Hiring a great expert is only half the journey. The other half — and the easier half to stumble on — is completing the work permit dossier on time so the expert can start working legally in Vietnam. From 07/08/2025, Decree 219/2025/ND-CP took effect and replaced the entire old framework (Decrees 152/2020/ND-CP and 70/2023/ND-CP), and its most important change is that the report explaining the need to employ foreign workers is now integrated into the same work-permit application dossier — employers no longer run two separate steps as before (a standalone demand report at least 30 days in advance under the old Decree 152/2020/ND-CP).
This checklist serves HR, in-house counsel and management teams preparing to receive foreign experts, managers or technical workers in Vietnam. Every item carries its legal basis and practical notes. One missing document can send the dossier back and cost at least one supplementation round — while the expert's expected start date waits for no one.
Contents
- 1. Who this checklist is for and when to use it
- 2. Step 0: determine whether the worker needs a permit
- 3. The 10-item work permit dossier checklist
- 4. Consular legalization and translation: get it right first time
- 5. Where to file and how long it takes
- 6. The four most common rejection reasons
- 7. After issuance: renewal, re-issuance and notification duties
- 8. Frequently asked questions
- 9. When to have a lawyer review the dossier
- References
1. Who this checklist is for and when to use it
Three main audiences: (i) FDI or domestic enterprises about to sign labour contracts with foreign experts; (ii) foreign parent companies seconding staff to a commercial presence in Vietnam (representative office, branch, subsidiary); (iii) foreign contractors bringing experts for bid packages and projects in Vietnam.
Use the checklist as soon as the candidate is identified, before fixing the start date. The practical reason: the dossier must be filed within 60 days but no fewer than 10 days before the foreign worker's expected start date (Article 22(1), Decree 219/2025/ND-CP). Many employers sign the expert's contract first and only then start preparing — discovering that a foreign health certificate needs consular legalization taking weeks, and the contract's start date becomes impossible.
How to mark: ☐ not done · ☑ done · ⚠ needs lawyer review.
2. Step 0: determine whether the worker needs a permit
Before preparing anything, confirm the worker does not fall under work-permit exemption in Article 7 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP. The cases employers meet most: foreign workers in Vietnam for under 90 days in a year; owners or capital-contributing members of LLCs with contributions of VND 3 billion or more; Board members of joint-stock companies with contributions of VND 3 billion or more.
If exempt, no work permit is needed — but the employer must still complete the notification procedure with the competent authority; skipping it can still draw penalties. If not exempt, proceed with the 10-item checklist below, built on the dossier components in Article 18 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP.
3. The 10-item work permit dossier checklist
Note: Items 1–7 correspond to the seven document groups in Article 18 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP; Items 8–10 are practical add-ons for filing (not among Article 18's seven groups).
Item 1: Demand explanation and permit request (Form 03) ☐
- What: the employer prepares the report explaining the need to employ foreign workers together with the work permit request on Form 03 issued with Decree 219/2025/ND-CP, signed by the legal representative and sealed.
- Why: the biggest change of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP — the demand-report procedure (previously standalone) is now merged into the work permit application dossier (Article 18(1)). One document carries both contents.
- How: declare fully the job position, title, working form, expected duration and workplace. Declarations must be consistent with supporting documents — the authority cross-checks.
- Watch: ⚠ Form 03 is the employer's own responsibility for accuracy. Declaring a position that the supporting papers cannot prove (e.g. declaring "expert" but only producing technical-worker papers) is a common reason for supplementation requests.
Item 2: Health certificate ☐
- What: a health certificate from a qualified medical examination facility.
- Why: mandatory proof of fitness to work, listed in Article 18 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP.
- How: a certificate from a competent foreign medical authority may be used if Vietnam and that country or territory have a mutual-recognition treaty or agreement, and it is used within 12 months of issuance. Where examination results are already shared on the medical-activity management information system or the national health database, no paper copy is needed.
- Watch: check the issuance date — a certificate older than 12 months is dead paper. For experts still abroad, confirm mutual-recognition conditions with the employer first to avoid examining at an unrecognised facility.
Item 3: Valid passport ☐
- What: a copy of the foreign worker's valid passport.
- Why: the mandatory identity document in every administrative file concerning foreigners.
- How: present the original for comparison on direct filing, or file a certified copy. Ensure the passport covers the entire expected working period in Vietnam — a soon-expiring passport means that after the permit issues, the worker must renew the passport and update residence papers anyway.
- Watch: if the expert gets a new passport while the application is pending, update the receiving authority promptly so the permit matches the current passport.
Item 4: Criminal record check or equivalent ☐
- What: a criminal record check (or equivalent confirming the worker is not serving a sentence, has no unexpunged conviction and is not under prosecution), issued by a competent foreign or Vietnamese authority.
- Why: the basis for assessing the worker's character — one of the permit conditions.
- How: the document must be issued no more than 6 months before filing. Workers already resident in Vietnam may obtain it locally. Importantly, where the linked administrative procedure for criminal records and work permits under Article 6(3) of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP has been used, this document need not be filed.
- Watch: ⚠ the most time-consuming document if obtained abroad (usually with consular legalization). Start it the moment the candidate is identified; do not wait for other papers.
Item 5: Two 4×6 colour photos ☐
- What: two 4 cm x 6 cm colour photos, white background, face forward, bare head, no glasses.
- Why: affixed to the work permit and kept in the management file.
- How: take fresh, compliant photos. Old photos, wrong sizes or sunglasses can trigger retakes.
- Watch: sounds trivial, yet dossiers are returned for blue backgrounds or 3×4 sizes. Verify specs before filing.
Item 6: Papers proving the working form ☐
- What: depending on the foreign worker's working form, the corresponding papers.
- Why: the Decree classifies several working forms (labour contract, intra-corporate transferee, economic contract performance, service offering…), each with its own proofs in Article 18.
- How: e.g. a worker seconded to a commercial presence in Vietnam needs the foreign employer's secondment letter plus confirmation of at least 12 months' continuous employment immediately before entering Vietnam (Article 2(1)(b), Decree 219/2025/ND-CP). For planned direct labour contracts, the basis is the draft labour contract — not a signed contract; the formal contract is signed after the permit is granted and before the worker's start date.
- Watch: identify the working form correctly from the start — it determines the entire document group in Items 6 and 7. Misclassification is the hardest error to fix once filed.
Item 7: Papers proving position requirements (Article 19) ☐
- What: papers proving the worker meets the registered position's criteria: manager, executive director, expert or technical worker.
- Why: the professional-capacity proofs — the authority relies on them to determine the position stated on the permit.
- How: match the specific criteria in Article 19 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP for each position (degrees, work experience, professional practice licences if any). Foreign-issued papers need consular legalization and notarized translation (see section 4 below).
- Watch: ⚠ the position on the work permit constrains the worker's lawful job scope in Vietnam. Registering a lower position than reality to ease approval can backfire during inspections of foreign labour use.
Item 8: Employer's papers ☐
- What: the enterprise registration certificate (or equivalent operating licence) of the employer.
- Why: proves the employer's legal personality and business lines — the basis for assessing the genuineness of the foreign-labour demand. This is not among Article 18's seven document groups; it is a practical paper the receiving authority commonly asks for.
- How: a certified copy in force, showing the current name, head-office address and legal representative. If the enterprise just changed its registration, use the latest version.
- Watch: the worker's registered workplace must fit the enterprise's registered operating locations.
Item 9: Work permit fee ☐
- What: pay the fee set by the provincial People's Council of the receiving locality.
- Why: the dossier is only processed after the financial obligation is settled.
- How: fee levels are set per province/city, so check the current schedule at the filing locality. Keep the payment receipt for cross-checking. The fee is not among Article 18's seven document groups, and the decree sets no uniform amount.
- Watch: underpaying or miscalculating the fee is an administrative but common reason dossiers stall.
Item 10: Cross-check the whole dossier before filing ☐
- What: cross-check every document: the worker's name identical across all papers; the position on Form 03 matching the proofs; document validity periods (12-month health certificate, 6-month criminal record) still live at filing; translations fully notarized.
- Why: most returned dossiers fail not on missing documents but on inconsistent information — e.g. the transliterated name on the passport differing from the diploma, or the title on Form 03 differing from the appointment decision.
- How: build a one-page reconciliation table listing each document with key fields, marked as matched. The reviewer should differ from the preparer.
- Watch: ⚠ a 30-minute cross-review can save 10 days of supplementation.
4. Consular legalization and translation: get it right first time
Documents issued by foreign authorities or organisations — diplomas, experience confirmations, foreign criminal records, foreign health certificates — must be consularly legalized, except where exempted under an international treaty to which Vietnam is party. After legalization, all foreign-language documents must be translated into Vietnamese with the translation notarized.
The correct order: legalize in the issuing country first, then translate and notarize in Vietnam. Reversing the order means redoing it. For experts still abroad, the employer should send the list of documents needing legalization and a power-of-attorney template (if a representative must act) in advance — each country has its own legalization process, usually taking 1 to 3 weeks.
5. Where to file and how long it takes
Work permit applications go to the competent labour authority where the foreign worker is expected to work — now the provincial Departments of Home Affairs after the administrative reorganisation (formerly Departments of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs). Employers may file directly, by post, or online via the public-service portal, depending on the locality.
Timing: file within 60 days but no fewer than 10 days before the foreign worker's expected start date (Article 22(1), Decree 219/2025/ND-CP). The competent authority issues the permit within 10 working days of receiving a complete, valid dossier. Incomplete dossiers trigger supplementation notices — each round restarts the clock, which is why Item 10 of the checklist is not a formality.
A work permit lasts at most 2 years and may be renewed once for at most 2 years (Article 155, Labour Code 2019). After issuance, the foreign worker still needs visa and temporary residence card procedures — a work permit legalizes employment, not residence.
6. The four most common rejection reasons
Mistake 1: skipping the exemption check. Preparing a full permit dossier for an exempt worker (e.g. an expert working under 90 days) wastes time and uses the wrong procedure — such cases only need notification.
Mistake 2: documents expired at filing. A criminal record from 8 months ago, a health certificate issued 13 months ago — both dead. Count backwards from the planned filing date to schedule each document.
Mistake 3: inconsistent information across documents. The passport, diploma and Form 03 transliterate the name differently; titles do not match. Especially common with experts having long or multi-part names.
Mistake 4: filing too close to the start date. Filing exactly on day 10 before the expected start means a single supplementation round misses the date. The safe practice is filing between days 30 and 45 of the 60-day window.
7. After issuance: renewal, re-issuance and notification duties
If the employer still needs the worker after expiry, renew: renewal dossiers must be filed at least 10 days and no more than 45 days before expiry (Article 28, Decree 219/2025/ND-CP). Past that window, renewal is gone — a fresh issuance from scratch is required.
A work permit expires in the cases of Article 156, Labour Code 2019, including expiry of term, termination of the labour contract, contents no longer matching reality, and other prescribed cases. On expiry, the employer must recover the permit and return it to the issuing authority.
A commonly forgotten duty: when terminating the labour contract with the foreign worker, the employer must complete the permit-expiry procedures and notifications as required, and mind the worker's residence obligations after leaving the enterprise.
8. Frequently asked questions
How long does a work permit for an expert take? The employer must file within 60 days but no fewer than 10 days before the foreign worker's expected start date (Article 22(1), Decree 219/2025/ND-CP). The competent authority decides within 10 working days of receiving a complete, valid dossier. File early in the window to allow for supplementation rounds.
Is a foreign-issued health certificate accepted? Yes, if Vietnam and the issuing country or territory have a treaty or mutual-recognition agreement, and the certificate is used within 12 months of issuance (Article 18, Decree 219/2025/ND-CP).
Is a criminal record check older than 6 months still valid? No. The criminal record check or equivalent must be issued no more than 6 months before the filing date. If the linked procedure for criminal records and work permits under Article 6(3) of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP has been used, this document need not be filed.
Does an expert working in Vietnam for 2 months need a work permit? No, if total working time is under 90 days in a year (Article 7(13)(a), Decree 219/2025/ND-CP) and the case falls under work-permit exemption. The employer must still notify the competent authority at least 3 working days in advance.
What if the work permit renewal deadline is missed? Renewal dossiers must be filed at least 10 days and no more than 45 days before expiry. After the deadline, renewal is impossible — a fresh issuance procedure is required. Working on an expired permit can expose the employer to administrative penalties.
Do an expert's diplomas need consular legalization? Documents issued by foreign authorities (diplomas, experience confirmations, foreign criminal records) must be consularly legalized unless exempted under an international treaty to which Vietnam is party, then translated into Vietnamese with the translation notarized.
9. When to have a lawyer review the dossier
For standard files — an expert signing a direct labour contract with complete papers — HR can handle the checklist alone. But three situations merit pre-filing lawyer review: (i) complex working forms (intra-group transferees, experts on multiple projects across provinces); (ii) borderline positions (e.g. between "expert" and "technical worker") since the classification decides the proof group; (iii) employers previously sanctioned for foreign-labour violations and under scrutiny.
FLAT Law Firm helps FDI enterprises review full work permit dossiers before filing: matching the job position against Article 19 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP, checking foreign documents' validity and the consular-legalization roadmap, and building a filing timeline aligned with the expert's expected start date. Contact hotline 0988424851 for a quick assessment of your current dossier.
References
- Labour Code No. 45/2019/QH14, effective 01/01/2021.
- Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP dated 07/08/2025 on foreign workers in Vietnam, effective 07/08/2025.
- Form 03, Appendix to Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP: report explaining foreign-labour demand and work permit request.
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RE-REVIEW BALLOT 2026-09-29 (V1/V2/V3 — independent reviewer 29/9/2026)
- V1 legal: PASS with 1 material fix. Checked against the decree text (vnlawfirm.vn, thuvienphapluat.vn EN). FOUND ERROR: all versions stated "effective 01/01/2026" — WRONG; Article 35(1) of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP: effective from 07/08/2025. Fixed in: frontmatter `legal_basis.effective`, intro, References. All other citations VERIFIED CORRECT: Article 18 (7 clauses, Form 03 merged demand report), Article 19 (position criteria), Article 22(1) (60-day filing window, min 10 days; 10 working days processing), Article 28 (renewal window 10–45 days), Article 29 (single renewal, max 2 years), Article 7(13)(a) (under 90 days; 3-working-day notice — Article 9(4)), Article 6(3) (linked criminal-record procedure), Article 18(6)(a)/Article 2(1)(b) (intra-corporate: secondment letter + 12 months' continuous employment), Labour Code Articles 155/156.
- V2 language: PASS. International law-firm style; figures, citations, FAQs (6/6) fully aligned with VI/ZH.
- V3 technical QA: PASS. YAML OK; single H1; rank_math title/description within limits; no internal markers; hotline 0988424851 correct; `jpv-language-links` class present.
- VERDICT: PASS (after effective-date fix). Display author: FLAT Law Firm.
