Citizeo
Pathway

Vietnam Work Visa

Vietnam Residency
Pathway overview

At a glance

Vietnam's LĐ2 status is for a foreign worker with a Vietnamese work permit; LĐ1 is for a worker whose work-permit exemption has been established under the applicable procedure. A real Vietnamese employer or host normally drives the filing, and the worker must fit an exact manager, executive, expert, technical-worker, or exemption category.

LĐ2
Worker with an approved Vietnamese work permit
LĐ1
Worker whose work-permit exemption has been established
Maximum duration
Work permit, LĐ visa, and LĐ residence card generally up to 2 years
Long-term status
No general permanent-residence conversion based only on employment
Salary requirement
No universal immigration salary threshold in Decree 219
Job offer required?
Yes; a Vietnamese employer or host normally drives the filing

Summary

Foreign nationals working in Vietnam generally need two related but distinct things: lawful permission to work and an immigration document that permits the corresponding stay.

The Vietnamese employer or host drives the labor filing. A person cannot qualify only by having education or experience; there must be a real Vietnamese job, assignment, contract, or other work form recognized by Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP. The employer's filing now combines its explanation of the need for a foreign worker with the work-permit request.

A work permit can be valid for up to two years. The current Labor Code permits one extension, also for no more than two years, when the extension conditions are met. LĐ1 and LĐ2 visas and Temporary Residence Cards have statutory ceilings of two years, but the actual document may be shorter because of the passport, employment or assignment, work permit or exemption, and other supporting records.

Pathway fit check

Eligibility

The worker must fit both a recognized form of work and a qualifying role. Common forms include a Vietnamese labor contract, an intra-company transfer, performance of a contract or agreement, contractual service supply, assignment from a foreign organization, work for a foreign non-governmental organization or international organization, volunteering, or another form listed in Decree No. 219. The exact form determines which assignment, employer, and contract evidence is required.

For an ordinary work permit, the role is usually one of the following:

These are alternatives, not one universal bachelor's-degree rule. A manager or executive uses role evidence; a technical worker may qualify through the technical tests. The proposed position and the documents must tell the same story.

The standard work-permit dossier includes the employer's combined explanation/request, a valid passport, photographs, evidence of the work form and role, a health certificate, and a criminal-record document. Under the current decree:

The provincial People's Committee has authority over work permits and work-permit-exemption confirmations, with local delegation possible. If the worker will work for one employer in several provinces, the authority where the employer has its headquarters handles the filing under the current rules. The authority has ten working days after receiving a complete work-permit dossier to consider the need and issue the permit; an incomplete or inconsistent file can restart the practical timeline.

Work-permit exemptions are specific. Examples include an owner/member of a limited liability company or board chair/member of a joint-stock company with a contribution of at least VND 3 billion; a qualifying intra-company transferee in one of Vietnam's 11 WTO service sectors who has worked for the foreign enterprise for at least 12 continuous months; and a manager, executive, expert, or technical worker coming for a total of less than 90 days in a calendar year. For that short-term group, the employer or host must notify the competent authority at least three working days before the person starts work. Decree 219 also allows an exemption for a person confirmed by a ministry, ministerial-level agency, or provincial People's Committee to work in finance, science, technology, innovation, national digital transformation, or another priority socio-economic field. Other exemption groups have their own evidence and procedures.

What This Route Allows

An approved work permit allows the named worker to perform the authorized work for the employer, form of work, position, and period recorded in the permit. A confirmed exemption allows work within that exemption's facts and limits. The associated LĐ2 or LĐ1 visa or Temporary Residence Card permits the corresponding entry and temporary residence.

An LĐ1 or LĐ2 holder can support TT family status for a spouse and child under 18, subject to relationship, sponsor, passport, and immigration documents. Family members need their own work authorization if they will work.

The status can continue while the employment and underlying authorization remain valid. A work permit can be extended only once; a later continuation requires the correct new-permit process. Extensions, replacement documents, or new filings must be made under the current procedure before the relevant document expires.

What This Route Is Not

A job offer alone does not authorize work. A business or visitor visa does not substitute for a work permit or exemption, and a work permit does not by itself create the visa or Temporary Residence Card needed for the stay.

The “expert” label is not based on job title alone. The degree, experience, proposed duties, and employer filing must satisfy the exact rule. Likewise, working fewer than 90 days is not an informal exception: the person must fit the qualifying role, stay below the calendar-year total, and complete the required notification.

Authorization is not freely transferable. A change of employer requires a new work-permit process. Under Decree No. 219, even a change of job position or form of work with the same employer requires a new work permit; other changes may require reissuance or another specified procedure.

Finally, ordinary employment does not create a general permanent-residence route after a set number of years. Vietnam's permanent-residence law lists separate categories, such as specified scientist/expert, meritorious, and Vietnamese-family cases. LĐ time is temporary residence and does not start the five-year Permanent Residence Card period required for standard naturalization.

Next Steps

  1. Secure a concrete Vietnamese role or assignment. Identify the employer or host, work location or locations, duties, start date, and legal form of work.
  2. Choose the role definition from the law. Map the job to manager, executive director, expert, or technical worker and list the evidence for that exact definition.
  3. Check exemptions before preparing a permit file. Require a written clause-level analysis. If an exemption applies, confirm whether a formal confirmation, advance notification, or another procedure is required.
  4. Build the time-sensitive documents. Coordinate the criminal record, health certificate, passport, photographs, work-form records, degree/training records, and experience letters so none expire before filing.
  5. Legalize and translate correctly. Ask the filing authority which foreign documents are exempt and which need consular legalization and certified Vietnamese translation. Do not assume an apostille alone is sufficient.
  6. Have the employer file through the competent province. The employer submits the combined foreign-worker-need explanation and permit request. Allow time to correct mismatched duties, dates, names, or locations.
  7. Complete the immigration step separately. After the work permit or exemption basis is ready, obtain the matching LĐ2 or LĐ1 visa or Temporary Residence Card through the immigration process.
  8. Report later changes before working under them. A new employer, position, work form, location pattern, or passport can require a new or updated labor and immigration document.
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