Written By PLF Law Firm
“Labor legislation stipulates cases in which foreign employees need not apply for work permit; one of which is those who are reassigned within an enterprise operating in 11 service sectors under Viet Nam’s service commitments to the World Trade Organization (WTO).“
Accordingly, the scope of 11 service sectors in Viet Nam’s service commitments to WTO includes:
- Business
- Communication
- Construction
- Distribution
- Education
- Environment
- Finance
- Healthcare
- Tourism
- Entertainment
- Transportation
The basics used to determine foreign employees that are reassigned within an enterprise operating in the abovementioned service sectors consist of:
- The foreign enterprise has already established its commercial presence in the territory of Viet Nam.
- The foreign enterprise’s commercial presence in Viet Nam operates within the 11 service sectors correspondingly to each job position.
- Foreign nationals have been employed by the foreign enterprise for at least 12 months before being appointed to work at the commercial presence of such enterprise in Viet Nam.
According to provisions of law, a commercial presence of a foreign enterprise in Viet Nam includes the forms of business cooperation contracts, joint ventures, wholly foreign-invested enterprises, representative offices, and branches of foreign enterprises.
The documentation needed to prove that a foreign employee falls into the case of being reassigned within a company and is, therefore, exempt from applying for work permit includes:
- A written document issued by the foreign enterprise assigning such employee to work at the enterprise’s commercial presence in Viet Nam with specified duration of work.
- A written statement certifying that such employee is a manager, executive officer, expert, or technical worker.
- A written document proving that such employee has been employed by the foreign enterprise for at least 12 months before being sent to work at the company’s commercial presence in Viet Nam.
- A written document proving that the foreign enterprise’s commercial presence in Viet Nam operates in the service sectors as provided for by law, which can be specified in any of the following documents: Investment License, Investment Certificate, Business Registration Certificate, Representative Office or Branch Establishment License issued by competent authorities.
The aforementioned documentation shall, if written in foreign languages, be exempt from consular legalization but must be translated into Vietnamese and authenticated in accordance with the provisions of Vietnamese law.
