eVisa

Vietnam

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days max stay

6 months

passport validity required

Vietnamese

official language

VND

currency

About

## WARNING: Vietnam Is a Documented Trafficking Destination for Bangladeshi Workers

### The Central Fact

Bangladesh's **Rapid Action Battalion (RAB)** has identified **six recruitment agencies** in Bangladesh that lured Bangladeshi job seekers to Vietnam under false promises of employment. Between January 2019 and March 2020, **27 Bangladeshis with valid BMET emigration clearance** were trafficked to Vietnam. These were not undocumented migrants — they went through the official government emigration process and were still trafficked.

**BMET clearance is necessary but not sufficient.** The 27 trafficking victims also had BMET clearance. This means the government's emigration verification system failed to detect that the receiving "employers" in Vietnam were trafficking operations.

### Why This Page Exists

This is not a standard country profile. This is a **protection page** — modeled on our Bahrain anti-fraud page — designed to warn Bangladeshi workers that "Vietnam jobs" advertised in Bangladesh are a documented trafficking vector.

### What the Research Shows

- **No bilateral labor MOU** exists between Bangladesh and Vietnam
- **No BMET-licensed agencies** legitimately operate for Vietnam employment
- Bangladesh and Vietnam are **garment industry competitors** (2nd and 3rd largest global RMG exporters) — there is no economic rationale for Vietnam to import BD garment workers
- Vietnam's own minimum wage ($146-210/month) is **below Gulf wages** ($300-800/month) — making it an irrational destination for BD labor migrants seeking higher earnings
- **No established Bangladeshi community** exists in Vietnam — no BD restaurants, grocery stores, cultural centers, or community support networks
- Workers placed in Vietnam ended up in **small manufacturing, construction**, and increasingly in **online scam operations** run by criminal networks

### The Online Scam Operations Threat

Global Voices (November 2025) documented a growing pattern of Bangladeshi workers being recruited via Facebook, TikTok, and WhatsApp for "jobs" in Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries. These workers are forced into **online scam operations** — typically romance scams, cryptocurrency fraud, or fake investment schemes — run by Chinese-linked criminal networks. Workers who refuse face physical punishment. This pattern, well-documented in Myanmar and Cambodia, is expanding to Vietnam.

### What This Page Provides

Verified information about Vietnam's eVisa (tourism/business only), documented trafficking patterns affecting Bangladeshi workers, red flags for identifying fraudulent recruitment, and emergency contacts. **If you are reading this because someone offered you a "Vietnam job" — the information below may protect you from trafficking.**

Entry & Visa Requirements

eVisa
## Entry Method: eVisa via Vietnam Immigration Portal

### Official Portal

- **URL**: https://evisa.gov.vn (old URL evisa.xuatnhapcanh.gov.vn redirects here)
- **Operated by**: Vietnam Immigration Department, Ministry of Public Security
- **Available to BD nationals**: Yes, since August 15, 2023

### eVisa for Bangladeshi Nationals

- **Fee**: USD 25 (single entry) or USD 50 (multiple entry)
- **Stay**: Up to 90 days
- **Processing**: 3-5 working days
- **Validity**: Single entry (90 days) or multiple entry (90 days)
- **Entry points**: All international airports, major land border crossings, and seaports

### Required Documents

- Valid passport (minimum 6 months validity)
- Recent passport-size photograph (white background, 4x6 cm)
- Credit/debit card for online payment
- Accommodation details in Vietnam

### CRITICAL WARNING: eVisa is NOT a Work Authorization

The Vietnam eVisa allows **tourism, business visits, and transit ONLY**. There is **no bilateral labor agreement** between Bangladesh and Vietnam. Any recruitment agency in Bangladesh offering "Vietnam jobs" should be treated as **extremely high-risk**.

Bangladesh's Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has identified **licensed BD recruitment agencies** facilitating trafficking of Bangladeshi workers to Vietnam. Having BMET emigration clearance does NOT guarantee safety — 27 Bangladeshis with valid BMET clearance were trafficked to Vietnam between January 2019 and March 2020.
Return ticket required
Proof of funds required

Work Permit Pathway

## Work Permit Pathway: None Exists — and "Vietnam Jobs" Are a Trafficking Vector

### The Structural Reality

There is **no bilateral labor agreement** between Bangladesh and Vietnam. Unlike Malaysia (MOU since 2003), Singapore (employer-sponsored WP), or Gulf states (government-to-government recruitment), Vietnam has **no legal mechanism** to hire Bangladeshi workers.

Vietnam's work permit system requires:
- Employer sponsorship with labor market test (proving no Vietnamese worker can fill the role)
- Minimum salary of USD 700-1,000/month for foreign workers
- Professional qualifications or specialized expertise
- Work permit processing through Vietnamese MOLISA

These requirements structurally exclude the low-skill workers that BD trafficking agencies target.

### Recognizing Vietnam Trafficking Patterns

If you encounter any of these patterns, you are likely being targeted for trafficking:

#### Red Flags — Stop Immediately If You See These

1. **Agency emphasizes Vietnam over established Gulf/Malaysia corridors** — legitimate agencies focus on countries with bilateral MOUs
2. **Advance fees with no named employer or verifiable company** — you cannot verify the employer because it doesn't exist
3. **Vague job descriptions** — "factory work," "manufacturing," "good salary" with no specifics
4. **Recruitment via Facebook, TikTok, or WhatsApp groups** — NOT through BMET-listed channels
5. **Contracts in Vietnamese only** — no Bangla or English translation provided
6. **Promises of "easy conversion" from tourist visa to work permit** — this conversion pathway does not exist for BD nationals
7. **Agent says "BMET clearance means it's safe"** — the 27 trafficking victims also had BMET clearance
8. **Agent or recruiter is a "friend" or "relative" who recently returned from Vietnam** — trafficking networks use returnees as recruiters
9. **Group travel arranged through one person** — legitimate employment doesn't require batch smuggling
10. **Salary promises that match or exceed Gulf wages** — Vietnam wages are structurally lower; if they're offering Gulf-level pay, the "job" is fake

### What to Do If You Suspect Trafficking

- **Do NOT pay any advance fees** — once you pay, the trafficker has leverage
- **Report the agency to RAB**: Call 999 and specify recruitment fraud
- **Report to BMET**: File a complaint at the BMET office in Dhaka
- **Contact**: National Emergency Service 999, BMET complaint cell

### Bangladesh Embassy in Hanoi

- **Website**: https://hanoi.mofa.gov.bd/
- **Note**: The embassy exists but publishes no diaspora statistics and lacks a dedicated labor wing — reflecting the absence of any BD labor corridor to Vietnam

### Bangladesh Embassy CAN Help You With:

- Emergency travel documents if passport confiscated
- Referral to IOM Vietnam for trafficking victim assistance
- Coordination with Vietnamese police for rescue operations
- Communication with family in Bangladesh

### Bangladesh Embassy CANNOT Help You With:

- Getting you a legal work permit (none exists for BD nationals in Vietnam)
- Recovering wages from fraudulent employers
- Overriding Vietnamese immigration decisions
- Providing shelter (no BD worker shelter exists in Vietnam)

### Emergency Contacts

| Service | Contact | Notes |
|---------|---------|-------|
| BD Embassy Hanoi | https://hanoi.mofa.gov.bd/ | Limited labor support |
| IOM Vietnam | https://vietnam.iom.int/ | Trafficking victim assistance |
| Vietnamese Police | 113 | Emergency |
| Vietnamese Ambulance | 115 | Emergency |
| Bangladesh National Emergency | 999 | Report trafficking from BD |
| RAB Headquarters | 999 (specify RAB) | Report recruitment fraud |

Overstay Penalties & Consequences

## Overstay Penalties in Vietnam

### For Overstaying

- **Fine**: VND 500,000-2,000,000 per day (~USD 20-80/day)
- **Deportation**: Mandatory for serious overstays
- **Re-entry ban**: 1-5 years depending on severity
- **Detention**: Immigration detention until deportation arranged

### For Working Without a Work Permit

- **Fine**: VND 15,000,000-25,000,000 (~USD 600-1,000)
- **Deportation**: Mandatory
- **Employer penalties**: VND 50,000,000-75,000,000 per illegal worker

### For Trafficking Victims

If you are in Vietnam against your will or under conditions different from what was promised:

- **You are NOT a criminal** — Vietnam's anti-trafficking law (2011) recognizes trafficking victims
- Contact the Bangladesh Embassy in Hanoi immediately
- International Organization for Migration (IOM) Vietnam provides victim assistance
- Do NOT trust your "employer" or recruiter to help you leave — they are often the traffickers

Job Market

## Job Market Reality: No Legitimate BD Labor Market in Vietnam

### The Structural Impossibility

Vietnam is the **world's 3rd largest garment exporter**. Bangladesh is the **2nd largest**. These two countries are direct competitors in the same global market. There is **no economic rationale** for Vietnam to import Bangladeshi garment workers when it has its own surplus labor force and lower wages than Bangladesh's competitors.

### Vietnam's Own Labor Market

- **Minimum wage**: VND 3,250,000-4,680,000/month (~USD 130-187) depending on region (2024 rates)
- **Factory workers**: USD 200-390/month including overtime
- **Vietnam exports its own workers**: ~650,000 Vietnamese workers went abroad in 2023 (Japan, South Korea, Taiwan primary destinations)
- **Unemployment**: Urban unemployment ~3.5%, but significant underemployment in rural areas

### Where Trafficked BD Workers End Up

The ~1,174 Bangladeshis documented as going to Vietnam (Jan 2019-Mar 2020 BMET clearance data) were NOT going to established employers. They ended up in:

1. **Online scam operations** — forced to run romance scams, crypto fraud, fake investment schemes from compound-style facilities
2. **Small unregistered manufacturing** — no labor protections, no contracts
3. **Construction on informal basis** — undocumented, no safety standards
4. **Situations that match ILO indicators of forced labor** — document confiscation, restriction of movement, debt bondage, threats of violence

### Wage Comparison: Why Vietnam Makes No Sense

| Destination | Legal? | Monthly USD | Protection |
|-------------|--------|-------------|------------|
| Saudi Arabia | Yes (MOU) | $300-600 | BMET + Embassy labor wing |
| Malaysia | Yes (MOU) | $400-700 | BMET + Embassy |
| Singapore | Yes (WP) | $440-1,030 | MOM + TWC2 + HOME |
| Qatar | Yes (WP) | $275-825 | BMET + Embassy |
| **Vietnam** | **NO** | **$130-390** | **NONE — trafficking documented** |

Vietnam offers **lower wages, zero legal protection, and documented trafficking** compared to every established BD labor corridor.

Salary & Payments

Sector	Min	Max	Currency
	0	0	VND/mo
	0	0	VND/mo
	0	0	VND/mo
	0	0	VND/mo
	0	0	VND/mo

## Salary Reality: Wages Are Irrelevant When the "Job" Is Trafficking

### The Fundamental Problem

Discussing "salary reliability" for Bangladeshi workers in Vietnam is misleading because there is **no legitimate employment pipeline**. The ~1,174 BMET-cleared Bangladeshis who went to Vietnam were not entering a regulated labor market — they were entering trafficking operations disguised as employment.

### What Trafficked Workers Actually Experience

Based on RAB investigations, media reports (The Daily Star, TBS News), and IOM documentation:

- **Promised salary**: BDT 40,000-80,000/month (~USD 340-680) — deliberately set to compete with Gulf offers
- **Actual payment**: Partial, delayed, or withheld entirely
- **Deductions**: "Housing," "visa fees," "registration," "food" — sometimes consuming 60-80% of any wages paid
- **Debt bondage**: Recruitment fees of BDT 300,000-800,000 (~USD 2,500-6,700) create bondage. Workers told they "owe" the recruiter and cannot leave until repaid.
- **Online scam compound workers**: Receive minimal sustenance payments. Earnings go to compound operators. Workers are effectively enslaved.

### Recruitment Fee Analysis

| Channel | Cost (BDT) | Cost (USD) | Risk Level |
|---------|-----------|-----------|------------|
| "Licensed" agency (RAB-identified) | 300,000-600,000 | 2,500-5,000 | EXTREME — these agencies facilitated trafficking |
| Facebook/WhatsApp recruitment | 200,000-400,000 | 1,700-3,400 | EXTREME — digital recruitment is the modern trafficking vector |
| "Friend of a friend" informal | 150,000-300,000 | 1,250-2,500 | EXTREME — informal channels bypass all safeguards |

**Every channel to Vietnam employment is high-risk.** There is no safe way to go to Vietnam for work because no legal work pathway exists for BD nationals.

### BMET Clearance Is Necessary But Not Sufficient

The 27 documented trafficking victims had BMET emigration clearance. This means:
- BMET verified their identity and travel documents — this is necessary
- BMET did NOT verify the receiving employer in Vietnam — this gap is the vulnerability
- BMET clearance confirms you are who you say you are, NOT that the job is real or safe
- **Do not assume "government-approved" means "safe"** — the system has documented failures

Where to Apply

Vietnam eVisa Portal

government

Bangladesh Embassy, Hanoi

embassy

IOM Vietnam

ngo

RAB (Rapid Action Battalion) — Report Trafficking

government

BMET Complaint Cell

government

National Emergency Service (Bangladesh)

government

Housing & Living

## Cost of Living: Irrelevant for Trafficking Victims

### Why This Section Exists But Is Different

For countries with legitimate BD labor corridors (Malaysia, Singapore, Qatar), cost of living helps workers budget and evaluate offers. For Vietnam, where **no legitimate BD employment pipeline exists**, cost of living information serves a different purpose: it helps identify fraudulent salary promises.

### Vietnam's Actual Cost Structure

| Expense | Monthly (VND) | Monthly (USD) | Notes |
|---------|-------------|-------------|-------|
| Accommodation (shared) | 2,000,000-4,000,000 | 80-160 | Ho Chi Minh City / Hanoi |
| Food | 3,000,000-5,000,000 | 120-200 | Street food is affordable |
| Transport | 500,000-1,500,000 | 20-60 | Motorbike-centric cities |
| Phone/SIM | 100,000-300,000 | 4-12 | Viettel, Mobifone, Vinaphone |
| **Total** | **5,600,000-10,800,000** | **224-432** | |

### The Math That Exposes the Fraud

If a Vietnamese factory worker earns $200-390/month and basic living costs are $224-432/month, there is **nearly zero remittance margin**. Compare:
- **Saudi Arabia**: Earn $300-600, cost of living $150-250, remittance $150-350/month
- **Malaysia**: Earn $400-700, cost of living $200-350, remittance $200-350/month
- **Vietnam**: Earn $200-390, cost of living $224-432, remittance **$0-negative**

**Any agent promising "high savings" from Vietnam is lying.** The economics are impossible.

Social & Culture

## Bangladeshi Community in Vietnam: Effectively Non-Existent

### Population

- **Documented BD nationals in Vietnam**: ~1,174 (BMET emigration clearance data, Jan 2019-Mar 2020) — many subsequently identified as trafficking victims
- **Established BD community**: None. No BD restaurants, grocery stores, cultural centers, or community organizations in any Vietnamese city.
- **Community support networks**: Non-existent. Unlike Singapore (Little India weekends), Malaysia (established BD worker communities in Kuala Lumpur), or even Thailand (~180,000 workers), Vietnam has zero BD community infrastructure.

### What This Means for Workers

If you go to Vietnam:
- There is **no one to help you** from the BD community
- There are **no established remittance channels** designed for BD workers
- There is **no mosque network** that serves BD workers specifically
- You are **completely isolated** — which is exactly what traffickers want

### Bangladesh Embassy in Hanoi

- **Website**: https://hanoi.mofa.gov.bd/
- **Note**: The embassy handles diplomatic and trade relations. It does NOT have a dedicated labor wing, worker shelter, or established protocol for large-scale BD worker rescue — because there has never been a legitimate BD labor corridor to Vietnam.

### BMET Registration

There is **no BMET recruitment channel for Vietnam**. If an agency claims to have "BMET clearance for Vietnam jobs," understand:
- BMET can issue emigration clearance for any destination — this is a travel clearance, not a job verification
- BMET does NOT verify employers in Vietnam (no bilateral mechanism exists)
- The 27 trafficking victims had valid BMET clearance — **the clearance itself did not protect them**

Business Opportunities

## Legitimate Uses of the Vietnam eVisa

### What the eVisa IS Useful For

Despite this page's warnings about employment fraud, the Vietnam eVisa has genuine legitimate uses for Bangladeshi travelers:

- **Tourism**: Vietnam is a major tourist destination — Ha Long Bay, Hoi An, Ho Chi Minh City. Bangladeshi tourists can visit on the eVisa legitimately.
- **Business visits**: Trade meetings, supplier visits, market research. Bangladesh-Vietnam bilateral trade exists in textiles, agriculture, and manufacturing equipment.
- **Academic/conference travel**: Vietnam hosts international conferences, particularly in ASEAN-related forums.
- **RMG industry research**: Given both countries compete in garments, industry professionals may have legitimate reasons to visit Vietnamese factories for benchmarking.

### What the eVisa is NOT For

- **Employment** — no legal work pathway exists
- **"Trying your luck"** — entering on tourist visa hoping to find work is illegal and dangerous
- **Overstaying** — Vietnam enforces immigration strictly; overstay leads to detention, fines, and re-entry bans

### Bangladesh-Vietnam Bilateral Relations

- **Trade**: ~$1.3 billion bilateral trade (2023)
- **Diplomatic**: Full diplomatic relations since 1973
- **Cooperation areas**: Climate change adaptation, agriculture, ICT
- **Competition**: Direct competitors in RMG sector — 2nd (BD) vs 3rd (VN) largest exporters globally
- **Labor**: No cooperation — no MOU, no worker exchange, no labor attache

The bilateral relationship is **trade and diplomatic**, not labor. There is no framework for, and no discussion of, sending BD workers to Vietnam for employment.

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Cost of Living

## Cost of Living: Irrelevant for Trafficking Victims ### Why This Section Exists But Is Different For countries with legitimate BD labor corridors (Malaysia, Singapore, Qatar), cost of living helps workers budget and evaluate offers. For Vietnam, where **no legitimate BD employment pipeline exists**, cost of living information serves a different purpose: it helps identify fraudulent salary promises. ### Vietnam's Actual Cost Structure | Expense | Monthly (VND) | Monthly (USD) | Notes | |---------|-------------|-------------|-------| | Accommodation (shared) | 2,000,000-4,000,000 | 80-160 | Ho Chi Minh City / Hanoi | | Food | 3,000,000-5,000,000 | 120-200 | Street food is affordable | | Transport | 500,000-1,500,000 | 20-60 | Motorbike-centric cities | | Phone/SIM | 100,000-300,000 | 4-12 | Viettel, Mobifone, Vinaphone | | **Total** | **5,600,000-10,800,000** | **224-432** | | ### The Math That Exposes the Fraud If a Vietnamese factory worker earns $200-390/month and basic living costs are $224-432/month, there is **nearly zero remittance margin**. Compare: - **Saudi Arabia**: Earn $300-600, cost of living $150-250, remittance $150-350/month - **Malaysia**: Earn $400-700, cost of living $200-350, remittance $200-350/month - **Vietnam**: Earn $200-390, cost of living $224-432, remittance **$0-negative** **Any agent promising "high savings" from Vietnam is lying.** The economics are impossible.