CAN PUBLIC EMPLOYEES BE RECRUITED AS CIVIL SERVANTS? WHAT ARE THE CONDITIONS FOR RECRUITMENT AS A CIVIL SERVANT?

Decree 170/2025/ND-CP specifies the categories of individuals eligible for recruitment as civil servants, including public employees. Below are the specific regulations and conditions for such recruitment. Let’s explore this further with Phạm Consult!

1. Can public employees be recruited as civil servants? What are the conditions for recruitment as a civil servant?

Under current regulations, public employees are among the categories of individuals eligible for recruitment as civil servants.

Specifically, Clause 1, Article 13 of Decree 170/2025/ND-CP (as amended by Article 3 of Decree 300/2026/ND-CP) stipulates the following:

Subjects, standards, conditions, and dossiers for recruitment as civil servants

1. Based on the need for personnel capable of immediately meeting job requirements, the head of the agency with recruitment authority shall consider recruiting the following individuals as civil servants:
2. a) Experts, scientists, jurists, skilled lawyers, and outstanding entrepreneurs currently working at agencies, organizations, or units outside the public sector, under policies designed to attract talented individuals;
3. b) Public employees;
4. c) Individuals receiving salaries within the People’s Army, the People’s Public Security, or the cipher organization who are not civil servants;
5. d) Individuals holding leadership or managerial positions or titles at the division level or higher in enterprises where the State holds 100% of the charter capital, or in enterprises where the State holds more than 50% of the charter capital or total voting shares; dd) Individuals who were formerly cadres or civil servants and were subsequently transferred by a competent authority to work at another agency, organization, or unit in a capacity other than that of a cadre or civil servant;
6. e) Individuals recruited within the staffing quota assigned by a competent authority to work in associations assigned tasks by the Party or the State;
7. g) Participants in the pilot scheme for recruiting young intellectual volunteers to communes for rural and mountainous area development (2013–2020) who, upon completion of the scheme, continued to work at the commune under an employment contract.

Accordingly, the head of the agency with recruitment authority shall consider admitting a public employee to the civil service based on manpower needs and the ability to immediately meet job requirements.

2. What conditions must a public employee meet to be admitted to the civil service?

Pursuant to Clause 2, Article 13 of Decree 170/2025/ND-CP (as amended by Article 3 of Decree 300/2026/ND-CP), the regulations are as follows:

Subjects, standards, conditions, and dossiers for admission to the civil service

2. Standards and conditions for admission:

Based on the required civil servant ratio for each job position (as approved by the competent authority for the employing agency), the assigned staffing quota, and the requirements of the specific job position, the head of the agency with recruitment authority shall decide on the admission to the civil service for the cases specified in Clause 1 of this Article, provided the following standards and conditions are met:

1. a) Meeting the standards and conditions for civil service recruitment registration as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 19 of the Law on Cadres and Civil Servants No. 80/2025/QH15; b) Not falling under any of the cases specified in Clause 3, Article 19 of the Law on Cadres and Civil Servants No. 80/2025/QH15, or currently undergoing disciplinary proceedings, serving a disciplinary decision, or subject to disciplinary-related regulations prescribed by the Party or the law;
2. c) For the case specified in Point a, Clause 1 of this Article, the individual must possess results, products, projects, initiatives, or scientific solutions that have been practically applied, yielded clear and appropriate effectiveness, and immediately met the requirements of the intended job position; and must be a person of high repute recognized by the scientific community and specialized management agencies;
3. d) For the cases specified in Points b, c, d, e, and g, Clause 1 of this Article, the individual must have at least 05 years of work experience in a role requiring professional qualifications and expertise suitable for the intended job position.

The work duration specified in this Point refers to the continuous period immediately preceding the recruitment—spent performing work that required suitable professional qualifications and expertise (excluding probation or trial periods, if any)—during which compulsory social insurance contributions were made and the salary level corresponded to the work of the intended job position. However, for the cases specified in Points d and g, Clause 1 of this Article, a corresponding salary level is not mandatory.

Periods of employment in the job positions specified in Points b, c, d, dd, e, and g, Clause 1 of this Article, or as commune-level cadres or civil servants under the Law on Cadres and Civil Servants No. 22/2008/QH12 (as amended and supplemented by Law No. 52/2019/QH14), may be aggregated, provided the requirements set forth in this Point are met. The work requires professional and vocational qualifications appropriate for the intended position; it is work linked to the field of training and requires the application of specialized knowledge and skills that align with the job description and competency framework of the intended position.

1. dd) In the case specified in Point dd, Clause 1 of this Article, a written decision from a competent authority is required to transfer the individual to work at another agency, organization, or unit based on mission requirements; the 05-year service requirement specified in Point d of this Clause does not apply.

Accordingly, for a public employee to be accepted as a civil servant, the following conditions must be met:

– Meeting the standards and conditions for civil servant recruitment registration;

– Not falling into any category ineligible for civil servant recruitment registration, nor currently undergoing disciplinary proceedings, serving a disciplinary decision, or subject to disciplinary-related regulations under Party rules or the law;

– Having at least 05 years of work experience in a role requiring professional qualifications and expertise suitable for the intended civil servant position.

Specifically:

The aforementioned service period refers to continuous employment prior to the transfer, involving work that requires suitable professional qualifications and expertise (excluding probation or trial periods, if any), with mandatory social insurance contributions and a salary grade corresponding to the intended civil servant position. However, for the cases specified in Points d and g, Clause 1 of this Article, a corresponding salary grade is not mandatory.

Periods of service in public employee positions or in commune-level official or civil servant positions (as defined by the Law on Officials and Civil Servants) may be aggregated, provided the requirements of this Point are met.

3. Work requiring professional qualifications and expertise suitable for the intended civil servant position is defined as work linked to the individual’s field of study, requiring the application of professional knowledge and skills that align with the job description and competency framework of the intended civil servant position. In which cases are individuals ineligible to register for civil service recruitment?

Pursuant to Clause 3, Article 19 of the Law on Cadres and Civil Servants 2025, the following persons are ineligible to register for civil service recruitment:

– Persons who lack or have limited civil act capacity, or persons with difficulties in cognition or control of their behavior;

– Persons currently facing criminal prosecution; persons currently serving or having served a criminal sentence or court decision without having their criminal record expunged; or persons currently subject to administrative handling measures at compulsory drug rehabilitation centers or compulsory education institutions.