Can You Work in Vietnam?
The short answer is yes, but the legal framework hasn’t caught up to how most foreigners actually earn money here. Vietnam’s work regulations were built for traditional employment, a foreign expert hired by a Vietnamese company. They don’t accommodate digital nomads, freelancers, or remote workers whose employers are on another continent. Understanding the landscape helps you make informed decisions about how to work here legally.
Work Permits — The Official Route
If you’re employed by a company in Vietnam, either a Vietnamese company or a foreign company with a local entity, you legally need a work permit. This applies whether you’re an English teacher, a software engineer, a hotel manager, or any other role.
The Process
Your employer handles most of the paperwork, but you need to provide several documents from your home country: a criminal background check (must be apostilled or legalized), your highest degree or relevant qualification (also apostilled), a health check done at an approved hospital in Vietnam, and passport photos. Your employer then applies to the Department of Labor for the work permit, which takes 1–2 months.
Requirements
You need to demonstrate you’re a “foreign expert”, meaning you have either a bachelor’s degree plus 3 years of relevant work experience, or specific technical qualifications in your field. The rules are interpreted differently depending on the industry and the specific labor department handling your case. Some employers have HR departments or legal consultants who navigate this routinely.
Work Permit Duration and Renewal
Work permits are valid for up to 2 years and are tied to your employer. If you change jobs, you need a new work permit through your new employer. Renewal requires going through much of the same process again, though it’s generally faster the second time because your documents are already in the system.
Teaching English
Teaching English is the most common way foreigners work legally in Vietnam. The demand is massive as English language education is a priority for Vietnamese families, and qualified teachers are always needed.
Requirements
Most reputable language centers and international schools require a TEFL/TESOL/CELTA certificate (120 hours minimum), a bachelor’s degree in any subject, and a clean criminal background check. Higher qualifications (master’s degree, teaching license from your home country) open doors to better-paying positions at international schools.
Salary Range
Language center teaching: 35–50 million VND ($1,400–2,000) per month for full-time positions. International school teaching: 50–100+ million VND ($2,000–4,000+) per month depending on qualifications and experience. Private tutoring: 400,000–800,000 VND ($16–32) per hour. Many teachers combine center work with private students to maximize income.
The Reality
Teaching in Vietnam can be a great experience, but it’s also an industry with quality issues. Some centers overwork teachers, delay pay, or operate in legal gray areas. Research schools thoroughly, talk to current and former teachers, and never accept a position that doesn’t provide a work permit. Working without a permit puts you at risk of fines, deportation, and makes it difficult to resolve any disputes with your employer.
Remote Work — The Gray Area
A large and growing number of foreigners in Vietnam work remotely for companies outside the country. They enter on e-visas or tourist visas, do visa runs every 90 days, and earn their income entirely from abroad. This is the reality of the digital nomad scene in Vietnam.
Is It Legal?
Vietnam doesn’t have a digital nomad visa or any formal legal framework for remote workers. You’re not employed in Vietnam, so work permit requirements don’t apply in the traditional sense. But you’re also not really a tourist if you’re living here for months or years. It’s a gray area. It is not explicitly prohibited, not explicitly permitted.
In practice, immigration authorities are aware of this population and generally don’t target remote workers who maintain valid visa status and aren’t competing with Vietnamese workers for local jobs. But this tolerance is informal and could change.
Tax Considerations
If you spend 183 or more days in Vietnam in a calendar year, you may be considered a Vietnamese tax resident. Vietnamese personal income tax rates range from 5% to 35%. In practice, enforcement on foreign remote workers earning from overseas is currently minimal but the legal obligation exists. Consult a tax professional if your situation is complex or you’re earning significant income.
Freelancing
Freelancing for Vietnamese clients while in Vietnam does technically require a work permit or business license. Many freelancers work through offshore structures or simply operate informally. This is another area where the legal framework hasn’t caught up to reality.
If you want to freelance legally, the options include setting up a Vietnamese company (complex and expensive), working through a third-party employer of record (companies like Deel or Remote handle compliance), or freelancing only for clients outside Vietnam while on an e-visa (the gray area approach most freelancers take).
Starting a Business
Vietnam allows foreigners to own businesses, but the process is heavily regulated. You can own 100% of certain types of companies (particularly in services, technology, and education), while other industries have foreign ownership caps. Setting up a company requires a Vietnamese registered office, minimum capital requirements (varies by industry), an investment registration certificate, and a business registration certificate.
The process typically takes 2–4 months and costs $2,000–5,000 in legal and setup fees. Having a reliable Vietnamese business partner or a good legal advisor is almost essential. The bureaucracy is real, but thousands of foreigners successfully run businesses in Vietnam.
Coworking Spaces
Regardless of how you work, Saigon has an excellent coworking scene. Popular spaces include Dreamplex, CirCO, The Hive, and numerous independent cafe-workspaces throughout the city. Monthly memberships range from 1.5–4 million VND ($60–160). Many offer day passes for 150,000–300,000 VND ($6–12).
If you’re a remote worker, coworking spaces solve the main challenges: reliable fast internet, air conditioning, a professional environment for calls, and a social community of other working professionals. Many of Saigon’s strongest expat friendships start at coworking spaces.
The Bottom Line
If you’re coming to Vietnam to work for a local employer, you need to get a work permit. It protects you legally and gives you access to benefits like the Temporary Residence Card. If you’re working remotely for a company abroad, understand the gray area you’re operating in and make sure your visa status is always current. Don’t let the legal complexity discourage you. Thousands of foreigners work productively in Vietnam every day, and the system, while imperfect, is generally navigable with a bit of research and common sense.