Cambodia: 2021 Foreign Employee Quota Application Deadline Approaching

By way of reminder, please be informed that the window to apply for the 2021 foreign employee quota will close on Monday, 30 November 2020.

Following our earlier reminder, please note that enterprises employing or intending to employ foreign employees in 2021 are required to apply for a foreign employee quota from the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (“MLVT”). Under the quota system, a maximum of 10% of an employer’s total local workforce may be foreign nationals (based on a calculation of foreign employees/local employees), comprised of: office employees (3%); skilled labour employees (6%); and unskilled labour employees (1%).

However, in August 2020, the MLVT issued Prakas 277/20 concerning Special Conditions on the Employment of Foreign Nationals (“Prakas 277/20”), to permit the hiring foreign nationals in excess of the above foreign employee quota cap under special conditions and subject to MLVT approval. Based on Prakas 277/20, enterprises governed by Article 1 of the Labour Law (including all commercial enterprises, whether public, semi-public or private, religious or non-religious, educational and charitable organizations, professional offices, and associations or groups of any nature whatsoever), which intend to hire employees but cannot find suitably qualified Cambodian nationals, may file a request to hire foreign nationals in excess of 10% of the total number of Cambodian employees.

Please note that, without foreign employee quota approval for 2021, foreign employees cannot apply for foreign employee work permits for 2021.

If your organization employs or intends to employ any foreign nationals, we recommend that the 2021 foreign employee quota application be prepared as soon as possible in order to avoid potential penalties.

If you require our assistance with such application, please do not hesitate to contact labor.kh@dfdl.com.

The information provided here is for information purposes only and is not intended to constitute legal advice. Legal advice should be obtained from qualified legal counsel for all specific situations.

Contacts

Alex Larkin