Recently, the number of Vietnamese citizens' illegally entering and staying in foreign countries has been on constant rise, thus negatively affecting our country's prestige and relations with the concerned countries and adversely impacting the development of tourism and labor export. Violations committed by Vietnamese citizens largely take the following forms:

Illegal exit from Vietnam and entry into foreign countries: People committing this violation usually had no exit and entry papers, and were deceived, enticed or dragged by evil persons to illegally cross the borders to some foreign countries where they searched jobs or used fake passports and papers to further travel to other countries. Many women and children were even deceived and trafficked to foreign countries.

Legal exit from Vietnam and entry into foreign countries, but later staying on for illegal residence and labor in such countries: Subjects committing this violation traveled to foreign countries with lawful passports as tourists, visitors to relatives, self-financed overseas students, laborers, etc., then stayed on beyond the permitted duration for seeking employment. The fact that many were deceitfully sent for overseas labor through the tourist channel has badly affected the labor export policies of our State.

The above-said situation has been attributed to the following:

Objectively, free migration, especially migration for economic reasons in the context of globalization, is a common phenomenon. Our country is currently in the process of international and regional economic integration, thus hardly avoiding the negative impacts of this phenomenon; some countries have not strictly controlled foreigners who illegally enter and reside, and only handled or expelled them after detecting that they had committed serious violations, which has facilitated the illegal entry and residence of foreigners, including Vietnamese citizens. Moreover, the bilateral agreements on visa exemption for ordinary passport holders between Vietnam and other countries have been abused by some individuals and organizations that, for seeking illicit profits, deceivingly and illegally send people to work overseas. Besides, hostile forces have also agitated, enticed and organized Vietnamese people to illegally exit and reside in foreign countries for economic purposes, aiming to politically blacken our country.

Subjectively, because most violators came from rural, deep-lying and remote areas, lacking information on the labor export policies, the list of companies licensed to recruit laborers for export as well as immigration and residence laws of foreign countries, they can easily be deceived, enticed, dragged or even forced to exit (such as women and children who have been deceived and sent abroad). Some people know that they fail to fully meet the conditions for labor export under lawful contracts and are clearly aware of the truth of illegal exit and labor in foreign countries but have still intentionally committed violations for economic purposes. In addition, the management by some functional agencies and local administrative still reveals loopholes, so that some individuals and organizations, for seeking profits, can take advantage of the State's open policies on exit, entry, tourism and labor export to deceive people and organize illegal cross-border travel or provide sham tourist services to send people abroad; the functional agencies have failed to detect, handle and prevent promptly and strictly violations; the work of information, propagation and education of citizens has not yet been given due attention or asynchronously carried out.

In order to well materialize the Party's and the State's policies on international integration and expansion of cooperation with foreign countries, thus creating favorable conditions for the exit, entry and travel of Vietnamese citizens to foreign countries for plausible reasons and according to lawful procedures, and concurrently limiting then proceeding to put an end to the above-said situation, the Prime Minister instructs:

1. The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the concerned ministries and branches and the People's Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities in, revising the regulations on, and conditions for, permitting enterprises to export labor and directing them to ensure the sending of the right subjects for the right purposes and ensure stable jobs and incomes for laborers in strict compliance with the treaties and agreements already signed with foreign parties; closely managing contractual laborers to avoid the situation that laborers cancel the contracts at their own will; promulgating more severe penalties to end the situation of contract cancellation by laborers; widely disseminating the labor export policies and the list of enterprises and their authorized representatives licensed to export labor, so that laborers can know and contact them, thus avoid being deceived by evil persons.

2. The Ministry of Public Security shall direct the professional forces to better manage the carrying out of exit procedures; actively investigate and handle individuals and organizations that send people on illegal exit and commit deception in labor export; expeditiously verify and reply verification requests of our foreign-based representations regarding people who are not permitted to reside by foreign countries; coordinate with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and foreign-based Vietnamese representations in studying plans on negotiation with foreign countries to settle the situation of illegal entry and residence of Vietnamese citizens, and receiving back people who are compelled to repatriate; and take initiative in coordinating and exchanging information with the functional agencies of the concerned countries in preventing and detecting the use of forged papers.

3. The Ministry of Defense shall direct the border-guard force to closely manage the exit of Vietnamese citizens at border-gates under their management; and coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the People's Committees of the bordering provinces in receiving back Vietnamese citizens not permitted to reside by foreign countries according to law provisions.

4. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security and the concerned ministries and branches in, setting up the inter-branch working committee to conduct negotiations with foreign countries on settlement of the situation of Vietnamese citizens' illegal exit, entry and residence in foreign countries and repatriation of Vietnamese citizens who are not permitted to reside by foreign countries according to law provisions; and direct foreign-based Vietnamese representations to coordinate with the functional agencies of the host countries in monitoring, making statistics and periodical reports on the situation of Vietnamese citizens' illegal entry into and residence in such foreign countries.

In support of Vietnamese citizens not permitted to reside by foreign countries and forced to return home, who have no money to buy air tickets, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs shall direct the foreign-based Vietnamese representations to buy air tickets for the said people's return home and transfer dossiers and vouchers thereon to the Finance Ministry for settlement. Localities where such citizens reside shall have to settle the fares with the Finance Ministry or the Finance Ministry shall deduct them from local budgets. The said citizens shall have to refund fares to the localities where they reside after their repatriation.

5. Foreign-based Vietnamese representations shall coordinate with the local functional bodies of the host countries in directly inspecting and verifying the cases, and be responsible for considering and deciding to grant papers for repatriation of Vietnamese citizens not permitted to reside by foreign countries. After granting papers, the representations shall send telegrams on the cases' details to the Ministry of Public Security according to regulations for coordination in reception of repatriates.

6. The Ministry of Culture and Information shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, the concerned ministries and branches, the People's Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities and the mass media in, intensifying the communication and propagation of Vietnamese laws and regulations on exit and entry, immigration laws of foreign countries as well as our State's labor export policies; providing information on tricks employed by deceiving organizations and individuals and consequences of illegal labor overseas and cancellation of labor contracts at laborers' own will for illegal residence and labor in foreign countries, so that laborers can know and avoid.

7. Vietnam Administration of Tourism shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Finance Ministry and the Public Security Ministry in, studying and submitting to the Prime Minister for consideration and promulgation regulations prescribing that international travel enterprises must bear financial liability for the transportation of their customers, who have illegally stayed in foreign countries and been expelled, back to Vietnam.

8. The Finance Ministry shall have to coordinate with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the concerned ministries and branches in studying the formulation of a financial mechanism to support the protection of Vietnamese citizens in foreign countries; supplement funding for the border-guards and the People's Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities to receive, manage and bring back to their localities Vietnamese citizens returning from foreign countries; and coordinate with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the foreign-based Vietnamese representations and the concerned localities in implementing the provisions at Point 4 of this Directive.

9. The People's Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities shall have to intensify the education and propagation of our State's policies and laws on exit, entry, tourism and labor export so that Vietnamese citizens know and observe them; direct the People's Committees of subordinate levels to enhance the management and selection of laborers for export, detect and coordinate with functional agencies in handling organizations and individuals that deceive and illegally send Vietnamese citizens abroad; and coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security and foreign-based Vietnamese representations in quickly receiving back their citizens expelled by foreign countries and helping them re-integrate into the community and stabilize their life.

10. The ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the concerned agencies and the presidents of the People's Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities shall have to organize the implementation of this Directive. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs shall have to monitor and inspect the implementation by the ministries, branches and localities and report to the Prime Minister the implementation of this Directive.

For the Prime Minister
Deputy Prime Minister
VU KHOAN