Work permits for foreigners working in Vietnam?

Are foreign employees working in Vietnam required to have a work permit issued by a competent Vietnamese state agency? Before looking for a job or commencing employment in an enterprise in Vietnam, do foreign employees need a work permit? Shall the Vietnamese employers or the foreign employees carry out the procedures to request a competent Vietnamese state agency to issue a work permit?

Conditions for foreign workers to work in Vietnam:

Foreign employees working in Vietnam are foreign nationals and must meet the conditions for a work permit issued by a competent Vietnamese state agency, except for the case specified in Article 154 of this Code (Point d, Clause 1, Article 154 of the Labor Code No. 45/2019/QH14 dated November 20, 2019).

Determining the need to employ foreign workers:

At least 30 days before the expected date of employment of foreign workers, the employer (except for the contractor) is responsible for determining the need to employ foreign workers for each job position which Vietnamese employees have not yet met the requirements and report to the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs or the People's Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities (hereinafter referred to as the People's Committee of the province) where the foreign worker is expected to work according to Form No. 01/PLI Appendix I issued together with this Decree (Point a, Clause 1, Article 4 of Decree No. 152/2020/ND-CP dated December 30, 2020) .

The order for issuance of a work permit in Vietnam:

At least 15 days before the date the foreign employee is expected to start working in Vietnam, the applicant shall submit an application for a work permit to the Ministry of Labor - Invalids and Social Affairs or the Department of Labor - Invalids and Social Affairs where the foreign employee is expected to work, as specified below: the employer in the case the foreign employee works in the form specified at Points a, b, e, g, i and k, Clause 1, Article 2 of this Decree (Point a, Clause 1, Article 11 of Decree No. 152/2020/ND-CP dated December 30, 2020).

Therefore, foreign employees working in Vietnam are foreign nationals and must meet the conditions of having a work permit issued by a competent Vietnamese state agency. However, before looking for a job or starting a job in Vietnam, a foreigner does not need to obtain a work permit by himself/herself because the prospective employer shall implement procedures to determine the need for using foreign workers at the Vietnamese enterprise and apply for a work permit prior to the foreigner’s job commencement in that enterprise in Vietnam.

Work permit when foreigners work in Vietnam?