Hire English teachers in Vietnam

What it costs to hire in Vietnam

Housing is less commonly provided than in North Asia, so salary carries more of the package and candidates compare it directly. Employers normally bear the work permit and residence card process. Many centres pay hourly rather than monthly, and a listing that does not make the guaranteed-hours position clear will be read, fairly, as risky.

Visa sponsorship and your obligations

You sponsor the work permit, which then supports a temporary residence card. The teacher generally needs a bachelor's degree, a recognised teaching certificate such as TEFL, TESOL or CELTA, a criminal record check and a health check. Degree and background documents usually require legalisation. Requirements are applied with some local variation, so confirm the current position with the provincial labour authority before contracting.

When to recruit, and how long it takes

Hiring runs continuously, with demand rising around the start of school terms and after Tet. Because there is no fixed intake, the constraint is document processing rather than the calendar. A prepared candidate can be teaching within weeks; an unprepared one still takes months.

What the contract has to spell out

Guaranteed hours are the clause that matters most in Vietnam, because hourly contracts with no floor are common and experienced teachers screen for exactly this. State guaranteed minimum hours, the hourly or monthly rate, whether travel between campuses is paid, paid leave, work permit responsibility and notice.

How this goes wrong

Moving slowly. Vietnam's teachers apply to several centres at once precisely because centres reply fast, so a school taking a week to respond to an application is usually interviewing people who have already accepted elsewhere. The second mistake is advertising an attractive hourly rate with no guaranteed minimum.

Questions schools ask

What does a school need to provide to sponsor a work permit in Vietnam?

You apply as the employer, and the teacher supplies a bachelor's degree, a recognised teaching certificate, a criminal record check and a health check, with documents usually requiring legalisation. Local practice varies between provinces, so confirm the current requirements with the relevant labour authority before you contract.

Is there a hiring season for English teachers in Vietnam?

Not in the way Korea, Japan or China have one. Language centres hire year round, with demand rising around term starts and after Tet. That makes Vietnam a good market for filling a role at short notice, provided your candidate's documents are in order.

Should we offer a monthly salary or an hourly rate?

Either is normal, but if you pay hourly, state a guaranteed minimum. Experienced teachers in Vietnam have been burned by hourly contracts whose hours evaporated, so they filter for a guarantee. A listing without one gets fewer and weaker applications regardless of the rate.

How fast can we realistically fill a role in Vietnam?

Faster than anywhere else on this list if you move. A candidate already in-country with a valid permit can start almost immediately; one applying from abroad is limited by document legalisation and the permit process. Your own response time is often the longest delay you actually control.

Immigration and licensing requirements change. Confirm the current position with the relevant ministry or authority before you contract a teacher.