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Are you about to leave Vietnam but still have unresolved social insurance contributions? Are you worried whether you can withdraw your BHXH or lose all the money you have paid over many years?
This is a question that many foreigners face when ending their employment in Vietnam. In reality, if you do not clearly understand the legal regulations, you may completely miss out on an important financial benefit.
When it comes to one-time social insurance withdrawal, many people assume that all procedures must be completed first—especially “closing the social insurance book”—before taking any further steps.
However, the legal framework in Vietnam has specific points that must be properly understood to avoid wasting time or handling the process incorrectly.
According to the Law on Social Insurance 2014 and guiding documents such as Decree No. 143/2018/ND-CP, foreign employees working in Vietnam are subject to compulsory social insurance if they have a work permit and a labor contract of at least one year.
More importantly, the law allows foreigners to receive a one-time social insurance payment when:
They terminate their labor contract
They no longer reside in Vietnam
They request a one-time social insurance withdrawal
This means that you are fully entitled to withdraw your social insurance when you resign and leave Vietnam, provided that you meet the required conditions.
The short answer is: If the book is not closed, you cannot complete the withdrawal procedure yet—but it does not mean you lose your right to withdraw.
Closing the social insurance book is a mandatory step for the social insurance authority to confirm your entire contribution history.
If your company has not completed this step, your withdrawal application will not be processed.
However, the issue is that many foreigners resign within a tight timeframe, or companies delay the process, resulting in the inability to close the book before the departure date.
This is a very common situation—and it can still be resolved.
Many people think they can “leave it for later,” but in reality, delays can lead to significant risks.
If the social insurance book is not closed, your contribution data will not be fully recorded in the system.
This makes it difficult to prove your entitlement later, especially after you have already left Vietnam.
In some cases, if the employee does not keep sufficient documents or if the company has ceased operations, retrieving the data can take a very long time.
Once you have left Vietnam, returning to handle procedures is often not practical.
Even contacting your former employer or the social insurance authority becomes complicated due to time zone differences, language barriers, and administrative procedures.
This is why many people end up abandoning their social insurance benefits—even though they are fully entitled to receive them.
The good news is: you can still resolve this issue legally and effectively if you follow the correct approach.
If you have not yet left Vietnam, you should:
Work with your company to close the social insurance book as soon as possible
Prepare the dossier for one-time social insurance withdrawal
Submit the application to the social insurance authority where you reside or where the company is registered
The processing time is typically 7–15 working days, although it may take longer if the documents are incomplete.
This is the most common situation—and also the one that causes the most concern.
You can fully authorize another person in Vietnam to:
Work with the company to close the social insurance book
Submit the withdrawal application
Receive the payment on your behalf
The authorization must be properly executed (notarized or consular legalized depending on the case). If done incorrectly, the application may be rejected.
In practice, many clients of DEDICA have already left Vietnam but still successfully received their social insurance benefits thanks to following the correct procedures and having a proper legal representative.
Depending on each case, the timeline may vary:
Closing the social insurance book: 1 – 4 weeks
Processing the withdrawal application: 7 – 15 working days
Total time: approximately 3 – 6 weeks
For urgent cases (such as before a flight), early preparation and professional support are critical factors.
Each foreigner’s social insurance withdrawal case depends on various factors such as residency status, type of labor contract, contribution period, and personal documentation.
Therefore, a single standardized process should not be applied to all cases.
Misunderstanding the regulations or preparing incomplete documents may result in delays—or even rejection of the application.
Contact DEDICA Law Firm for in-depth legal consultation.
Hotline: (+84) 39 969 0012 (Available on WhatsApp, WeChat, and Zalo)
Working hours: Monday – Friday (8:30 – 18:00)
Contact us now to receive your first free consultation from our professional legal team
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