On 30th December 2020, the Government adopted the Decree No.152/2020/ND-CP regulating foreign workers working in Vietnam and recruiting and managing Vietnamese employees working for foreign organizations and foreign individuals in Vietnam (hereinafter referred to as "Decree 152"). Decree 152 will take effect from February 15, 2021. We would like to highlight some notable changes as follows:
1. From February 15, 2021, the work permit can be extended once for a further period of 02 years only.
2. Foreigner employees who have at least 5 years of experience and practice certificates suitable to the job positions expected to work in Vietnam will be considered experts.
3. Foreigner employees who have at least 5 years of experience suitable to the job positions they are expected to work in Vietnam will be considered as technicians.
4. The employed time of foreign workers internally reassigned in the company are the managers, chief executive officers, experts and technicians of a foreign enterprise which has established a commercial presence in Vietnam operating in the fields of business, information, trading, education, environment, finance, medicine, tourism, entertainment and transportation, are temporarily reassigned within the same enterprise to its commercial presence in Vietnam, at least 12 consecutive months.
5. Foreign employee is the Chairman of the Board of Directors or the member of the Board of Directors of the joint stock company or member of a limited liability company having capital from 3 billion VND upward shall be exempted from work permit.
6. Foreign employees entering Vietnam to work as a manager, executive director, expert or technical worker technicians whose working time of less than 30 days and not more than 03 times per year shall be exempted from work permit.
7. From February 2021, the employer will report the use of foreign workers for the first 6 months and annually before July 5 and January 5 of the following year.
