Vietnam Revises Work Permit Rules Under Decree 219/2025

(VIETNAM) Vietnam has overhauled its work permit rules for foreign employees, with Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP taking effect on August 7-8, 2025, a change businesses say should cut paperwork and speed up hiring in a fast-growing economy hungry for specialized skills. The decree, described in government summaries as the biggest update since 2021, folds several steps into one and softens labor market testing for some roles, especially where firms bring in staff from abroad rather than recruit locally. It also widens the list of people who can work without a permit, including some short-term visitors and certain spouses, while keeping key safeguards such as fixed maximum validity periods and clear revocation grounds.

Employers and workers will watch closely as provinces roll out the licensing authority in practice now.

Major procedural changes

At the center of the reform is a procedural merger that removes the old, separate job position approval stage for many cases.

• Under the previous approach, employers often had to secure permission for the role first, then file the work permit application later, sometimes repeating explanations of why a foreign hire was needed.
• Under Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP, that explanation is integrated into a single dossier submitted with the work permit application, and it is required only for workers hired locally in Vietnam.

Companies that transfer staff within the same corporate group, assign personnel on projects, or second employees from abroad are generally spared this extra step, which should reduce waiting time and duplicated document checks. For employers, fewer filings also mean fewer errors.

Changes to labor market testing

The decree revises how labor market testing is satisfied — a requirement intended to show Vietnamese candidates were considered before hiring a foreigner.

• Employers no longer have to post vacancies on the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs portal or an Employment Service Center site.
• Instead, for local hires they must publish the job notice on a public platform or the company’s own channels at least 5 days before submitting the application.

This shift will likely benefit smaller firms that struggled with the older online posting systems. The eased rule does not apply to many non-local cases, such as intra-company transfers and certain assignments, which remain exempt from labor market testing.

Document and filing streamlining

Other measures reduce the order and volume of required documents to shorten processing time.

• Work permit applications can now be filed at the same time as police clearance, rather than forcing applicants to wait for one document before starting the next step.
• For local hires, the labor contract no longer needs to be included in the dossier unless authorities expressly request it; employers must still keep the contract on file for inspections.
• The decree drops the old semi-annual reporting duty that required companies to send regular updates on foreign workers.

Taken together, these tweaks aim to cut back-and-forth between employers and officials, even though eligibility standards remain.

Multi-province work and administrative responsibility

The reform changes how permits are managed when a foreign employee works in more than one province.

• The employer applies where its head office is located and lists all planned workplaces in the application.
• Before the worker starts in each location, the employer must notify the relevant local labor authority at least 3 days in advance and include details of the job and work site.

Administrative responsibility shifts to Provincial People’s Committees, which can delegate licensing to specialized agencies, replacing the previous model centered on Departments of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs. Businesses expect this could speed local decisions, but practices may differ between provinces during rollout.

Validity, revocation and compliance implications

The decree preserves several core enforcement features:

• Maximum work permit validity remains 2 years, tied to the underlying labor contract or assignment letter.
• The decree sets unified grounds for revocation, including:
  • expiry of the permit,
  • misuse of the permit,
  • prosecution of the worker,
  • closure of the employing entity.

These provisions clarify enforcement and make the link between permit and contract stronger. Employers should note that “misuse” can include working in the wrong role or place compared with what was approved, raising the stakes for internal compliance.

Important: A job change without timely paperwork can quickly become a status problem for the foreign worker.

Expanded short-term exemption (90 days)

Perhaps the most attention-grabbing change is a broader short-term exemption:

• Foreigners can now work in Vietnam for up to 90 cumulative days per calendar year (January–December) without a work permit or exemption certificate.
• The previous “three-trip” limit has been removed, helping technicians and consultants who enter and exit multiple times for brief tasks.

Note the catch: “cumulative” means days add up across visits. Exceeding the 90-day cap requires the standard work permit process.

New and clarified exemptions

The decree expands who can skip formal paperwork altogether:

• Spouses of Vietnamese nationals are now exempt from work permit exemption certificates.
• It creates a clearer route to exemption certificates for experts in priority areas tied to Vietnam’s economic plans, including:
  • technology, finance, innovation, digital transformation, fintech, semiconductors, and software

Even when a worker is exempt, employers must notify local labor authorities at least 3 business days before the exempt work starts. Companies will likely build this notice into onboarding to avoid penalties. The rule applies whether the worker enters for a project, visit, or assistance.

Transition rules and effective dates

To avoid disruption, Vietnam set transition rules tied to the effective dates:

• Applications submitted before August 7-8, 2025 will be handled under the older decrees (including Decree 152/2020 and Decree 70/2023), even if decisions are issued later.
• Existing work permits and exemptions remain valid until their expiry dates — no immediate re-filing is required for foreign managers and teachers already in country.
• When those documents are renewed, the new standards and filing logic apply.

This creates a clear cutoff for compliance audits: officers can determine which rules apply based on the filing date.

Practical impact and next steps

For foreign workers and employers, the changes aim to deliver a more predictable route into legal status, with fewer duplicate filings and fewer portal-based hurdles, while preserving formal work permits for most long-term jobs.

• Analysis by VisaVerge.com suggests the lighter labor market testing rules and broader exemptions could be especially helpful for high-skill teams on tight project schedules, where delays can cost contracts.
• The decree’s focus on priority sectors aligns with Vietnam’s push toward semiconductors and digital industries.

The real test will be how evenly Provincial People’s Committees apply the standards in practice.

Readers should check guidance published by MoLISA guidance as procedures emerge this year: https://molisa.gov.vn

Key takeaways (summary)

• Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP effective Aug 7-8, 2025 simplifies work permit procedures.
• Single-dossier approach removes prior job position approval in many cases.
• Labor market testing eased for local hires: post 5 days on public/company channels.
• 90 cumulative days per calendar year exemption for short-term work.
• Spouses of Vietnamese nationals exempt from exemption certificates.
• Administrative responsibility shifts to Provincial People’s Committees.
• 2-year maximum permit validity and unified revocation grounds retained.
• Transition rules keep pre-August filings under older decrees; renewals follow new rules.

Check official MoLISA guidance for detailed procedures and provincial implementation updates: https://molisa.gov.vn.