Job Discussion Forums

[feemtwo]

I am American and I would like to come teach English in Hanoi. I have seen a lot of discussion about the background check authentication process that Americans are required to follow when applying for a work permit in Vietnam. My two questions are:

1) Is authentication of the background check *really* necessary to get a work permit? I am NOT asking whether a work permit is necessary for teaching in Vietnam, or whether a background check is necessary for getting a work permit, just whether I must get my existing background check authenticated in order to receive a work permit.

2) If the answer to #1 is YES, can anyone please let me know whether it is possible to hire a company in Vietnam to handle the authentication of my existing FBI check for me.

I have my FBI background check and California Department of State background check in hand (I'm in Thailand) and I really don't want to go through the hassle of sending the FBI check back to the States to get it authenticated, if that's even possible.

Also - I saw the sticky on this topic, but I did not see my two specific questions answered *recently* (i.e., in 2008). I know that things change over time so I would appreciate updated answers to the above.

Thank you for your replies!!

[menso35]

Take this with a grain of salt. I just went through the process about two weeks ago. Here is what I had to do:

1. Get my police report and copy of my degree notarized (in LA county)
2. Go to the LA County Registrar Recorder to have the notary's commission authenticated.
3. Drove from Norwalk to downtown LA to have the notary's commission and county seal authenticated by the state. You can mail it directly to the state and bypass the county, but I didn't have time for that.
4. Next day I overnighted it with a prepaid overnight return envelope to DC, and still waiting on its return.

I am pretty sure authentication is a must for us dirty, fat Americans. The only problem you have right now is getting the initial notarization done. The rest could be done via mail, albeit it would be expensive. I think there are companies that will handle the process for you. But again, the initial notarization is the problem, which must be done in person by a notary commissioned in the US. I couldn't imagine our anal government would authenticate a notary from a foreign country. I hope I didn't rain on your parade. Clear as mud as they say. I am almost at the point of giving up and thinking it's not worth it.

Like I said, take this with a large pillar of salt.

[rico4444]

I've been told by a very reliable source in VN that the laws changed as recently as last week. If you live in VN for 6 months, you can bypass all that nonsense. I was told that you can go to VN on a 30-day tourist visa, then apply for a business visa and you can stay in VN for 1 year. It may not get you a work visa but the business visa is sufficient. Many schools accept this. Then, after you've been in VN for 6 months, the CRC becomes moot.

Are there any experienced teachers in VN who can verify what I've said? I'll be there in a few months and would like to know if my info is correct. My "reliable source" is in fact in a position of authority at a well-known school in Hanoi but a 2nd opinion would be appreciated.

[spycatcher reincarnated]

There have been a few laws/decrees/official letters recently that have related to the employment of foreigners and issuance of work permits for foreigners. Most newspaper headlines have summarised these as making the process easier, however, there have definitely been some clauses that appear to have made the processes more difficult, at least for some.

Because a new ruling has been issued it doesn�t necessarily mean anything will happen or that this won�t be rescinded or changed some time later.

In HCM City it has generally become easier for foreigners to obtain work permits since a decree (or whatever it was) was published a couple of months ago. The decree didn�t really appear to be that helpful, but the attitude of the Department of Labor has changed and this is more important than what is written on a piece of paper.

Over the past few days I have heard from a few different sources (which probably generated from at least 2 independent sources in Hanoi) that the Police Clearance Certificate (PCC�s) will no longer be needed to obtain a work permit. I must admit that I find this hard to believe as it was only a month or so ago that the government accepted misdemeanors on PCC�s as being acceptable for the work permit application. We will have to wait and see what happens.

Regardless of this, I feel that reputable employers should still require foreign staff to produce a PCC so that they know/have a reasonable indication that they are not criminals. Employers do have a responsibilty for the actions of their foreign staff, both in and out of work, whilst they are in Vietnam (in law, this responsibility is very vague). In my opinion this requirement for a foreign PCC is particularly important when we are talking about people who are teaching children. I would also imagine that if the PCC weren�t a prerequisite for the work permit and only needed to satisfy the employer, the employer would only require the PCC to be to their liking and there would probably be no need to go through the often nightmarish and expensive procedures of getting these notorised.

Yes, there was something in a recent ruling that stated if a foreigner had been in Vietnam for more than 6 months then, in order to obtain a work permit, they wouldn�t have to supply the overseas PCC and the Vietnamese PCC would suffice. It should also be noted that in the same ruling it said something to the affect that if a foreigner had been working in the country for more than 6 months without a work permit they could be deported. So I suppose in theory when you apply for your Vietnamese PCC this is a good chance for them to deport you. I don�t know how or if this Vietnamsese PCC is actually working, but have heard that they have recently made the process for getting the Vietnamese PCC easier.

I have never heard of a case of a foreigner being deported for not having a work permit, unless the authorities were really using it as an excuse for getting a foreigner out of the country for other reasons. It is inevitable that work permits for foreigners will become more of a necessity in Vietnam and if the government is genuinely making it easier to get them this suggests to me that they will at some stage clamp down on foreign employees that don't have them, and maybe their employers as well.

It should also be noted that historically prerequisites for work permits, and just about everything else, have differed considerably between HCM City, Hanoi and other cities.

I advise foreigners to get your PCC from your home country as early as possible, but for now I would hold off from getting it notorised unless this is easy to do, or your employer is insisting on it.

[feemtwo]

Wow - thank you all for the great posts! I spoke with a potential employer today who said that, as long as I have my documents in hand (which I do, including PCC), it is just a matter of them handling the back-and-forth mailing to the States to get them authenticated. This makes me feel much better

[deessell2]

[feemtwo]

The recruiter who interviewed me told me about this change... just in time for my arrival in VN! I'm glad the US Embassy is finally able to provide this service for its citizens in Hanoi.

[highfive]

menso35-How long did it take once DC had your package to send it to you? I am wondering if they would send it directly to the Embassy in D.C. of destination country instead of back to L.A.