Conditions for granting a medical license is one of the important information that individuals have demand to carry out medical examination and treatment activities need to care. Currently, the National Assembly has passed the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023 to replace the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2009 in regulating activities in the health sector. Therefore, from January 1, 2024, the conditions for granting a medical license in Vietnam are applied in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023 and related guiding documents.

Subjects to apply for a practice license

Individuals have demand to practice medical examination and treatment choose professional titles corresponding to their capacity. According to Article 26 of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023, practicing under the following professional titles is required to obtain a practice license:

• Doctors;
• Medicos;
• Nurses;
• Midwives;
• Medical technicians;
• Clinical nutritionists;
• (Out-of-hospital) paramedics;
• Clinical psychologists;
• Herbalists;
• Holders of folk remedies or therapies.

Conditions for granting a medical license of a practice 

Conditions for granting a medical license are applicable to the following cases: (i) The individual applies for a license for the first time; (ii) The practitioner changes his/her professional title; (iii) The person whose license is revoked and is in case of being granted a new license as regulations; and (iv) Other cases as prescribed by the Government. When falling into one of the above cases, the applicant must satisfy the conditions in Article 30 of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023 in order to be granted a practice license, including:

1. Having full capacity to practice medical examination and treatment

The applicant must be assessed on his/her ability to practice when applying for a practice  license.

For the titles of doctor, medico, nurse, midwife, medical technician, clinical nutritionist, (out-of-hospital) paramedics, and clinical psychologist, eligibility to practice is assessed through: (1) Examination and assessment of medical examination and treatment capacity; or (2) Having a recognized practice license.

For the titles of herbalist, holder of folk remedies or therapies, the eligibility to practice is assessed through the corresponding certificate.

2. Having good health to practice medicine

The applicant must be healthy enough to practice when he/she wants to be granted a practice license. The applicant may provide a certificate of health issued by a qualified medical examination and treatment facility as prescribed by the Minister of Health or other equivalent documents to prove that he/she meets this condition.

3. Having capable of using Vietnamese

The medical examination and treatment is carried out in Vietnam, therefore, the applicant must be able to fluently use Vietnamese in order to be considered and granted a practice license by the competent authority. In case the applicant is a foreigner, he/she still needs to meet the Vietnamese language ability and be allowed to register to use another language.

4. Not in the case of not being granted a practice license

According to the provisions of Article 20 and Point d, Clause 2, Article 30 of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023, the applicant will be considered for a practice license when not falling into one of the following cases:

• Being examined for penal liability for violations of the law related to technical;
• During the execution of suspended sentences or non-custodial reform sentences for violations of the law related to technical expertise;
• Being on probation for a person sentenced to prison terms related to technical expertise but is released from prison before the term is conditional;
• Serving a prison sentence or being subject to administrative handling measures, consignment to a compulsory education institution or compulsory detoxification establishment;
• Being banned from practicing medical examination and treatment under a legally effective criminal judgment of a court or restricted from performing medical examination and treatment activities under a decision of a competent authority;
• Loss of civil act capacity or difficulty in perception, behavior control or limitation of civil act capacity;
• Those who have been administratively sanctioned for medical examination and treatment without a practice license but have not yet expired the time limit are considered to have not yet been administratively sanctioned.

Notes

Along with the conditions that the applicant for a practice license must meet as mentioned above, the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023 also stipulates the time limit applies to certain conditions, specifically:

1. Examination and assessment of medical examination and treatment capacity

The starting time of the examination and assessment of capacity for specific titles is prescribed as follows:

• From January 1, 2027 for doctors;
• From January 1, 2028 for medicos, nurses and midwives;
• From January 1, 2029 for medical technicians, clinical nutritionists, (out-of-hospital) paramedics and clinical psychologists.

Thus, from January 1, 2024 to before the date of commencement of the examination and assessment of capacity for each specific title, the applicant for a practice license is not required to take a competency assessment examination. Proof of the applicant’s ability to practice is demonstrated through documents on professional qualifications, practice time, etc. and will be guided specifically by the Government.

2. For the medicos

Persons who are granted intermediate-level medical training diplomas after December 31, 2026 may not be granted a practice license as medicos.

3. Language requirements for foreigners practicing medical examination and treatment

From January 1, 2032, foreigners must be fluently Vietnamese in medical examination and treatment activities. Specially, from January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2031, foreigners are not required to be fluent in Vietnamese when applying for a practice license. Refer to the provisions of the Law on Examination and Treatment 2009: foreigners can register to use the language who are fluent in when participating in professional training programs and are certified by competent authorities. Specific regulations on meeting this condition of foreigners will be guided in detail by the Government.

What can TTVN Legal support Clients?

Based on the specific needs of the Clients, TTVN Legal’s healthcare lawyer team will assist on providing:

• Consulting on the ability to meet necessary and sufficient conditions for people wishing to have a medical license to practice in Vietnam;
• Consulting and supporting the implementation of procedures for applying for a license to practice medical examination and treatment in Vietnam;
• Consulting on the implementation of medical examination and treatment activities in Vietnam for foreign practitioners;
• Consulting and representing practitioners in legal activities related to medical examination and treatment practice in Vietnam.

Contact us if you need further advice.

Note: This article is for informational purposes only and it is not legal advice. The content of the article represents its own TTVN Legal, it is subject to change without prior notice.