employee works for an employer in diverse localities, the provincial People’s Committee where the employer’s head office is based has licensing authority, as per Article 4.1 of Decree 219.

4. Modifications concerning WPE cases

1. Abolishing limit on number of entries for short-term foreign employees

Earlier under Decree 152, foreign managers, executive directors, experts, or technicians entering Vietnam for working less than 30 days are entitled to a WPE if their cumulative entries do not exceed three times per year.

However, such number of entries has been deregulated, Decree 219 only required that total time working in Vietnam is less than 90 days calculating from January 1 to the last day of the year.

Accordingly, multiple entries by foreign employees have been permitted without triggering WP requirements, in order to accommodate the practical needs of foreign employees undertaking various short-term assignments, as noted by MOHA.

2. Inheriting former regulation on the applicable WPE positions of intra-corporate transfer

Although intra-corporate transfer is already one of the WPE cases under Decree 152, Decree 219 introduces this form, along with multiple short-term entries as discussed above, into the cases where a WPE applies to foreign managers, executive directors, experts, or technicians, as noted in Article 7.13 of Decree 219.

Simultaneously, Decree 219 redefines the intra-corporate transfer form by separating it from the specific positions – namely managers, executive directors, experts, and technicians – as previously included in the definition of intra-corporate transfer foreign employees under Decree 152.

This redefinition suggests that the intra-corporate transfer form may now also apply to other types of working positions. In this context, the government has requested the Ministry of Industry and Trade to issue guidance on the identification of intra-corporate transfer foreign employees in the eleven service sectors listed in Vietnam’s Schedule of Specific Commitments on Services under its obligations to the World Trade Organisation.

3. Additional case

Decree 219 provided an additional WPE case for foreign employees certified by ministries or ministerial-level agencies to work in Vietnam in the fields of finance, science, technology, innovation, national digital transformation, and prioritised development sectors.

This change reflects a recent proactive effort of Vietnam to streamline the entry of crucial talent, potentially boosting economic growth and international collaboration in prioritised industries, particularly in areas like innovation and digital transformation. In this additional case, the government has requested the relevant ministries and ministerial-level agencies to issue guidance on specific occupations and working positions within the aforementioned fields.

5. Elimination of requisite steps for obtaining WPs

Decree 219 has reduced administrative procedures for the application of WPs, in which employers are no longer required to conduct the steps of announcing recruitment and obtaining approval for the demand to employ foreign employees, except for the working form of (i) performing a labour contract, (ii) implementing bid packages and projects in Vietnam, and (iii) conducting labour contracts with foreign diplomatic missions and foreign organisations in Vietnam.

With respect to the aforementioned working forms, employers are still required to prepare an explanatory report on the demand for using foreign employees, which is included in the application form for WP issuance, enclosed with Decree 219 (Form No.03).

The procedural removal for the remaining working forms is expected to reduce the existing time-consuming licensing process, thereby decreasing administrative costs for both employers and foreign employees.

6. Introducing the mechanism for extending WPEs

With the new regulation under Decree 219, a WPE can now be extended once for a maximum employment period of two years upon its expiration.

Employers shall extend WPEs by submitting the same documents required for the initial WPE application, together with the issued WPE.

The extension application must be submitted in advance at least 10 days but not exceed 45 days before the WPE’s expiration.

The competent authority is required to process the application within five working days. This is different from the previous regulation, as Decree 152 has no mechanism to extend the WPE, just reissuance.

Further, this additional procedure promotes consistency in the administrative process applicable to foreign employees subject to WP requirements and those eligible for WPE, assisting employers in maintaining longevity and stability in the foreign workforce.

7. Other notable changes

Evidencing documents for WPEs: Decree 219 specifies the types of documents required to prove that a foreign employee qualifies for a WPE for each particular exemption case in Article 8.5, while this regulation was absent under Decree 152.

Photograph requirements: Decree 219 removes the requirement that photographs be taken within six months prior to application submission date, given there is no basis to determine the date such photo has been taken and that the identity of foreign employees can be verified through valid passport photos.

Reporting requirements: Under Decree 152, employers were required to submit semi-annual and annual reports on their employment of foreign employees to the competent labour authorities.

In cases where a foreign employee was employed across multiple localities, employers also had to report electronically within three working days of the employee commencing work at the new location. Decree 219, however, abolishes these reporting obligations, further simplifying administrative procedures for employers.

Transitional provisions: Decree 219 stipulates that WPs or WPEs issued before Decree 219’s effective date remain valid until their expiration, and the WP/WPE applications submitted prior to the effective date of Decree 219 shall be proceeded under the former regulations.

In conclusion, Decree 219 has introduced noteworthy modifications to the regulatory framework governing foreign employees in Vietnam, pursuing to facilitate a more efficient foreign labour management system and boost Vietnam’s appeal to foreign investors.

However, certain regulatory provisions remain open, particularly those concerning occupations and working positions in prioritised development sectors and the eleven service sectors applicable to intra-corporate transfers.

These areas require further guidance from the pertinent ministries to ensure effective implementation and enforcement in practice. As such, it is essential to closely monitor the issuance of relevant guidelines to fully understand legislative requirements and better prepare for compliance with Decree 219.

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