When preparing to work in Vietnam as an international nurse, you will hear two terms repeatedly: Work Permit (Giấy phép lao động) and Medical Practice License (Giấy phép hành nghề). Many applicants confuse the two, assuming that obtaining one automatically grants the other. In reality, they are completely separate legal credentials issued by different ministries, and you must hold both to practice legally.
This dual-document requirement exists because Vietnam manages immigration/labor compliance separately from professional healthcare safety. While labor laws protect the domestic workforce and regulate employment contracts, healthcare laws ensure that anyone performing clinical procedures is qualified and safe. Operating with only one of these documents is a serious violation of Vietnamese law.
Let’s look at how these two documents compare across several key aspects:
Because these documents are linked, managing the application timeline is critical. You need to obtain the Work Permit first and then Medical Practice License. The Department of Health will require you to show your Work Permit before they will issue your Medical Practice License. Sponsoring clinics must coordinate these two separate application tracks carefully to avoid legal gaps where a nurse holds employment rights but cannot perform clinical duties, or vice versa.