Latest Requirements to Teach in Vietnam

Expatriate teachers often possess proficient language skills and extensive expertise. Therefore, there has been an increased demand for these teachers in educational institutions and businesses in Vietnam. However, to ensure a lawful employment period, it is recommended that you understand and adhere to the latest requirements to teach in Vietnam for expatriate teachers.

Requirements to Teach in Viet Nam

Foreign teachers must meet the following requirements to legally teach in Vietnam: 

General requirements:

1. ● Aged 18 or older with full legal act capacity
2. ● Employment at Vietnamese educational institutions legally approved to employ foreigners.
3. ● Received a Vietnam work permit issued by a competent authority (excluding exempted cases when the individual is: Sent to Vietnam to teach at schools under the management of foreign diplomatic missions/international organizations in Vietnam, confirmed by the Ministry of Education and Training to participate in teaching in Vietnam).
4. ● Sponsored by an educational institution in Vietnam
5. ● Hold all the necessary documents substantiating professional qualifications and experience
6. ● Hold a health examination certificate that meets the standards of the Ministry of Health
7. ● Hold a clean legal record, without any ongoing criminal prosecution, pending expungement, or current incarceration. 

How to teach English in Vietnam for foreigners? Expatriates looking to teach English in Vietnam are also required to meet at least one of the following criteria: 

1. ● Hold at least a bachelor’s degree in language pedagogy
2. ● Hold at least a bachelor’s degree in language and a corresponding valid language teaching certificate.
3. ● Hold at least a bachelor’s degree in any major, a certificate of level 5 or higher in the Vietnamese Standardized Test of Language Proficiency or its equivalent, and a corresponding valid language teaching certificate.

Latest regulations for foreign teachers

If an expatriate teacher is found to be without a work permit, they will be required to leave Vietnam or face legal consequences. Therefore, both employees and employers are obligated to adhere to the regulations on recruiting foreign teachers.

Regarding the employing organizations

1. ● Have a valid business license or certificate of incorporation
2. ● Justify employment needs and receive written approval from a competent authority. 
3. ● Before recruiting and officially employing an expatriate teacher, it is necessary to provide specific declarations on the following: Job position, academic qualifications, work experience, employment duration, and approval documents from a competent authority. 

Regarding the expatriate teachers

1. ● Obtain an official invitation and a work sponsorship from businesses, schools, and educational institutions (licensed by the Department of Education and Training).
2. ● Meet all the requirements regarding: Age, legal record, work permit, health.
3. ● Hold all the required degrees, certificates, and work experience confirmation papers, etc. for the corresponding position of teaching
4. ● Comply with the rights and obligations as stated in the labor contract
5. ● Extend the labor contract upon its expiration in 2 years if intend to continue teaching in Vietnam.

In addition, expats in Vietnam may need to go through the procedure of converting your driver’s license to a Vietnamese one in order to participate in traffic. You should also thoroughly learn about this procedure to ensure compliance with local regulations.

Procedures For Hiring Foreign Teachers

Procedures for recruiting foreign teachers in compliance with Vietnamese law will include the following steps:

1. Step 1: Search for teachers
2. Step 2: Apply for a Vietnam Work Visa
3. Step 3: Apply for official approval to employ an expatriate at least 30 days before the intended date of employment.
4. Step 4: Apply for a work permit for foreign teachers, the processing time is approximately 10-15 days.
5. Step 5: Sign a legal written contract with the expatriate teacher before the scheduled work date (after a work permit has been granted) 
6. Step 6: Submit the original or notarized copy of the signed labor contract to the issuing authority of the work permit.

Where Can I Find Reliable Translation Services For A Work Permit Application?

When applying for a work permit for foreign teachers, documents and papers that are not in Vietnamese must be professionally translated and certified. Documents to be translated include: 

1. ● Work permit request form
2. ● Letter of approval for employing an expatriate teacher
3. ● Business license of the employing organization
4. ● A copy and a translation of the passport
5. ● Academic degrees, certificates, and documents substantiating relevant teaching experience.
6. ● Health examination certificate
7. ● Criminal record check

The translation and notarization of various documents in the application require a high level of accuracy. Any mistakes that occur can potentially affect the approval outcome. Therefore, you should choose reputable translation services to entrust your documents. 

To obtain accurate translations with legal validity, you can contact the translation company Thao & Co. With many years of experience in providing notarized translation services for legal and administrative documents, we are committed to delivering the best experience: 

1. ● Speedy delivery within 24 hours for standard documents
2. ● Accurate translations in the original format with complete legal validity.
3. ● Professional translations handled by seasoned translators with proficient language skills and extensive experience across over 50 languages. We can handle English, Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, German translation, and many more.
4. ● Commitment to complete confidentiality for all information.
5. ● Access to Thao & Co.’s proprietary platform for more convenient monitoring of project progress and interaction with our translators.
6. ● Competitive service fees, detailed and quick quotation

We hope that the aforementioned information can help you understand the procedures and requirements to teach in Vietnam. If you are interested in the translation services at Thao & Co., please leave your information on our Get A Quote page for prompt assistance. 

Wrapping up

In the era of global integration, employing foreign labor is becoming an increasingly popular practice among businesses and educational institutions. To avoid getting buried under red tape, carefully research local regulations and make plans in advance to leave adequate time to prepare and await approval.

We hope that this article has provided you with some useful information about the requirements to teach in Vietnam.