Quick answer
The job title stated on a work permit must correspond to one of the four job positions set out in Article 3 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP: manager, executive director, expert, or technical worker. The correct approach is to state a specific title that matches the registered job position in the application dossier and aligns with the supporting documents (appointment decision, company charter, degrees, experience confirmations). Vague titles that do not indicate a position, or titles inconsistent with the supporting documents, are among the most common reasons applications are returned for supplementation or explanation.
Legal basis
Under Article 3 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP (effective 7 August 2025, replacing Decree 152/2020/ND-CP and Decree 70/2023/ND-CP), foreign workers in Vietnam are classified into four job positions:
- Manager: a business manager as defined in Clause 24, Article 4 of the 2020 Enterprise Law, or the head or deputy head of an agency or organization.
- Executive director: the head of a branch, representative office, or business location; or a person who heads and directly manages a field of an agency, organization, or enterprise with at least 3 years of relevant experience.
- Expert: a person holding a university degree or equivalent with at least 2 years of relevant experience; or a university degree with at least 1 year of relevant experience for finance, science, technology, innovation, national digital transformation, or priority socio-economic development sectors.
- Technical worker: a person trained for at least 1 year with at least 2 years of relevant experience; or with at least 3 years of relevant experience.
The job title on the work permit is the concrete expression of one of these four positions for each individual worker.
Principles for stating the title correctly
1. The title must attach to a specific job position
The competent authority reviews the file based on the correspondence between three elements: the registered title, the job position (one of the four groups above), and the supporting documents. For example, if the registered position is “expert”, the title may be “Electrical Engineering Expert” or “Finance Expert”, accompanied by a university degree and confirmation of at least 2 years of relevant experience. If the position is “manager”, a title such as “General Director” or “Factory Director” must match the company charter or the appointment decision.
2. Be specific; avoid generic titles
Titles such as “staff”, “officer”, or “specialist” do not indicate a job position and will almost certainly trigger a request for clarification. The title should state the field of expertise, for example “Welding Technology Expert”, “SMT Line Operation Technician”, or “Executive Director of Manufacturing”. The more specific the title, the easier it is to cross-check against the supporting documents.
3. Consistency across all documents in the dossier
The title on the work permit application, on the position-proof documents (appointment decision, employment contract, experience confirmation), and on the documents proving the form of work must be consistent. Any discrepancy — for example, an appointment decision stating “Deputy Director” while the application states “Executive Director” — may result in the dossier being returned for alignment.
The title must fit the form of work as well
Beyond the job position, the dossier must show the foreign worker’s form of work (working under a labor contract, intra-corporate transfer, performing an economic or commercial contract, etc.). The title on the permit must be consistent with both elements. For instance, a person transferred intra-group with the title “Regional Technical Director” needs a dispatch letter from the overseas parent company assigning them to the commercial presence in Vietnam.
Documents that prove each position
Choosing the right title is only half of the work; the other half is proving that the worker genuinely meets the criteria of the registered position. The dossier for a new work permit (Article 18 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP) must include documents evidencing the job position:
- Manager: the enterprise registration certificate, the company charter, or the appointment decision showing the person holds a managerial title defined in Clause 24, Article 4 of the 2020 Enterprise Law.
- Executive director: the appointment decision as head of the branch, representative office, or business location; or documents proving the person heads and directly manages a business field, plus written confirmation of at least 3 years of relevant experience.
- Expert: the university degree (or equivalent) duly consular-legalized and translated, plus written confirmations of at least 2 years of relevant experience — or at least 1 year for priority sectors.
- Technical worker: vocational training certificates or diplomas, plus written confirmations of at least 2 years of relevant experience — or at least 3 years of experience where no training certificate exists.
Experience confirmations should be issued by previous employers, state the exact job title held, the period of employment, and describe duties relevant to the position in Vietnam. Confirmations issued abroad must be consular-legalized unless exempted under an international treaty to which Vietnam is a party.
Common mistakes when stating job titles
- Inaccurate translation of titles: the English title in the appointment decision (e.g., “Operations Manager”) is translated into Vietnamese in a way that does not match the registered title, complicating cross-checks.
- Inflating the title beyond the documents: registering “Executive Director” while the documents only support an expert position — the whole file may be reassessed or rejected.
- A title that does not exist in the organizational structure: the registered title appears in neither the charter, the organizational chart, nor the company’s appointment decisions.
- Changing the title after issuance: when a worker changes job position relative to the issued permit, the employer must apply for a new work permit; the old permit may not be used for the new position on the employer’s own authority.
Frequently asked questions
Must the job title on the work permit be in Vietnamese?
Work permits are issued by Vietnamese authorities, so the title is stated in Vietnamese. Employers should prepare a consistent Vietnamese translation of the title from the dossier preparation stage and use it uniformly across all documents.
Can two job titles appear on one work permit?
No. Each work permit is tied to one specific job position of one worker at one employer. If the worker takes on an additional position of an independent nature, a separate application should be considered under the regulations.
How to correct an incorrect title?
If the issued permit contains incorrect information (including the title), the employer applies for re-issuance under Decree 219/2025/ND-CP. A substantive change of job position requires a new permit application.
Does the title affect the visa and residence card?
Yes. The work permit (or the certificate of exemption from work permit) is the basis for sponsoring LD-category visas and labor residence cards. The position stated on the permit should be consistent with the information the employer declares when sponsoring the worker’s visa and temporary residence card, so that the immigration file and the labor file tell the same story.
FLAT Law Firm advises FDI enterprises comprehensively on work permit procedures: determining the correct job position, standardizing titles, preparing dossiers under Decree 219/2025/ND-CP, and following through until the result is issued. Contact us for guidance tailored to your company’s case.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council. Content is for reference only and does not replace legal advice for your specific case.
