Cambodia Foreign Work Permit and Foreign Employment Card
The authorisation to work in Cambodia, issued by the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training. It is a separate document from the visa and it is owned by the employer.
Every foreigner performing work in Cambodia needs one, including directors, sole proprietors and the self-employed. It does not follow from holding an EB extension. The two applications run on different calendars, through different ministries, with different evidence.
Programme snapshot
| Item | Current rule |
|---|---|
| Main audience | Every foreigner working in Cambodia, including directors, sole proprietors and the self-employed |
| Route family | Skilled work. Authorisation, not a visa |
| Validity | 1 year, expiring 31 December of the year issued regardless of start date |
| Stay per entry | Not applicable. It is not a travel document |
| Threshold | USD 100 to 300 per year in 2026, plus a medical certificate at USD 30 to 50, charged flat by nationality |
| Renewal | 1 January to 31 March each year. Penalties apply from 1 April |
| Settlement | None |
| PR clock | None |
| Citizenship clock | Time worked legally supports the residence record for naturalisation |
| Family | No. Dependents do not receive permits |
| Local employment | Yes. This is the authorisation |
| Tax headline | Salary tax and patent tax registration follow from being on a payroll or holding a patent certificate |
| Processing | 1 to 4 weeks, or 4 to 6 weeks in the March to April peak |
Application flow
- Confirm the employer holds an approved foreign employee quota for the year, applied for between 1 September and 30 November of the preceding year.
- Hold a valid EB extension of stay. The permit is issued against a valid immigration status.
- Obtain a medical certificate, at USD 30 to 50 in 2026.
- Apply through the Foreign Workers Centralised Management System, with the employer as the applicant.
- Receive the work permit and the separate employment card, then renew between 1 January and 31 March each year.
Good fit
Anyone on a local employment contract, and anyone running their own registered business. Directors named on a company patent tax certificate are treated as employed and expected to hold a permit. Sole proprietors and freelancers who have registered a business are in the same position. The permit is what makes an EB defensible at renewal.
Poor fit
Retirees on an ER, who cannot work and do not need a permit. Pure remote workers with no Cambodian clients and no registered business, who are outside the system in practice and take on cost and filing obligations for nothing. Dependents, who are not issued permits at all.
Watchpoints
- The 10 percent foreign staff quota is real and blocks hires. It splits as 3 percent office, 6 percent skilled labour and 1 percent unskilled. If the employer did not apply in the September to November window, the permit cannot issue and no agent can fix it.
- The permit is employer specific. Change jobs and both the permit and the employment card must be redone, with a new application and a new fee.
- Everything expires on 31 December. A permit bought in November lasts two months for a full year’s fee. Time the start if you can.
- The employment card is a second document. It is routinely forgotten and it is the first thing asked for at an inspection.
- Working without one is the expensive error. A patent tax certificate triggers an expectation of a permit within about a week, and the fine cited in 2026 reporting is around USD 15,000.
- It is not a visa. The permit authorises work. The EB extension authorises stay. Losing either one puts you out of compliance.
Sources
- Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training, Prakas 366/23 on foreign work permits, checked 2026-10-22
- Foreign Workers Centralised Management System, application and renewal windows, checked 2026-10-22
- Cambodianess, working in Cambodia in 2026: visas, work permits and everyday reality, checked 2026-10-22