July 2019

To legally work in Vietnam, and apply for a temporary resident card (TRC), you require a work permit. While you can find work without needing a permit, good companies will not allow you to work for them without one as they can get fined by the government. I’ve put this guide together to walk you through the process, so you know what documents to pack and how to prepare them for getting a work permit in Vietnam.

NOTE: This post is specific to how British citizens have to prepare documents, as I am from the UK (read the full procedure on the Government site here). The process for certifying documents will be different for different nationalities, but the documents required for a work permit and the process once in Vietnam is the same.

How do you apply for a work permit in Vietnam?

To apply for a work permit you must first be sponsored by your employer. Thankfully your company completes the paperwork and legal aspect for you, meaning you only need to prepare your documents for them.

What do you need to get a work permit in Vietnam?

For a work permit in Vietnam you need:

• Work contact
• A legalised copy of your original degree notarised by the Vietnamese embassy in London**
• A legalised copy of your teaching certificate notarised by the Vietnamese embassy in London**
• Criminal background check from either your country of residence or a Vietnamese criminal background check
• Health check from a Vietnamese hospital
• Scan of your passports visa and photo pages
• Passport photos
• Business visa for Vietnam (sponsored by your employer)

**Specific to UK citizens.

For some other nationalities I believe you can have your original degree and teaching certificate legalised by your countries embassy in Vietnam. You should confirm this for your nationality before travelling to Vietnam. Therefore other nationalities might need to bringing the original documents to Vietnam, or have them sent over later (this is the way the UK used to process documents). If you neglect to bring the right documents, you can airmail them. I have colleagues that have airmailed documents and I’ve never heard of anything going missing. Tip: Get them sent to your work as it should be easier for the postal service to find, and use a courier like FedEx or DHL.

Criminal Background Check

I did my criminal background check at home before I left, and recommend doing this if possible. Scottish nationals can apply here and English nationals here. A criminal background check is valid for 3 months, so don’t get it so early that its not valid by the time you start applying for your work permit.

If you have been living abroad, you will need to get a criminal background check from your last country of residence. If you have been living in Vietnam then you will need to apply for a Vietnamese criminal background check.

How to get documents legalised (for UK Citizens)

The three documents you need to get legalised are your TEFL certificate, your university degree and your criminal background check. There are 3 steps to legalising documents for working in Vietnam. All steps NEED TO BE COMPLETED IN THE UK, so either before you leave for Vietnam, or will need completed remotely by family/friends.

Step 1: Have documents certified by a solicitor (lawyer)

First you will need to have your documents legally confirmed by a notary – this can either be done by a lawyer or a UK public official. If you are Scottish then you can have your documents signed by a Justice of the Peace at your local court (for free).

The person certifying your documents must have a valid practicing license. They probably already know what to do – they must sign a copy of the document, write their name, date, company and state what action they have observed. For your degree and TEFL certification they need to “certify it is a copy” and for your criminal background check they need to “witness a signature”.

I have a family friend who is a lawyer who did this step for me for free, so I’m unfortunately unsure how much a lawyer would charge to sign documents like this.

Step 2: Send documents to the Commonwealth Office for legalisation

Next, you will need to send your documents to be legalised by the Commonwealth office in the UK, which involves the documents being stamped with an ‘apostille’. The details for how to do this can be followed on the UK Gov website. You will need to complete the online form and pay for the services using card. This costs £30 per document (so total will be £90) and there is a two day turnaround, plus shipping.

Step 3: Send documents to the Embassy of Vietnam in London

After your documents have returned from the Commonwealth office, you will need to send them to the Vietnamese embassy in London. The Vietnamese Embassy in London need to legalise your documents which costs £35 per document (£105 total).

Conveniently the Embassy can send the documents directly onto your employer in Vietnam when they are ready. To do this you will need to include an envelope (I recommend structured and waterproof) pre-addressed to your employer, along with £40 for DHL shipping (this can be a postal order). You can find the pricing details for legalising and shipping from the Vietnamese Embassy in London here.

Getting A Health Check in Vietnam

The work permit health check needs to be done in Vietnam and as such, most hospitals are familiar with the process. I did mine at An Sinh Hospital. There was little English spoken in this hospital but it didn’t bother me, and I was able to get the whole check done without any issues.

When going for your health check:

• Don’t eat before and only drink water
• Bring your passport
• Bring passport style photos
• Money for the fee (you might be able to pay card, but don’t assume you will be able to).

It isn’t necessary to book an appointment in advance, you can just rocked up and start the check. The whole health check took around 3 hours, though this was mostly time spent in waiting rooms (you have to see different Drs). I recommend going in the morning, as you are not allowed to eat before and can only drink water (which if you are anything like me will make you hangry). They took blood first and then gave me time to go and get some food before continuing with the rest of the test which was great!

As part of the work permit health check they test your eyes, dental, urine, blood, heart rate, chest x-ray and ears. At An Sinh Hospital it was 1.500.00₫, ~£50, and they accepted card (other hospitals I’ve been too are cash only though). You will need to return either later that day or the next to collect your health check document.

Vietnam Work Permit Costs

Once you have all your documents compiled you can give them to your company to process the work permit, the fee for me was 6 million VND (£200). All the documents are yours and the government/your company have no reason to keep them if you paid for them out of your own pocket, so be sure to ask for them back. The cost will depend on the agents that your company uses to process the work permit, so it may be higher or lower than what I paid.

The work permit is however linked to your job, which means that you will not get a copy of your work permit to keep. And subsequently, if you leave your job you will also loose your work permit and have to redo the process with any new company you work for.

Temporary Resident Card

Once you have a work permit you can apply for a residency card. A temporary resident card (TRC) superposes any visas, means you can live, and travel in and out of Vietnam for 2 years. You don’t need to leave the country to activate your TRC, it simply overrides your current visa. It costs 5.5 million VND (£180) and your employer can apply for one at the same time as the work permit. You need passport photos, your work permit details and passport.

Remember: you will need to carry the TRC whenever you are travelling in or out of Vietnam

The total cost of getting a work permit in Vietnam

This is a breakdown of how much it cost me personally for my work permit (2018). The cost will vary depending on your nationality, where you get your health check, and what agent your employer uses to file the paperwork.

Step 1: Legalise copies of documents by solicitor		[free]
Step 2: Legalise documents at Commonwealth office		£90 (£30 per document) + shipping within the UK
Step 3: Legalise documents at the Vietnamese embassy		£105 (£35 per document) + £40 DHL shipping to Vietnam
Health Check	1.5 million VND	£50
Work permit processing fee	6 million VND	£200
Residency card processing fee	5.5 million VND	£180
TOTAL COSTS		£625

I hope this has been useful in helping you plan for moving to Vietnam.

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More on Living in Vietnam:

Oh November. What a crazy month you have been. We’ve been a bit MIA and failed to update the actual blog itself (sorry – again), but if you’ve been following social media then you should have a rough idea of the emotional rollercoaster that November has been here in Vietnam.

I’m just going to dive straight in here: The first week of the November was rough. We had kind of been keeping half-an-eye on a pregnant cat that was hanging around our garden, and then one day she was no longer pregnant. We were unsure where she had given birth, but knew it must be nearby if she was still coming to us for food. And then she just disappeared. She stopped coming to get food and to this day we haven’t seen her. And then the crying started. A constant stream of little squeaks coming from somewhere in our roof.

Of course she had somehow magically got into the roof and given birth to her whole litter, before abandoning them all. After a few days of the kittens cries being left unanswered, we decided to intervene. A stressful few hours, which involved David climbing onto the roof to remove the tiles, saw us finally able to get the 5 tiny kittens out. But they were not in a good way, and were so young that their eyes were still fused shut. The vet agreed that they couldn’t have been more than 5 days old.

I wish we could say that this story had a happy ending, but unfortunately it was not so. We spent a few days trying our best, despite our inexperience and reliance on google, to keep the 5 fragile little kittens warm and somewhat fed but our attempts were futile. Within 48 hours of getting them out of the roof they had all passed. We tried our best, though ultimately we’ve had to accept that they really needed a mother for those important first days. Without her milk, they didn’t have the immune system to cope. It is absolutely heartbreaking to have an animal in-front of you that desperately needs help, trying your best yet being completely unable to save it. The whole experience was traumatic. Between this and Charles going missing a few month ago, we’ve vowed to not get involved in any more animal crises during our remaining time living in Vietnam.

A business trip to Da Nang

Things took a slight turn for the better when we were able to swing a little business trip to Da Nang. This involved us working Friday, Saturday and Sunday but then getting the fully Monday to enjoy ourselves before coming home. The best bit about the deal, aside from getting a little taster of what it would be live to live in Da Nang (which would be great FYI), is that the whole trip was expenses paid!

Working in Da Nang and spending a decent amount of time soaking up the city helped to reshape our previous view of the city. It’s not that we didn’t enjoy our first trip there last year, but we certainly didn’t come away from the trip raving about why everyone who visits Vietnam should visit Da Nang. I think it just boiled down to a bad time of year, and a number of logistical travel errors we made that our initial view of Da Nang was slightly tainted. But this trip has definitely changed all that! We had such a great time, spending our lunch breaks wandering along the beach and trying some delicious food!

Then, after the busy weekend of working was over, we were free to spend a day exploring some beautiful spots around Da Nang on our own motorbike. It was just such a good day. Definitely a highlight of November for us. We zoomed around the mountains, soaked up the beautiful blue skies, found stunning views across the whole bay and simply enjoyed being in each others company (which we haven’t been able to do with just the two of us like this for a while).

Motorbike crashes and broken bones

So with our thrilling whirlwind trip to Da Nang over and done, we landed back into Ho Chi Minh City and went back to work. But November just couldn’t leave things on a high and give things a break. I’ve already briefly gone into what happened next on Facebook, so I’ll just kind of reiterate here. David got into a motorbike accident.

A car came speeding out a sidestreet without looking or pausing. Unfortunately this is standard for car drivers in Vietnam who think they are above safety thanks to the metal box protecting them. Thankfully David was able to swerve out of the incoming cars path, but not without braking sharply and crushing the bike on himself.

The saving grace in all of this, is that he was able to phone me, and was super near to home. After a panicked run around the block, we found him. First off, our Vietnamese neighbours are so nice. While the car hadn’t stopped, some people had come and made sure he was okay, got him off the ground and got his bike back up. But his foot was a mess. Already multiple times the normal size and covered in blood in the few minutes it took for us to run round the corner.

After some more panicked floundering we finally got in a taxi to A&E (via our local hospital which of course was closed, oh Vietnam you confused us sometimes). We spent a few hours in Vietnamese A&E (not a place you want to find yourselves) and eventually got confirmation that Davids foot was broken and needed a cast to help it set.

Oh but the drama did not end there! We then had to find crutches which are typically Vietnamese-sized and definitely not made suitable for 6ft+ guys here. Then, we also had to go back to the hospital for a check up which is tricky enough with a broken foot and ill-fitting crutches but to make things more challenging hardly anyone understood English and of course out mobile data ran out so we had no google translate. But again, a few lovely individuals, patients themselves, took us under their wing and showed us to the correct department and translated the papers for us to understand what we had to do. Genuinely kind people are a blessing.

Anyways, two and a bit weeks has passed now. Davids become really good at the crutches and we’ve got our travelling and getting ready process synced up really efficiently so it’s not such a headache anymore. We’ll be going back to the hospital sometime this week to get it checked again and hopefully get the all clear from the doctors to remove the cast and, most importantly, be approved to fly home for Christmas!

Davids Birthday

Somewhere among all the craziness that’s been happening in November was Davids birthday. Unfortunately it landed shortly after his accident, and we ended up spending half the day at the hospital getting X-rays and checks done. But, I was able to put together a very last minute surprise lunch to lift his spirits and bring a bit of birthday fun to the occasion!

On the Blog this November

As you can maybe see, November has been a hectic one, so we didn’t get up-to much on the blog unfortunately. We were able to squeeze a post about our day exploring Da Nang, but that’s about it!

We’ve had a bit more success with social media. We’ve surpassed 325 Facebook friends! Not our friend yet?! Get on it! And we’ve been posting more regularly on Instagram so seeing some growth there too.

NEXT UP: December plans

December is going to be a super exciting month for us! In little more then two weeks, we’ll be headed home to Scotland for Christmas! While home we also have some birthdays, a family wedding and New Years! We’re actually taking separate flights home, as we’ll be returning on different dates which makes the travel planning a tad more stressful as I won’t be there to help David if his foot isn’t healed in time. But we are hopeful and beyond excited to see everyone at home this month! See you soon Scotland!

November was a bit hit and miss for us. What did you get upto in November? Do you have plans for the Christmas period yet?!

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More often than not travellers pass straight through Da Nang with eyes on the nearby prizes of Hoi An and Hue. But this modern city, located on a stunning 20 mile stretch of powdery, white sand, is definitely NOT to be missed during your exploration of central Vietnam. While a day is not enough time to really get to know Da Nang, it is definitely worth spending one exploring many of the highlights of the city and the surrounding region. For our second trip to the city, we decided to grab ourselves a motorbike and set off to see some of our favourite places around the city. We enjoyed so many beautiful views and attractions despite only having one day, so we’re sharing the secret for you to experience the amazing Da Nang in a day too!

**Psst, scroll to the bottom to get a complete route, ready for you to explore with google maps! Oh and there is also a cost breakdown for spending a day exploring Da Nang.

Hire a motorbike to explore Da Nang

Having your own motorbike is not essential, but it will give you much more freedom to really explore the region. If you aren’t confident at driving yourself then definitely look into booking one of the easy rider motorbike tours, which will take you around Da Nang. We did one with these guys on our first trip there and it was definitely worth it. They were really lovely, responsible drivers and we were able to customise our tour, plus they took us to some other spots we would never have found ourselves. Whatever tour you do, try to get on a motorbike – we guarantee it will be a million miles better than a bus tour!

In Da Nang you can hire a fully-automatic bike, like we did, for 150,000đ per day. If you are more experienced and know how to use one then you can get a semi-automatic for cheaper – around 100,000đ. We actually hired our bike for a number of days which brought the daily price down to around 130,000đ. The exact model of bike will determine how much you pay but generally the better and more reliable brands are more expensive. We hired our motorbike from a lady at the bottom of Nguyễn Văn Thoại street (a block back from the beach), but there are soooo many places to rent from in the city. You will need your passport to hire a motorbike so don’t forget to bring one out with you. They will keep it for the duration of the hire.

Cross the dragon bridge and love-lock bridge

This is a great place to both start and end your day trip around Da Nang. The Dragon Bridge has become the iconic image of the city. Not only is the design innovative, it’s actually the largest bridge in the whole of Vietnam. I prefer to see the dragon bridge during the day as I love the way the yellow colour contrasts with the baby blue skies (which will hopefully be out for your trip too).

While you are checking out the dragon bridge, be sure to park up and have a nosey at the love-lock bridge beside it. It’s a romantic little spot at the side of the river where couples have locked in their love for each other. There are some vendors who you can buy locks from if you feel like a romantic gesture! To get there you will need to head for the dragon carp statue and venture down the path beside it which loops around the back of a restaurant.

When you return to the city after your exploration, be sure to see the Dragon bridge lit up at night. If you are lucky to be visiting Da Nang on a weekend try to time your nighttime sightseeing of the bridge for 9 pm. It is said that at this time, the Dragon bridge breathes fire and water, as well as putting on a light show.

See the fishermen and basket boats in Da Nang Bay

During our 1 day in Da Nang, we opted to search for some of our favourite views in the city. Our route takes you out the city centre of Da Nang and along the beachfront, beyond where the sunbathers venture and into the fishermen’s stretch of the beach. Here, the sea is speckled with round basket-boats which are the traditional boat of choice for Vietnamese fishermen. If you’re lucky you might even see some in use, or spot fishermen drying and fixing their nets on the sand. Traditionally they were made from bamboo, which is super lightweight and floats. Nowadays many of them seem to be made from plastic, though still in the traditional design which is nice.

From this stretch of beach you also get a great unobstructed view back to the cityscape of Da Nang.

Feel small next to Lady Buddha

Sitting atop Son Tra Mountain on the peninsula of Da Nang, is the dominant Lady Buddha. She is thought to be the protector of Da Nang bay, keeping the fishermen safe in stormy weather. And she is well worth a look! Standing at 62m tall, she’s actually taller than the Statue of Liberty and Christ the Redeemer! And she’s made from a single piece of marble. We haven’t been inside but you can go in. She has 17 stories, each said to be dedicated to a different buddha. As we haven’t climbed up the Lady Buddha we aren’t sure how much it costs, but it’s free to enter the site. You’ll need to pay to park your bike which I think is a donation, so somewhere between 5 – 10,000đ would be fair). There are a number of other pagodas in the complex which you can stroll around too.

TIP: If you want to go inside any of the pagoda’s or the Lady Buddha, don’t dress inappropriately like me (knees and shoulders not covered). You will be able to wander around the complex and see the outside of the Pagodas only.

Eat Mi Quang for lunch

Once you’ve had your fill of the pagodas its time to hit the road again, this time we are on the hunt for lunch. Be sure to time this carefully. Eating local food in Vietnam is somewhat limited to peak times due to bulk production of food everyday. So, for lunch you’ll want to be stopping for food anytime between 11:00 and 13:00 (the nearer to 12 the better). Look out along the road for signs of Mi Quang. Mi, pronounced /me/, means noodles in Vietnamese and Mi Quang is the local noodle dish from the Quang Nam province that Da Nang is in, hence the Quang component.

Drive the Hai Van Pass

Have you ever seen that Vietnam special Top Gear Episode? You know, thaaaat one? The one that made everyone crazy about driving North to South or vice-versa. Yeah, we are some of those suckers who hate to admit that Jeremy Clarkson has had some influence on their bucketlist. Damn him. Anyway, bitching about Top Gear aside, some of the most dramatic roads and landscapes that they saw on their trip were right here, outside of Da Nang.

The Hai Van Pass is a famous stretch of road linking Da Nang and the ancient city of Hue to the North. It winds up going through the mountains which surround Da Nang, into the clouds and down towards the coast on the other side. Driving up this pass, you get to see some of the insane beauty of Vietnam; lush green mountains and hidden coves with deserted beaches. That’s not to mention the thrill of driving a mountain pass, with twisting hairpin bends and steep drops off the cliff edged roads.

Like many names for things in Vietnam, the name “Hai Van Pass” is a very descriptive one: hai meaning ocean and van meaning clouds. The Hai Van Pass is literally a road which goes from the ocean into the clouds and then back down to the ocean. Our first trip to Da Nang was during a particularly rainy period in the monsoon, so we really got to experience being inside a cloud at the top of the Hai Van Pass.

Explore the top of the Hai Van Pass

For centuries the top the Hai Van Pass has played a role as an important military site. During the Nguyen Dynasty, the last of the Vietnamese dynasties, the top of the pass played an important role in protecting the old capital of Hue. To control the route, an early Nguyen emperor built the brick gate which still stands atop the Hai Van Pass. People had to pass through the grand Hai Van gate and have their documents checked to be allowed through. Later the site was modified with a military station to defend the area against the invading French, and then later used during America war. Nowadays, in addition to the brick gate, there are also a few abandon military houses and some concrete lookout bunkers. There are also a number of little cafes to sit and relax, with hopefully some clear weather to enjoy the beautiful view back down the Hai Van Pass.

Take in the View

About half way down the Hai Van Pass (or up it, depending on when you want to stop and check it out) there is an epic viewing point looking back over the bay of Da Nang. You’ll know it when you see it due to the large rock which seems unusually out of place at the side of the road. Around the base are some vendors selling coconuts, coffee and cold drinks, making this the perfect place for a rest-stop!

Enjoy the last light at the Beach

The perfect way to unwind after a busy day touring around the mountains is to take a relaxing stroll along the powdery white sands at dusk. This is when the beach starts to come alive with locals. Without the heat of the sun bearing down you’ll see locals playing in the water, fishing, swimming and lazing in the sand.

A Route for Exploring Da Nang in a Day

So, now you’ve seen everything you can see and experience in only one day in Da Nang, you’re going to want a route to follow! This is the one we took on our exploration of Da Nang and is the most logical way to see everything in one day trip.

We left our hotel around 10am, but despite the late start we found our day relaxed and not rushed. We arrived back in Da Nang around 4pm. Additions you could make to this include stopping at the central market in town before leaving, and maybe taking a detour on the way home past marble mountains. In order to squeeze-in these additions you would have to be up bright and early, planning to leave around 8am.

Total cost for exploring Da Nang in a day trip

One of the best parts about exploring Da Nang this way is that it is more than budget friendly! You can see the breakdown of what this trip cost for both of us below. At the current exchange rate this whole day trip, including the motorbike hire, petrol and food cost us less than £12/$15 for two people. Now, that is definitely in your budget!

TOTAL COST	340,000VND
Motorbike hire for 1 day	150,000VND
Petrol for Motorbike	60,000VND
Mi Quang for lunch	60,000VND for two
Parking at Lady Buddha	10,000VND
Rest-stop at View Point	60,000VND for two drinks

Spending a day in Da Nang is the perfect budget-friendly way to experience some of Vietnams dramatic and awe-inspiring scenery!

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