Conditions for an individual’s eligibility to practise medicine in Vietnam from January 1, 2024

License to practice medicine is a written document issued by a competent authority of Vietnam to a person fully qualified to practice medical examination and treatment in accordance with this Law (hereinafter referred to as practising license).

Conditions for an individual’s eligibility to practise medicine in Vietnam from January 1, 2024

According to the provisions of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023 (effective from January 1, 2024), any individual shall be permitted to provide medical services in Vietnam when fully meeting the following requirements:

(i) His/her certificate of practice of medicine remains valid;

(ii) He/she has obtained registration for practice of medicine, except as prescribed in clause 3 of Article 36 herein;

(iii) He/she satisfies language proficiency requirements in healthcare as set out in Article 21 herein;

(iv) He/she reaches health standards required by the Minister of Health of Vietnam;

(v) He/she does not fail in the following cases:

+ Any medical practitioner who is criminally prosecuted for any offence involving their application of professional and technical expertise in healthcare.

+ Any medical practitioner who is serving a suspended sentence or non-custodial correctional sentence for any offence involving their application of professional and technical expertise in healthcare.

+ Any person or individual previously serving imprisoned for an offence involving their application of professional and technical expertise in healthcare, but released on conditional parole, who is being put on probation.

+ Any medical practitioner who serves a prison sentence or is incurring an administrative penalty by being forced into a compulsory reform school or detoxification center.

+ Any medical practitioner who is banned from practicing medicine under a criminal judgment of the court of legal effect, or is subject to a restriction on the practice of medicine pursuant to the decision of a competent authority.

+ Any medical practitioner that loses his/her capacity to perform civil acts or has impaired cognition or difficulties in behavior control, or restricted capacity to perform his/her civil acts

Conditions for an individual’s eligibility to practise medicine in Vietnam from January 1, 2024 (Internet image)

 Any individual may practise as a medical practitioner without being required to satisfy the conditions specified in (i), (ii) and (iii) when:

- He/she is a learner or student studying at a health training institution; a person who is practising as a medical intern before being eligible for a practicing license; a person who is waiting for a practicing license to be conferred and only practice medicine under the supervision of a practitioner;

- As a village health worker, village midwife or health worker working at a health care agency, unit or organization that is not incorporated as a medical establishment, he/she may only practise medicine within the range of assigned duties and after completing a training course in specialties or professional skills decided by the Minister of Health;

- He/she is one of the following subjects:

+ Medical practitioners, including foreigners who are practising medicine in Vietnam;

+ Foreigners or overseas Vietnamese whose practising certificates have been awarded by competent foreign bodies and entities;

+ Students, learners or pupils studying at health training institutions; persons qualifying for practising licenses who have not yet been granted practising licenses.

- He/she is someone else participating in the process of medical care as instructed by the Government.

Any foreigner or overseas Vietnamese who has obtained a practicing license issued by a competent foreign agency or organization may organize humanitarian outreach healthcare campaigns at intervals, cooperate in provision of training courses on medicine involving medical internship, or transfer professional techniques in medicine under the provisions of this Law, without the encumbrance of the conditions specified in (i) and (ii).

Any person participating in a community-based medical emergency who is not an out-of-hospital paramedic shall not be required to satisfy the condition above

Mai Thanh Loi

>> CLICK HERE TO READ THIS ARTICLE IN VIETNAMESE