Consular Legalization of Work Permit Application Documents in Vietnam

The consular legalization of work permit application documents in Vietnam is one of the important steps when preparing a work permit for foreign workers. Many documents issued by foreign agencies and organizations are only accepted for use after carrying out the procedure for legalization of foreign documents for work permit in Vietnam. Understanding the regulations on work permit application documents will help enterprises and employees avoid errors, save time, and ensure that the work permit documents in Vietnam are received and processed smoothly by competent authorities.

What is consular legalization?

According to Clause 2, Article 2 of Decree 111/2011/ND-CP, “consular legalization” is the competent Vietnamese agency’s certification of stamps, signatures, and titles on foreign papers and documents so that such papers and documents are recognized and used in Vietnam.

By nature, consular legalization is only the certification of stamps, signatures, and titles on papers and documents, and does not encompass the certification of the content and format of papers and documents.

Which work permit application documents need consular legalization?

According to Article 18 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP, a dossier requesting the license includes:

• Explanation & request document: Form No. 03 (report on the demand for using foreign workers and request for granting).
• Health certificate: Issued by a qualified medical facility (valid for under 12 months if foreign); exempt if already on the national data system.
• Passport: Original or valid copy.
• Criminal record certificate: Issued by Vietnam or a foreign country (valid for no more than 6 months); exempt if interconnected procedures have been carried out.
• Portrait photos: 02 color photos (size 4×6 cm, white background, no glasses).
• Documents proving the form of working: Depending on each case (position/type).
• Documents proving qualifications/titles: Diplomas, certificates, experience confirmations proving the status as a Manager, Executive Director, Expert, or Technical Worker.

At the same time, according to Article 6 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP, the documents in the work permit application documents for foreign workers, if from a foreign country, must be consularly legalized, except for cases exempt from consular legalization according to an international treaty to which Vietnam and the relevant foreign country are members, or on the principle of reciprocity, or according to the provisions of law.

Thus, the papers that usually require the procedure of legalization of foreign documents for work permit include:

• Health certificates issued by foreign countries;
• Foreign criminal record certificates;
• Professional diplomas and certificates, confirmations of work experience, appointment decisions, letters of dispatch to Vietnam for work, and other documents proving the job position or professional capacity of foreign workers.

Which documents in the Vietnam work permit application documents are exempt from consular legalization?

Based on Article 9 of Decree 111/2011/ND-CP, amended by Clause 7, Article 1 of Decree 196/2025/ND-CP, there are 4 types of papers and documents exempt from consular legalization, including:

• Papers and documents exempt from consular legalization under international treaties to which Vietnam and the relevant foreign country are both members, or on the principle of reciprocity.
• Papers and documents transferred directly or through diplomatic channels between the competent Vietnamese agencies and the competent foreign agencies.
• Papers and documents exempt from consular legalization according to Vietnamese laws.
• Foreign papers and documents that the competent Vietnamese state agencies do not require consular legalization on the basis that those agencies can verify their authenticity themselves.

Thus, not all foreign papers used in the work permit documents in Vietnam strictly require consular legalization. In practice, many types of documents can be exempt from this procedure if they fall into the above cases.

For example: A criminal record certificate or degree issued by a competent agency of a country that has signed an international treaty with Vietnam on exemption from consular legalization can be used directly as prescribed by that treaty; or some electronic documents that the Vietnamese state agencies can verify the authenticity themselves through data systems and official information exchange mechanisms may also not need to carry out consular legalization procedures.

Procedure for consular legalization of work permit application documents in Vietnam

According to Article 14 and Article 15 of Decree 111/2011/ND-CP, amended by Decree 196/2025/ND-CP, the sequence and procedure for consular legalization are as follows:

Dossier components

General components

• Declaration form for consular legalization according to the prescribed form;
• For direct submission: present the original or a copy of the Citizen Identity Card/Identity Card/Identity Certificate or Passport, immigration documents/international travel documents that are still valid, or present electronic identity;
• For submission via postal service: submit 01 copy of the Citizen Identity Card/Identity Card/Identity Certificate or Passport, immigration documents/international travel documents that are still valid. Copies of the papers specified in this clause are photocopies from the originals and do not need to be certified;

At domestic competent authorities

• Papers and documents requested for consular legalization, which have been certified by foreign diplomatic missions, consular offices, or other foreign agencies authorized to perform consular functions;
• 01 translation of the papers and documents requested for consular legalization into Vietnamese or English, if such papers and documents are not made in these languages;
• 01 photocopy of the papers and documents mentioned in point d to be kept at the domestic competent authority.

At Vietnamese representative missions abroad

• Papers and documents requested for consular legalization, which have been certified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or other competent foreign agencies or foreign representative missions where the Representative Mission or concurrent Representative Mission is located;
• 01 translation of the papers and documents requested for consular legalization into Vietnamese, English, or a foreign language that the receiving officer can understand, if such papers and documents are not made in these languages;
• 01 photocopy of the papers and documents mentioned in point d to be kept at the Representative Mission.

Processing time

Requesters for consular certification or consular legalization submit dossiers directly or online via the National Public Service Portal using electronic identity accounts.

The competent authorities carry out consular legalization on the basis of comparing stamps, signatures, and titles in the certification of the competent foreign agencies on papers and documents with the specimen stamps, specimen signatures, and titles officially notified by that country to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs/Representative Missions.

• The processing time is 01 working day from the date of receiving a complete and valid dossier for cases where the dossier has from 01 to 04 papers and documents.
• If the dossier has from 05 to 09 papers and documents, the processing time shall not exceed 02 working days.
• If the dossier has 10 or more papers and documents, the processing time may be longer but not exceeding 04 working days.

Documents frequently rejected during the consular legalization of work permit application documents in Vietnam

Not all foreign papers and documents are accepted for consular legalization by competent authorities. According to Article 10 of Decree 111/2011/ND-CP, amended and supplemented by Decree 196/2025/ND-CP, some types of documents frequently rejected for consular legalization include:

• Papers and documents that are modified or erased but not corrected in accordance with the law.
• Papers and documents that are forged according to the conclusion of a competent authority or are created, issued, or certified wrongly, ultra vires, or forged according to the reply or verification results of the agency creating, issuing, or certifying such papers and documents, or the higher-level state management agency of the agency creating, issuing, or certifying such papers and documents.
• Papers and documents containing signatures and stamps that are not original signatures and original stamps for non-electronic papers and documents, except for cases meeting the provisions of relevant laws.
• Papers and documents whose contents infringe upon the interests of the Vietnamese State.
• Electronic versions of papers and documents that lack the digital signature of the competent agency or person, failing to ensure data integrity, authenticity, and non-repudiation in accordance with regulations on electronic transactions, digital signatures, and electronic documents.

Therefore, before carrying out the consular legalization procedure for the dossier, foreign workers and enterprises should carefully review the validity of the documents to avoid wasting time and incurring costs for reprocessing the dossier.

Consular legalization services of Viet An Law Firm

Consular legalization is an important procedure so that documents issued by foreign agencies and organizations are recognized and legally used in Vietnam. For foreign workers applying for a work permit, documents such as degrees, professional certificates, experience confirmations, criminal records, health certificates, or documents proving working capacity usually must be consularly legalized, translated, and certified according to regulations before being submitted to competent authorities.

With experience in labor law consulting, and carrying out licensing procedures for foreigners in Vietnam, Viet An Law Firm provides comprehensive consular legalization services, supporting clients in reviewing documents, identifying documents that need legalization, guiding dossier preparation abroad, conducting notarized translation, and completing the dossier for issuance.

The services of Viet An Law Firm help enterprises, schools, foreign language centers, and foreign workers save time, limit the risk of dossiers being returned due to missing consular legalization, incorrect translations, or non-compliant certifications. We accompany you from the initial dossier check step to the completion of a valid dossier to submit for the licensing procedure in Vietnam.

Some related questions

How much are the state fees for consular legalization?

According to Article 5 of Circular 157/2016/TT-BTC stipulating the collection rates of state fees for consular legalization, as follows:

• Consular certification: 30,000 (thirty thousand) VND/time.
• Consular legalization: 30,000 (thirty thousand) VND/time.

Issuing copies of papers and documents: 5,000 (five thousand) VND/time.

Note: Consular certification and consular legalization state fees are collected in Vietnamese Dong (VND). Consular certification and consular legalization state fees are exempted for foreign organizations and individuals based on diplomatic relations “on the principle of reciprocity”.

Is consular legalization mandatory for all foreign documents?

No. Only foreign documents belonging to the application components need to be consularly legalized, unless exempted under international treaties, the principle of reciprocity, or Vietnamese laws.

After consular legalization, is notarized translation required?

Yes. Documents in foreign languages used in the application usually must be translated into Vietnamese and have the translation certified according to regulations before being submitted to the competent authority.

Do health certificates issued by foreign countries require consular legalization?

Usually, yes. In cases where the health certificate is issued abroad and used in the application, it must be consularly legalized, unless it falls under an exemption case.

Do foreign criminal record certificates require consular legalization?

Yes. Criminal record certificates issued by competent foreign authorities usually must be consularly legalized before use in Vietnam, unless exempted.

With experience in labor law consulting and carrying out licensing procedures for foreign workers in Vietnam, Viet An Law Firm supports clients in reviewing dossiers, advising on suitable handling plans for each type of document, performing consular legalization procedures, notarized translation, and completing the procedures quickly and efficiently, helping enterprises save time and ensure compliance with current legal regulations.