Job Discussion Forums

[Themata]

I'm a little confused about the work permit process. As I understand it, the police check, degree, and tefl certificate have to be notarised at your embassy/consulate but do these also have to be sent back to your home country to be "authenticated"? If so, I would like to do it all before I arrive in Vietnam since I haven't heard good things about their postal service. If they only have to be notarised as a true copy I won't bother getting them authenticated. Thanks everyone.

[proudlyfilipino]

You have those original docs (or in some cases, certified true copy) authenticated both by the Vietnam Embassy and the Foreign Affairs Dept (or whichever agency is in charge of that) in your country. It'll save you time and money if you get this process accomplished before coming to Vietnam.

[Themata]

Thanks for confirmation. The stickied thread on work permits only mentions notarisation and authentication at Vietnam's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

[Themata]

Also, wondering if tesl certificates have to be notarised and authenticated as well or just university degrees?

[TRH]

At the risk of sounding contrary to conventional wisdom, I now think that it is better to have your TEFL and Bachelor's diplomas certified when you get here. I had my TEFL and university transcript done by the Viet Embassy in DC along with all the multiple preceding steps (notary, State government, US Dept of State.) If you walk your documents locally, you still have to send them to DC (or your capital) twice and each leg is a pair of $35 Express Mail envelopes so you are out $140 for postage alone, before fees. When I went to use them here, I found that the Viet Embassy had certified them but failed to translate them. Since translating the transcript would have been both expensive and unnecessary, I had my Diploma notarized at the US consulate and both translated and certified by the Viet government at another office at Alex. Des Rhodes (sp?) This is several steps easier than doing it in the US or, I would think, any other home country. My cost here for a lawyer to handle my work permit was US$200 which was less than I had put out for certifications in the US that had to be redone.

I might add that you also do not need a transcript for a work permit. You may if you are seeking a higher level job as at a university, but that is between you and the employer and they should accept it as is.

The exception to the above would be the police check which you must get, and certify, at home unless you are in Vietnam for more than 6 months. If you have been here more than 6 months you will be faced with the "Catch-22" of "have you been working illegally?"

[JDpushing50]

TRH said:

{The exception to the above would be the police check which you must get, and certify, at home unless you are in Vietnam for more than 6 months. If you have been here more than 6 months you will be faced with the "Catch-22" of "have you been working illegally?}

I have an update about the police check. According to the Vietnamese business manager (a smart lady) at my most recent former employer (some of you just might know who that is), the '6-month' local police check in Vietnam is absolutely no longer adequate (as of Nov.1 last year). You MUST now get a police check from your home country and go through the same notarization/authentication/translation process that you do for your degrees. From October-December I had just done the last step in my work permit process, which for me was the local police check. When she went to process my work permit because I finally had 'everything' needed, she learned that the law in this regard had changed. No doubt, make sure you get your police check before you come here. I don't know how the new law affects people who already have work permits. I do know, however, that fortunately the Vietnamese interpretation of a foreign police check is rather liberal -- by that I mean that for me, an L.A. county sheriff's clearance letter (basically saying I have no wants or warrants) suffices -- no need for an FBI or state level police check.

[RufusWoodwark]

[ExpatLuke]

No, it doesn't need to notarized/authorized in home country. You can get it authorized at your embassy in Vietnam and then stamped at another Vietnamese office which you NEED to do anyways.

Yes you need a police check from your home country, but all the stamps it needs can be done in country. I just printed a basic police check I received in my email from my state's sheriff department, and it was sufficient.

[RufusWoodwark]

Thanks a lot!

[jrizbriz]

My partner and I have just arrived in HCMC, having spent 6 months teaching in Thailand. However, both of our police checks are dated March 2015, so are now 7 months old. Once we find work, in order to get work permits, we understand that we need a police check from our home country (U.K) issued within the last 6 months. Does anybody know roughly how long it would take for a new police check to be processed and sent to us from the UK to Vietnam? Also, what is the cost? Do we need to get our degrees notarised at a Vietnamese embassy in the UK and at Vietnam's Ministry of Foreign Affairs?

[bule_boy69]

[TRH]

[ExpatLuke]

The VN criminal check is no longer sufficient. You definitely need one from your home country now.

It makes total sense. Why would they only require a criminal check from within Vietnam if you've spent the majority of your life in another country, possibly committing crimes.

So everyone should come with a recent criminal record check. If you've lived in VN for more than 6 months, you will need both the check from your home country and a VN check.

[ord2world]

Quick question...I'm planning on starting work this August in Hanoi. I had my U.S. state police background check and degree notarized in August 2015. I'm currently in Spain and plan on going straight to Vietnam. Any idea if my notarized background check and degree will still be accepted by the time I arrive in Vietnam?

Thank you!

[TRH]