A representative of the Ho Chi Minh City Police Department has recently confirmed that the number of illegal foreign workers in the city is dozens of times higher than those with work permits.

Since January, the HCMC Department of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs said they have granted work permits to almost 5,000 foreigners to work in the city.

Police suggested that the labor department check the actual number of foreigners illegally working in HCMC and come up with a plan to correct it.

“Foreign employees in HCMC work in different industries and careers, including brick laying. In regulation, foreign workers are only hired as experts or if they hold professional degrees,” said the police representative.

For a foreigner to be granted a work permit in Vietnam, they must meet five major criteria. They must have civil capacity and a health condition considered suitable for their desired job, and they must obtain written approval of a State agency in charge of foreign employment, .

The workers must be managers, managing directors or technical workers, and they must not be criminal offenders under laws in Vietnam or their country of origin.