Since Decree No. 219/2025/ND-CP officially came into effect (August 7, 2025), the procedures for applying for work permits for foreign workers have been significantly standardized, especially in the "Information on expected employment" section of Form No. 01 and Form No. 03.
According to the new regulations, businesses are required to clearly declare job positions using the 3-digit occupational code based on the Vietnamese Occupational Classification List issued with Decision No. 34/2020/QD-TTg. However, in practice, this very requirement has become a major bottleneck, causing:
- There is a lack of consistent interpretation among local departments and agencies.
- The application was requested to be supplemented and revised multiple times.
- Prolonged processing times result in increased administrative costs for businesses.
Legal basis related to Level 3 occupational codes.
Decision 34/2020/QD-TTg – List of Vietnamese Occupations
Decision No. 34/2020/QD-TTg of the Prime Minister promulgating the List of Occupations in Vietnam is a legally binding document in the labor statistics and management system.
This catalog categorizes occupations according to a multi-level system, in which:
- Level 1: Major Occupational Groups
- Level 2: Occupational Grouping
- Level 3: Specific Occupation (Level 3 Occupation Code)
- Levels 4 and 5: More detailed, specialized topics.
The core purpose of the Occupational Directory is:
- Standardizing occupational titles
- Standardizing labor statistics data
- To lay the groundwork for building a national labor database.
Occupational classifications are not issued to prescribe mandatory practice conditions, qualification requirements, or professional standards for each occupation.
Requirements for declaring Level 3 occupational codes according to Decree 219/2025/ND-CP
According to Decree 219/2025/ND-CP, in Form No. 01 and Form No. 03, the information field "Job position, specific field of work" requires:
"Specify the name of the intended job/occupation according to the Level 3 occupational code in Appendix I issued with Decision No. 34/2020/QD-TTg."
Regarding this information, the Ministry of Interior has clearly stated:
"The requirement to declare Level 3 occupational codes aims to standardize data, serving the purpose of building a database on foreign workers in Vietnam, and is not intended to impose additional qualification requirements beyond those stipulated by current law."
Distinguishing the legal nature between "Level 3 occupational codes" and "qualification requirements"
This is the crucial point, but also where the most misunderstandings occur.
Is the Level 3 occupational code used to determine qualification level?
In the Vietnamese Occupational Classification, occupations are categorized into groups such as:
- Manager
- Senior professional
- Intermediate professional
- Service staff, sales staff
- Skilled labor, unskilled labor…
The fact that a profession is classified as a "mid-level professional" does not mean that the law requires workers to have a college degree or professional certificate when applying for a work permit.
Where are the requirements regarding qualifications and experience specified?
The requirements regarding the qualifications and experience of foreign workers are not included in Decision 34/2020/QD-TTg, but are specifically regulated in Article 3 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP.
Accordingly, the law only sets requirements regarding qualifications and experience for four groups of job positions, including:
- Manager
- CEO
- Expert
- Technical workers
Apart from these four groups, there are no regulations requiring further inference of qualification requirements based solely on the occupational code in the Occupational Classification.
Note: The Level 3 occupational code is used to identify occupations. Article 3 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP is the sole basis for determining required qualifications and experience.
For cases where the job title is not included in Decision 34/2020/QD-TTg
Another common problem is internal job titles such as:
- Workshop Manager
- Department Head
- Production supervision
The applicable legal principles, as clearly cited by the Ministry of Interior, are as follows:
- Appendix I and Appendix II of Decision 34/2020/QD-TTg have provided for "other cases not classified elsewhere".
- Businesses are allowed to select job groups that are similar in nature to the work.
Principles for selecting appropriate occupational codes
Businesses should:
- Don't rigidly adhere to internal job titles.
- A thorough analysis should be conducted, including the scope of authority, the nature of the work, and whether the role is managerial or technical. This will help determine the appropriate job code.
For example:
- The workshop belongs to the production management group.
- Production supervisors belong to the group of technical or middle management workers.
- Department heads belong to the group of managers or specialists, depending on their function.
What can businesses do to minimize the risk of their applications being rejected?
To minimize risk, businesses should:
- Prepare a detailed job description that clearly shows: the nature of the job, managerial role, and expertise or technical skills required.
- Clearly explain the compatibility between the Level 3 occupational code and the job position according to Decree 219/2025/ND-CP.
- Proactively communicate with the local licensing authority before submitting your application.
Conclude
The declaration of Level 3 occupational codes according to Decision 34/2020/QD-TTg is a mandatory formal requirement for documents, aimed at standardizing data and serving state management purposes. It is not a legal basis for automatically inferring the required qualifications or degrees of foreign workers.
The qualifications and experience requirements for foreign workers are determined solely according to Article 3 of Decree 219/2025/ND-CP, corresponding to four job categories: managers, executives, experts, and technical workers. Assigning qualification requirements based only on the occupational group names in the Occupational Classification List is a broad interpretation lacking clear legal basis and is likely to lead to inconsistent application across localities.
For job titles not included in the Vietnamese Occupational Classification, businesses are allowed to select a group of similar occupations based on the nature of the work, considering the function, scope of responsibility, and actual role, in accordance with the guidelines in Appendix I and Appendix II of Decision 34/2020/QD-TTg.
Contact information MAN – Master Accountant Network
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Content production by: Mr. Le Hoang Tuyen – Founder & CEO MAN – Master Accountant Network, Vietnamese CPA Auditor with over 30 years of experience in Accounting, Auditing and Financial Consulting.
Source:
- Decree 219/2025/ND-CP regulates foreign workers working in Vietnam.
- Decision No. 34/2020/QD-TTg
- Article by LuatVietnam
