Management of foreign workers in Vietnam to transfer to Ministry of Home Affairs

Introduction

Following the announcement in December 2024 of the plan to streamline political structures and implement significant restructure and reform of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), the Vietnamese government released decree No. 25/2025/NĐ-CP regulating the Functions, Tasks, Powers, and Organizational Structure of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). The decree took effect from March 1st 2025 and stipulates that the Ministry of Home Affair (MHA) will take over the responsibility for the management of foreign nationals working in Vietnam from the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs.

Impact:
High

What has changed?

Under the announced plans for the structural reform of the CPV at the end of 2024, all ministries and ministerial-level agencies will undergo internal reforms or be restructured and merged. Further to this, the recently released decree No. 25/2025/NĐ-CP regulating the Functions, Tasks, Powers, and Organizational Structure of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in Vietnam has taken effect from 1st March 2025. The decree transfers the management of foreign nationals working in Vietnam, currently under the Ministry of Labor Invalids and Social Affairs, to the MHA.

The decree also states that: 

• The MHA will be responsible for submitting draft laws and resolutions to the Government and National Assembly, including the regulations on the management of foreigners working in Vietnam (work Permits)
• The new organizational structure of the MHA will consist of 22 departments including a department of employment as well as a department of Foreign Labor Management.

As yet, there are no proposed changes to the laws and regulations on foreigners working in Vietnam. 

What to expect /impact?

The objective of these reforms looks promising and for now the laws and regulations with regards to these individuals remains unchanged. However, it is expected there may be delays and potential challenges during the transition process as tasks and responsibilities are passed from the Department of Labor Invalids and Social Affairs (DOLISA) to the Department of Home Affairs (DHA). 

Additional notice and Official letters are expected at provincial level regarding the transition and we will keep our clients informed as soon as we have further information.

What you need to do:

This alert was completed in collaboration with Resident Vietnam. For further information on changes to Vietnam immigration, please contact the Sterling Lexicon immigration team at immigration@sterlinglexicon.com.