The termination of an employment relationship between a foreign employee and their former employer, followed by taking up work with a different legal entity in Vietnam, is not merely a labor-relations event. It also carries direct legal consequences for the employee’s residence status. Both the temporary residence card and the previously issued work permit (WP) are tied to a specific sponsoring entity, and therefore are not automatically carried over when the employee changes workplace. This article analyzes the legal nature of changing employers and the specific procedures required for a foreign employee to lawfully obtain a temporary residence card at the new legal entity, based on Decree No. 219/2025/NĐ-CP and the laws governing entry, exit, and residence of foreigners in Vietnam.

The nature of a foreign employee changing employers

In essence, a foreign employee moving to work for another company constitutes a change in the sponsoring entity — that is, a change in the employer that applies for the work permit and sponsors the employee’s residence.

Under the sponsorship principle set out in the 2014 Law on Entry, Exit, Transit, and Residence of Foreigners in Vietnam, a temporary residence card is issued based on an application submitted by a specific employer, and is linked to a still-valid work permit sponsored by that same employer. As such, the employee cannot continue using the temporary residence card and work permit issued under the former employer to work for the new company, even if these documents remain nominally within their validity period.

Procedures for implementation

The employment relationship: contract termination and establishing the basis for new employment

The first step in the overall process is the lawful termination of the labor contract with the former organization, together with establishing the basis for employment at the new legal entity (through a labor contract, appointment decision, or an equivalent document depending on the foreign employee’s form of work).

If the work permit has already expired, the former company must recall it and submit it for cancellation within 15 days from the date of expiration, pursuant to Clause 1, Article 31 of Decree No. 219/2025/NĐ-CP.

Where the work permit issued by the former company is still valid at the time the employment relationship is terminated, Clause 1, Article 20 of Decree No. 219/2025/NĐ-CP imposes a mandatory requirement: the employee must submit an application for a work permit at the new company, while simultaneously returning the previously issued work permit. This is a prerequisite to ensure that, at any given time, each foreign employee holds only one valid work permit, corresponding to one employer and one defined job position, thereby avoiding overlapping records between two legal entities.

The residence status: revocation of the former temporary residence card and establishing a lawful basis for residence during the transition period

First, the temporary residence card sponsored by the former company must be revoked. This is an obligation of the former employer, as the entity that sponsored the employee’s residence, in order to terminate the legal liability arising from that sponsorship once the employment relationship no longer exists.

Second, at the time the temporary residence card is revoked, a clear approach must be determined for handling the employee’s temporary residence status during the transition period between the two employers, through one of the following two options:

• The former employer submits an official letter requesting that the employee exit Vietnam; or
• The former employer submits an official letter requesting an extension of temporary residence for the employee while the application for a new temporary residence card with the receiving employer is being completed.

The choice between these options depends on the remaining validity of the employee’s visa and the progress of the new employer’s document preparation, to ensure the employee does not fall into a period of residence without a valid legal basis during the transition.

Third, where the employee chooses to exit Vietnam, re-entry to continue working for the new employer must take place within the visa’s remaining period of validity, on the basis that the new employer sponsors the visa and carries out the invitation and entry-sponsorship procedures in accordance with the stated purpose of employment.

Fourth, once the employee has established a lawful employment relationship and has re-entered (or continues to lawfully reside in) Vietnam, the new employer is responsible for submitting the application for a new temporary residence card for the employee, based on the newly issued work permit and the passport and residence conditions required under the law on entry and exit.