Work Permit Service Ho Chi Minh City 2026 (Decree 219)

Since 7 August 2025, work permits for foreigners in Ho Chi Minh City have been issued under Decree 219/2025/ND-CP. The employer files with the HCMC People’s Committee, where the Department of Home Affairs handles the application. You can file online, in person or by post, 10 to 60 days before the planned start date. A new permit takes 10 working days and is valid for up to 2 years. Info Travel handles HCMC work permits, including for factories in former Binh Duong and Vung Tau. Contact us on WhatsApp/Zalo +84327828822.

Contents

What changed under Decree 219/2025

Decree 219/2025/ND-CP took effect on 7 August 2025 and replaced Decrees 152/2020 and 70/2023. The changes that matter most for HCMC employers:

No separate demand approval: employers used to submit a labour-demand report and wait for approval before applying. That explanation now goes into the application form itself (Form 03), which saves weeks.
Processing times: 10 working days for a new permit, 3 for a reissue and 5 for an exemption confirmation.
Extension: a permit can be extended once, for up to 2 years.
Flexible filing: online via the National Public Service Portal, in person or by post.
Wider exemptions: for example, investors contributing VND 3 billion or more.

For details, see the 2026 Vietnam work permit rules.

Who issues work permits in HCMC

Under Article 4 of Decree 219, the provincial People’s Committee issues work permits. It covers employers whose head office, branch, representative office or business location is in that province, and it may delegate the task to a specialised agency. In HCMC, the Department of Home Affairs (Sở Nội vụ) receives and processes applications. Some provinces delegate permits for companies inside industrial and export-processing zones to the zone management board. If your company is in an industrial park, check the current arrangement before you file.

Binh Duong and Ba Ria – Vung Tau merged into Ho Chi Minh City on 1 July 2025, so companies in those industrial parks now fall under HCMC.

Eligibility and job positions

The worker must be at least 18, have full legal capacity, be fit to work and not be serving a criminal sentence. Decree 219 defines four positions:

Position	Main requirement
Manager	A management title as defined in the Law on Enterprises
Executive director	At least 3 years of relevant experience
Expert	A bachelor’s degree or higher and at least 2 years of experience, or 1 year in finance, science, technology, innovation, digital transformation and priority sectors
Technical worker	At least 1 year of training plus 2 years of experience, or 3 years of experience

Documents for an HCMC work permit

The application on Form 03, which includes the explanation of why a foreign worker is needed.
A health certificate from an authorised clinic. A foreign certificate is accepted only where Vietnam recognises certificates from that country, and only within 12 months of issue. See work permit health check.
A criminal record certificate, or an equivalent confirmation, issued no more than 6 months before you file. See criminal record certificate.
Degrees, certificates and experience letters matching the position. Foreign documents need consular legalisation (unless exempt) and a notarised Vietnamese translation.
A valid passport.
Two 4×6 cm colour photos with a white background, facing forward, bare-headed and without tinted glasses.
Proof of the work arrangement, such as a planned labour contract, an assignment letter or a service contract.

Process and timeline

Step	What happens	Time
1	Gather documents from abroad (degrees, experience letters, criminal record), then legalise and translate them	Depends on the country; usually the longest step
2	Health check at an approved clinic in HCMC	About 1–2 days
3	File the application no earlier than 60 days and no later than 10 days before the planned start date	—
4	The authority reviews the file and issues the permit	10 working days
5	Sign the labour contract, then apply for the LĐ2 visa and the temporary residence card	TRC: 5 working days

To extend a permit, file at least 10 days and no more than 45 days before it expires.

Tips for factories in former Binh Duong and Vung Tau

Engineers and technicians are usually filed as experts or technical workers. Experience letters must state the position, dates and duties, and these must match the job in Vietnam.
Specialists who come for short-term installation or warranty work may be exempt from a work permit. In that case, get the exemption confirmation (5 working days) before the work starts.
Intra-company transferees need an assignment letter and proof of prior employment with the parent company, as the decree requires.
Once the permit is issued, you can file the TRC at the Immigration Office point in Thu Dau Mot or Ba Ria wards. See our HCMC temporary residence card service.

Risks of working without a permit

Press reports say Decree 283/2026/ND-CP on administrative penalties in the labour field applies from 10 September 2026. Under it:

A foreign worker without a work permit or exemption confirmation can be fined VND 15–25 million and may be deported.
Employers are fined according to how many workers are involved: VND 30–45 million for 1–10 workers, VND 45–60 million for 11–20, and VND 60–75 million for 21 or more.

Read more about the fines for working without a work permit.

Info Travel’s work permit service in HCMC

We support employers and employees from start to finish:

We assess the position and whether the worker qualifies for a permit or an exemption.
We guide you through degrees, experience letters and criminal records, then handle legalisation and notarised translation.
We prepare Form 03 and the full file, file it online, and follow up until the permit is issued.
We also handle extensions and reissues, plus LĐ visas and TRCs for workers and their families.

For an overview, see our Vietnam work permit service. Service fees depend on your case. Message us on WhatsApp/Zalo +84327828822 for a quote.