Decision 530/QD-TTg 2026 on the programme to attract foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to teach, research, and work at higher and vocational education institutions in Vietnam

DECISION

Approving the programme to attract foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to teach, research and work at higher education institutions and vocational education institutions in Vietnam

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THE PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the February 18, 2025 Law on Organisation of the Government;

Pursuant to the June 14, 2019 Education Law; and the December 10, 2025 Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Education Law;

Pursuant to the December 10, 2025 Law on Vocational Education;

Pursuant to the December 10, 2025 Law on Higher Education;

Pursuant to the June 16, 2025 Law on Educators;

Pursuant to the Political Bureau’s Conclusion No. 91-KL/TW of August 12, 2024 on the continued implementation of Resolution No. 29-NQ/TW of November 4, 2013 on fundamental and comprehensive reform of education and training to meet industrialisation and modernization requirements amidst the socialist-oriented market economy and international integration;

Pursuant to the Political Bureau’s Resolution No. 71-NQ/TW of August 22, 2025 on breakthroughs in education and training development;

Pursuant to the Political Bureau’s Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW of December 22, 2024 on breakthroughs in science and technology development, innovation and national digital transformation;

Pursuant to the Government’s Resolution No. 51/NQ-CP of March 18, 2025, on promulgation of the Government’s Action Programme to implement the Political Bureau’s Conclusion No. 91-KL/TW of August 12, 2024 on the continued implementation of Resolution No. 29-NQ/TW of November 4, 2013;

Pursuant to the Government’s Resolution No. 281/NQ-CP of September 15, 2025, implementing the Political Bureau's Resolution No. 71-NQ/TW of August 22, 2025 on breakthroughs in education and training development;

At the proposal of the Minister of Education and Training in Report No. 439/TTr-BGDDT of March 19, 2026 on submission to the Prime Minister for approval the programme to attract foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to teach, research and work at higher education institutions and vocational education institutions in Vietnam.

DECIDES:

Article 1. To approve the Programme to attract foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to teach, research and work at higher education and vocational education institutions in Vietnam (below referred to as the Programme) with the following contents:

I. VIEWPOINTS

1. The contingent of foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists plays an important role in improving training quality and promoting scientific research, innovation and global knowledge integration.

2. Mechanisms and policies to attract and employ foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists for teaching, scientific research and working at higher education institutions and vocational education institutions must closely follow the Party and the State’s guidelines and policies on breakthroughs in education and training developments; and must be carried out in a consistent, uninterrupted, synchronous, flexible, effective, and transparent manner in the management and employment of the contingent of experts and scientists.

3. To grant autonomy to higher education institutions and vocational education institutions. These institutions shall take initiative in approaching, attracting, exploiting and promoting global intellectual resources and apply specific mechanisms and policies in the recruitment, employment and appointment of foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists.

4. To create favourable working and living environments for experts and scientists; to encourage the active participation of the private sector, enterprises and prestigious major scientific and technological organisations in training, scientific research and science and technology transfer within training institutions, ensuring practicality and efficiency in attracting foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists.

5. The attraction and employment of foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to work in Vietnam’s higher education institutions and vocational education institutions are intended to create breakthroughs in training, research, technology transfer and policy consultancy with priority given to strategic fields and national spearhead technologies.

II. OBJECTIVES

1. General objectives

To perfect and effectively implement breakthrough mechanisms and policies to attract, honour and efficiently utilise foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists in teaching, researching and working in Vietnam’s higher education institutions and vocational education institutions, thereby fostering scientific and technological potential, developing high-quality human resources, enhancing innovation capacity, promoting international integration in education, training and scientific research, contributing to gradually elevating Vietnam’s education to an advanced regional and global levels by 2035.

2. Specific targets to 2035

a/ To attract at least 30 outstanding foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists capable of assuming leadership roles and taking charge of key tasks to create breakthroughs in education, training, scientific research and transfer of technologies, particularly pivotal and strategic technologies.

b/ To attract 500 foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists who wish to work full-time in Vietnam’s higher education institutions and vocational education institutions; are capable of holding positions as heads of research groups and laboratories, or directors of training programmes in pivotal, strategic, spearhead and priority technological fields.

c/ To attract 1,500 foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists for working, teaching, researching, and regular or remote cooperation with Vietnamese higher education institutions and vocational education institutions.

III. TASKS AND SOLUTIONS

1. Perfecting institutions, mechanisms and policies

a/ To study, formulate and promulgate regulations on criteria and conditions for foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to participate in teaching and scientific research, and work in Vietnam, prioritising strategic and pivotal scientific and technological disciplines and key economic sectors; to establish specific recruitment and appointment mechanisms for foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to teach, research and work at higher education institutions and vocational education institutions, ensuring consistency, synchronicity, transparency and conformity with international practices.

b/ To study, review and formulate preferential mechanisms and policies on salaries, bonuses and personal income tax; to provide recognition of titles equivalent to the professor, associate professor, lecturer, principal lecturer and senior lecturer titles conferred abroad; and to promulgate regulations on working and research conditions, and a favourable academic environment, creating strong incentives for foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to teach, conduct scientific research and work at higher education and vocational training institutions in Vietnam.

c/ To continue studying and improving mechanisms and policies on finance and autonomy, enabling public higher education institutions and vocational training institutions to be decentralised in respect of management, fund allocation, and payment of income based on job performance results; and to formulate financial support policies and performance-based mechanisms.

d/ To reform administrative procedures and simplify order of issuing work permits, procedures for exit and entry, issuance of residence visas and other relevant procedures. To formulate policies that create favourable living and housing conditions and provide essential public services in order to enable experts, scientists and their families to settle their lives in Vietnam.

2. Developing an ecosystem, exploiting and updating networks connecting foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists

a/ To exploit, update and share databases on foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists based on existing resources of ministries, sectors, localities and relevant organisations.

b/ To establish, exploit and link networks of experts and scientists via intellectual networks, associations and enterprises; and to annually organise forums and conferences to connect and honour outstanding experts, thereby creating impetuses for attracting foreigners and overseas Vietnamese to work in the country.

c/ To proactively cooperate and participate in international academic exchange forums and lecturer and professional advisor exchange programmes; to organise international academic conferences and forums; and to implement joint doctoral supervision involving foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists, and domestic lecturers and scientists.

d/ To actively connect with foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists who possess outstanding qualifications, creativity and practical experience, or who have works, products, achievements or exceptional contributions recognised and effectively applied, and who demonstrate strong aspirations to make meaningful contributions to the development of the community and society.

dd/ To promote cooperation in scientific research and technological development with countries possessing advanced science and technologies; to focus on the development of networks and create motivations for foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts to contribute to Vietnam’s education system; and to study and create opportunities for overseas Vietnamese young generations and students to return to the country to undertake internships, exchange and connect with higher education institutions and vocational training institutions in Vietnam.

e/ To build an ecosystem and networks of foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists particularly in the fields of artificial intelligence, semiconductor chips, biotechnology, quantum technology, atomic energy, and strategic and spearhead science and technology, and key economic sectors; and to form strong research groups and develop a pool of experts and scientists capable of assuming leading roles and taking charge of key national tasks in science and technology.

3. Strengthening public communication and promoting the image of Vietnam as a reputable academic and research destination.

a/ To formulate a communications strategy to attract foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists and to promote the image of Vietnam as a reliable and dynamic destination for academic study, scientific research and innovation in the Asia-Pacific region.

b/ To actively approach and enhance cooperation with international scientific organisations, academic associations, embassies and overseas Vietnamese networks in introducing, connecting and attracting experts and scientists to Vietnam for teaching, scientific research and working.

c/ To annually publish lists or recognition results of higher education institutions and vocational training institutions with outstanding achievements in international cooperation, with a view to disseminating and replicating good practices across the system.

4. Mobilising and diversifying resources

a/ To prioritise the State budget allocated for implementation of the Programme; and to integrate the Programme’s tasks and contents into projects and tasks under national programmes and schemes on science, technology, innovation and development of high-quality human resources.

b/ To promote public-private partnership in training, joint training and research cooperation. To encourage enterprises and private training institutions to allocate funds to attract foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to participate in teaching and research at Vietnam’s higher education institutions and vocational training institutions in accordance with law.

c/ To enable higher education institutions and vocational training institutions to proactively allocate their budgets and mobilise social resources and other lawful sources to support the implementation of the Programme’s tasks and solutions, and projects of which education institutions take charge of the implementation.

5. Developing a professional and modern research environment

a/ To develop an international standard workspace and working environment. To establish a professional research environment with advanced and modern facilities, laboratories, equipment, machinery and technologies, particularly in artificial intelligence, semiconductor chips, biotechnology, quantum technology, atomic energy, and the nation’s strategic science and technology, and spearhead technologies.

b/ To elevate higher education institutions into national and regional centres for research, innovation and entrepreneurship. To strongly develop a number of Vietnam’s key higher education institutions into leading ones in the region.

c/ To promote cooperation with reputable foreign universities; to comprehensively reform curricula up to international standards; to modernise training methods and apply advanced technologies. To develop a contingent of lecturers and scientists with sufficient capacity and qualifications to teach in the nation’s strategic fields and spearhead technologies.

6. Accelerating digital transformation and the application of science, technology and artificial intelligence

a/ To develop digital connectivity platforms, portals on international academic cooperation integrating data on lecturers, cooperation opportunities, incentive policies and guidance on administrative procedures in both Vietnamese and English.

b/ To develop roadmaps for, and implement the application of digital technologies to support the connection, attraction and management of foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists working in Vietnam’s higher education institutions and vocational training institutions, ensuring safety, flexibility, stability and effectiveness.

c/ To encourage the application of technology and to enhance the application of artificial intelligence in order to effectively implement the attraction of foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists.

d/ To bring into play the role of enterprises involved in digital infrastructure to support higher education institutions and vocational training institutions in improving digital platforms and accelerating the application of artificial intelligence.

7. Tightening the supervision, evaluation, preliminary review and replication

a/ To develop a set of indicators for monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the KPI Programme, including the number of foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists, international publications in journals indexed in the Scopus or Web of Science databases, patents, international cooperation projects, strategic technology products, technology transfer, co-supervision of doctoral students and university rankings.

b/ To apply digitalisation systems to supervise the implementation progress and ensure transparency of the implementation results; to carry out preliminary and final reviews of the Programme to promptly propose relevant mechanisms and policies.

c/ To promptly commend collectives, individuals, and education institutions on their outstanding achievements; replicate good models and effective initiatives in attracting, employing, and retaining foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists.

d/ To formulate a mechanism for annual evaluation, associated with requirements on specific results and output products, ensuring effectiveness and actual applicability.

IV. FUNDS FOR PROGRAMME IMPLEMENTATION

1. Budget funds for the national education and training, and science and technology development according to the current state budget decentralisation and funding sources integrated into the approved related programmes, schemes and projects. The integration of funding sources must comply with current regulations, avoiding duplication and ensuring thrift, efficiency and compliance with law. Ministries, sectors and localities shall, based on the specific objectives and tasks specified in the Programme, formulate specific funding estimates for implementation of the Programme under regulations.

2. Revenues from operational activities and operational activity development funds of higher education institutions and vocational education institutions must be consistent with their financial autonomy policies and comply with the Law on the State Budget and other relevant laws.

3. Funding sources mobilised from domestic and foreign enterprises, organisations and individuals in accordance with law shall be encouraged.

4. Coordination with international organisations shall be intensified to take advantage of resources and support task performance in accordance with law.

Article 2. Organisation of implementation

1. The Ministry of Education and Training shall

a/ Act as a focal agency and assume the prime responsibility for formulating a plan on implementation of the Programme, ensuring task assignment under the spirit of “six clear principles: clear persons, clear tasks, clear responsibilities, clear competences, clear time, and clear products”; and take responsibility for the contents, proposals and recommendations in Document No. 439/TTr-BGDDT of March 19, 2026. The Ministry of Education and Training shall regularly urge, examine and summarise the implementation of the Programme; and conduct preliminary and final reviews of the Programme implementation and annually report thereof to the Prime Minister.

b/ Assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with related ministries and sectors in reviewing, formulating and improving the laws on criteria and conditions for foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to work at higher education institutions and vocational education institutions in Vietnam.

c/ Coordinate with the Ministry of Internal Affairs in studying, reviewing and formulating incentive policies and mechanisms regarding salaries and preferential treatment for foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to teach, conduct scientific research, and work in Vietnam.

d/ Assume the prime responsibility for reviewing and improving mechanisms and policies on recognising titles equivalent to the professor, associate professor, lecturer, principal lecturer and senior lecturer titles conferred abroad; and mechanisms for sharing experts among higher education institutions and vocational education institutions in Vietnam.

dd/ Provide guidance on the formulation of plans on implementation of the Programme to higher education institutions and vocational education institutions.

e/ Assume the prime responsibility for formulating a set of key performance indicators (KPIs) for monitoring and evaluation; summarise the demands for, and procedures for proposing, budget allocation to attract foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to work in Vietnam.

g/ Coordinate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Science and Technology, and related agencies in effectively exploiting databases on experts and scientists; expand and bring into full play the role of the networks of foreign intellectuals, experts and scientists and overseas Vietnamese; and develop a bilingual e-portal and a national communication strategy for the Programme.

h/ Coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security and related agencies in studying and proposing plans on administrative procedure reform, and issuance of entry visas and temporary residence cards for foreign experts and scientists to facilitate their entry into Vietnam to teach, conduct scientific research and work in the country’s higher education institutions and vocational education institutions.

2. The Ministry of Home Affairs shall:

a/ Assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training in, reviewing and improving regulations on the recruitment, appointment, and employment of foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists for teaching, conducting scientific research, and working in in higher education institutions and vocational education institutions in Vietnam, ensuring the special policies applicable to subjects of the Programme.

b/ Assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training and related ministries and agencies in studying, reviewing, and formulating incentive mechanisms and policies on salaries, personal income tax and other preferential treatments for foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists working and conducting scientific research in higher education institutions and vocational education institutions in Vietnam.

3. The Ministry of Finance shall

Assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training in, appraising and submitting to competent authorities for allocating recurrent expenditure funds for implementation of the Programme; allocate funds for the Programme implementation in accordance with law; coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training, other ministries, agencies and localities in organising and supervising the implementation of the Programme.

4. The Ministry of Public Security shall

a/ Assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training, the Ministry of Home Affairs, and related agencies in studying and proposing plans on administrative procedure reform, issuance of entry visas and temporary residence cards for foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to teach, conduct scientific researches, and work in higher education institutions and vocational education institutions in Vietnam.

b/ Assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with domestic and foreign functional agencies in reviewing and checking personal information and identity of experts and scientists who are expected to be invited or recruited to work in Vietnam.

5. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall:

a/ Assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training in, connecting, mobilising, and attracting a network of overseas Vietnamese intellectuals.

b/ Review, amend, and supplement relevant regulations to create favourable conditions for foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists in training, research, and technology transfer activities at higher education institutions and vocational education institutions in Vietnam.

c/ Direct overseas representative missions to proactively exchange information with, and approach experts and scientists, and introduce, connect and coordinate in promoting the image of Vietnam as a country that offers favourable conditions for work and scientific research.

6. The Ministry of Science and Technology shall:

a/ Assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training in, connecting networks and building databases on scientists.

b/ Prioritise the allocation of funds from national science and technology development funds for research tasks and projects led by scientists under this Programme in accordance with law.

7. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism shall direct press agencies in strengthening public communication activities about, and promoting, the image of Vietnam as a reputable academic, working and scientific research destination, in conformity with the Ministry’s state management functions of press and media, and increasing the effectiveness of inter-sectoral coordination in the implementation of the Programme.

8. Provincial-level People's Committees shall:

Organise the implementation of the Programme in their localities; proactively issue special policies (when necessary) applicable to the localities, allocate local budgets, and mobilise social resources to support higher education institutions and vocational education institutions in the localities to implement policies attracting foreign and overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists to teach, conduct scientific research, and work in the localities.

Article 3. This Decision takes effect from the date of signing.

Article 4. Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies, chairpersons of provincial-level People's Committees, and heads of related organisations and agencies shall implement this Decision.-

For the Prime Minister

Deputy Prime Minister

LE THANH LONG