TESOL Certificate for Embassy approval OR Setup a Company?

Honestly, I make money selling online, I already have an income. I just need a visa so I can legit stay here. Then I will spend my time to find products for my business or potential business partners.

-@JON92

Good luck with your fraudulent visa.  If you want to set up a company to do your business, fine.  Don't try to scam your way into a shady teaching certificate "work arrangement" if you want to stay long term.

TESOL Coarse Online Needed - Quick, Cheap and Official for Vietnam.
I am a Citizen of United States. Native English speaker. I hold a Masters degree in Business. I am currently residing in Vietnam, I need an official TESOL certificate.
-@JON92

To start with, if you really are a native English speaker, you should learn the difference between coarse and course.   Even if you decide to go forward with this coarse idea, you need to get straight on the mechanics of applying for a work permit.   The VN Embassy in Washington DC does not give work permits.   An agency named DOLISA does.   I could go on from there but I would rather you checked yourself.   Ask the "school" you are intending to work with.

I'm not sure you could even pass a TESOL course.  Did you really get through university (at the Master's level?!) without learning how to spell the word "course?"

TESOL Coarse Online Needed - Quick, Cheap and Official for Vietnam.
I am a Citizen of United States. Native English speaker. I hold a Masters degree in Business. I am currently residing in Vietnam, I need an official TESOL certificate. -@JON92

To start with, if you really are a native English speaker, you should learn the difference between coarse and course. 
-@THIGV

Very good "advise"... 😉

Also any advise on the documents sending to the embassy thing -@JON92

TESOL Coarse Online Needed - Quick, Cheap and Official for Vietnam.
I am a Citizen of United States. Native English speaker. I hold a Masters degree in Business. I am currently residing in Vietnam, I need an official TESOL certificate.
-@JON92
To start with, if you really are a native English speaker, you should learn the difference between coarse and course.  Even if you decide to go forward with this coarse idea, you need to get straight on the mechanics of applying for a work permit.  The VN Embassy in Washington DC does not give work permits.  An agency named DOLISA does.  I could go on from there but I would rather you checked yourself.  Ask the "school" you are intending to work with.
-@THIGV

long ago my teacher told me not to worry about spelling, cos in the future there will be a thing called "auto correct"  & for that I am truly grapefruit! 

Once I have the TESOL Cert., I need to get that and my degree notarized and send into the Vietnamese embassy in the united states.

Any advise or comments are greatly appreciated.
-@JON92

My "advice" is to double-check the sequence of events, because you may have things backwards.

Before you have any personal official document notarized (not the document, but your sworn statement that it's authentic) you MAY first need to have an apostille from the state Secretary of State where the certifying institution is located.

Once your document has that apostille, I'm pretty sure (not 100% positive) that you can submit it directly to the Embassy or a Consulate of Vietnam in America, along with a notarized statement that you are the person being certified in that document.

Even though Vietnam is not a full party to the Hague Convention (link) (the situation which keeps the US Embassy/Consulate in Vietnam from certifying your documents) because the Embassy/Consulate of Vietnam is operating out of the USA, they can certify the authenticity of the state apostille and your notarized statement (from any notary public in the USA, which might be a problem for you being here) as well as perform any official translation necessary, making the document(s) ready for submission within Vietnam.

Another (maybe better) option is to obtain the official document apostille in America (with someone's help there you can accomplish that long distance) and have the document with apostille sent to you in Vietnam.

Then, get an appointment at the US Embassy/Consulate here and have your statement notarized that you are the person being certified in that document.

After that, you go to the Foreign Service office of Vietnam in Hanoi or HCMC and they will notarize the notarization of the US foreign service officer as being authentic and also provide any official translation necessary.

Then the document(s) will be ready for submission here in Vietnam (as THIGV mentioned) through your prospective employer to DOLISA...whiich may or may not work.

The process I've described normally works at the provincial level for documents necessary for marriage, and the fact that a Vietnam foreign service officer in the USA didn't certify the apostille as legitimate doesn't ever seem to bother party officials responsible for approving the marriage.

But DOLISA may have a higher standard and insist that the document(s) be submitted through the Embassy/Consulate of Vietnam to fully cover their hind ends.

We had an extensive thread on this subject quite a while back and I think this issue was clarified then but I can't find the thread right now.

I'm happy to have the information I've shared corrected by those who truly know the official process.

@SteinNebraska My apologies for being heard incorrectly. I have a valid, legitimate job offer. I was asking advise on what are genuine legitimate TESOL Accreditation Websites. If you have any advise on the topic it would be greatly appreciated.

@THIGV My apologies for spelling a word incorrectly. It was a bit late with I made the initial post. Thank you for the info DOLISA. I am somewhat familiar with the process needed. As I mentioned in the initial post. I was told by my employer to: 1. Take online TESOL Coarse. 2. Get TESOL and College degree notarized and sent to VN embassy. Then 3. They will process the work permit via the hiring company.

I was asking advise on what are genuine legitimate TESOL Accreditation Websites. If you have any advice on the topic it would be greatly appreciated.

@Runner Cynth My apologies for spelling a word incorrectly. It was a bit late with I made the initial post. Yes, I did graduate at the masters level from a fully accredited University. I am confident that I can complete a TESOL Coarse.

I was asking advice on what are genuine legitimate TESOL Accreditation Websites. If you have any advice on the topic it would be greatly appreciated.

@goodolboy Unfortunately even auto correct sometime will correct a word into a correctly spelled word, however the word in incorrect for the context. lol.

I got my TESL through as a student physically present in university so I’m not really familiar with online classes but you could try googling Cambridge University and see if they offer an online class for TESL. If they do I’m sure it would be acceptable here in Vietnam as a lot of the curriculum used by the schools here comes directly from Cambridge.

@OceanBeach92107 I greatly thank you for taking the time to properly address my questions and concerns and providing a detailed response. The following is my understanding of the process:

1. Take online TESOL Course.

2. Get TESOL and College degree notarized via “official document apostille”, and sent to VN embassy in USA.

3. Have the “official document apostille” sent to Vietnam.

4. Hiring Company will submit documents to proper channel: DOLISA.

I am honestly stuck on point 1.  Advice on what are genuine legitimate TESOL Accreditation Websites. If you have any advice on the topic, it would be greatly appreciated.

@goodolboy Unfortunately even auto correct sometime will correct a word into a correctly spelled word, however the word in incorrect for the context. lol.
-@JON92

That's why you need to read before you hit send, or Submit in the case of this forum.

@JON92 It’s been several years since I went through the process but it sounds about right. Good luck.

The following is my understanding of the process:
1. Take online TESOL Course.
2. Get TESOL and College degree notarized via “official document apostille”, and sent to VN embassy in USA.
3. Have the “official document apostille” sent to Vietnam.
4. Hiring Company will submit documents to proper channel: DOLISA.
I am honestly stuck on point 1. Advice on what are genuine legitimate TESOL Accreditation Websites. If you have any advice on the topic, it would be greatly appreciated.
-@JON92

1. Whether you want an online or in person course really depends on your intentions.  Do you really want to be a good ESL teacher?  If so, look for an in person course.  The best is probably Cambridge CELTA which is available in Vietnam: just Google it. The current 30 day visa situation could be a problem but the program schools should know how to handle it.  If you just want a way to get a TRC then go with online.  The people at DOLISA are OK with online but unless you have prior teaching experience, online will not serve you well.
2. Get your documents notarized at the US Consulate and then to another local agency for certification.  (My apologies for forgetting the name of the agency but see info on searches below.). Do not send your documents to DC. Also notice that unless things have changed, the US Consulate will not translate, as stated above by the rarely incorrect Mr. OB.  Get that done at another government agency (sorry again.)
3. See #2.  You will also need a police check.  Don't get an FBI check as it takes too long.  Get either a local or a State check in the place of your last residency.  You may need to have a cooperating party receive it in the mail and forward it to you via courier (not mail for reasons I will not go into now.). Some places issue an online pdf certificate that you can simply print out and take to the US Consulate.
4. This is correct.  You as the teacher do not have a work permit.  The school has a work permit which entitles them to hire you legally.

It is actually fortunate that there are fewer steps if you do this in Vietnam than there are in trying to do it through the VN Embassy in DC. May I suggest that you search online as there are several previous threads on the steps involved.   Look for the ones that detail doing the process within Vietnam.  The search function on this site is lousy but you can do better using Google.  Search Google for something like "steps to get work permit in Vietnam Expat.com". Adding the Expat.com will direct Google to search accordingly.  (I believe we may credit Mr OB for this trick.). Searching may fill in the blank spots I have left here.

Note:  Dave's ESL Cafe site used to be good for this kind of information but it fell into disuse a few years back due to over moderation.  You might check there too to see it it has arisen from the ashes.

...Get your documents notarized at the US Consulate and then to another local agency for certification. (My apologies for forgetting the name of the agency but see info on searches below.). Do not send your documents to DC. Also notice that unless things have changed, the US Consulate will not translate, as stated above by the rarely incorrect Mr. OB. Get that done at another government agency (sorry again.)-@THIGV

That's the Vietnam Foreign Service office in HCMC I mentioned previously (aka, Department of Foreign Affairs/Ministry of Foreign Affairs/MOFA) and they do both the notarization and any translation requested for a reasonable fee.

It's the same national agency that manages their embassies & consulates around the world (same as a local office of the US Department of State/US State Department).

Within walking distance of the US Consulate, HCMC:

Sở Ngoại vụ (Google Maps link)

HCMC Department of Foreign Affairs

6 Alexandre de Rhodes

Bến Nghé, Quận 1

Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh

a local office of

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

http://www.mofahcm.gov.vn

In Hanoi it's Sở Ngoại vụ Hà Nội but if you go to the national office there you'll be redirected to the local city office (much the same as the US Embassy redirects notary appointments to their annex).

That (MOFA local annex) is where we had our Quảng Ngãi marriage certificate certified as genuine by the government of Vietnam before taking it to the US Embassy for official certification of that MOFA certification, giving us what should be foolproof certification of our Vietnam marriage to use with US government agencies (VA, SSA).

It helps to think of them as a foreign service office of Vietnam WITHIN Vietnam, or an embassy/consulate of Vietnam (the services received are the same services provided by a consulate or the embassy in the USA).

The only proviso as I mentioned before: they only provide the notary & translation services for documents from foreign countries.

Because they are not located in the United States they cannot provide the same certification of an apostille from a US state, as can a consulate or the embassy in the U.S.

That's where (under tighter restrictions than were in place when you were here) DOLISA "might" not accept the documents if they've only been personally notarized.

Local provincial party committees seem to accept that process for marriage documents (notarization at US Embassy/Consulate & notarization! at MOFA office) because the official stamps are generally seen as relieving them of responsibility in the matter, even though TECHNICALLY that process doesn't certify the apostille by anyone except the bearer.

Documents that are submitted in the U.S. (or any other foreign country) and certified by a Vietnam consulate or the embassy there DO actually receive a MOFA certification of the apostille.

This is where things get really tricky for some foreigners whose countries don't have a Vietnam MOFA presence.

They may have the qualifications to be hired for a job in Vietnam but they don't have any way to have their local documents certified in their home country for use in Vietnam.

If I were the OP, I'd try it my way (the way you described) first, as it would be easier & less expensive, but I'd be prepared to resubmit through a consulate/the embassy of Vietnam, in America, if DOLISA rejected the apostilles.

...Get your documents notarized at the US Consulate and then to another local agency for certification. (My apologies for forgetting the name of the agency but see info on searches below.). Do not send your documents to DC. Also notice that unless things have changed, the US Consulate will not translate, as stated above by the rarely incorrect Mr. OB. Get that done at another government agency (sorry again.)-@THIGV

That's the Vietnam Foreign Service office in HCMC I mentioned previously (aka, Department of Foreign Affairs/Ministry of Foreign Affairs/MOFA) and they do both the notarization and any translation requested for a reasonable fee.

It's the same national agency that manages their embassies & consulates around the world (same as a local office of the US Department of State/US State Department).

Within walking distance of the US Consulate, HCMC:

Sở Ngoại vụ (Google Maps link)
HCMC Department of Foreign Affairs
6 Alexandre de Rhodes
Bến Nghé, Quận 1
Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh

a local office of
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
http://www.mofahcm.gov.vn

-@OceanBeach92107

That's exactly the place I was thinking of but couldn't recall the name.  Thanks for filling in one of my increasingly frequent blank spots. I still didn't remember the acronym MOFA but I immediately recognized the address on Alexandre de Rhodes.  Previously, one had to go there after the notarizations at the Consulate. The consulate had a handout with the address. As MOFA apparently now does the notarization as well as the translation and certification, this makes the process of lining up the documents from within the country even smoother than doing it in DC at the notoriously uncooperative Vietnamese Embassy.  One stop shopping instead of multiple locations and multiple FEDEX fees.  It would be good if someone who has gone through this process lately put the whole thing together in a clean new post and maybe nominate it as a sticky.

...Get your documents notarized at the US Consulate and then to another local agency for certification. (My apologies for forgetting the name of the agency but see info on searches below.). Do not send your documents to DC. Also notice that unless things have changed, the US Consulate will not translate, as stated above by the rarely incorrect Mr. OB. Get that done at another government agency (sorry again.)-@THIGV

That's the Vietnam Foreign Service office in HCMC I mentioned previously (aka, Department of Foreign Affairs/Ministry of Foreign Affairs/MOFA) and they do both the notarization and any translation requested for a reasonable fee.

It's the same national agency that manages their embassies & consulates around the world (same as a local office of the US Department of State/US State Department).

Within walking distance of the US Consulate, HCMC:

Sở Ngoại vụ (Google Maps link)
HCMC Department of Foreign Affairs
6 Alexandre de Rhodes
Bến Nghé, Quận 1
Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh

a local office of
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
http://www.mofahcm.gov.vn

-@OceanBeach92107
That's exactly the place I was thinking of but couldn't recall the name. Thanks for filling in one of my increasingly frequent blank spots. I still didn't remember the acronym MOFA but I immediately recognized the address on Alexandre de Rhodes. Previously, one had to go there after the notarizations at the Consulate. The consulate had a handout with the address. As MOFA apparently now does the notarization as well as the translation and certification, this makes the process of lining up the documents from within the country even smoother than doing it in DC at the notoriously uncooperative Vietnamese Embassy. One stop shopping instead of multiple locations and multiple FEDEX fees. It would be good if someone who has gone through this process lately put the whole thing together in a clean new post and maybe nominate it as a sticky.
-@THIGV

Also, the consulate will allow you to notarize an entire packet of documents for only the single notary fee of $50.00 USD.

The MOFA office will then notarize the entire packet of documents for a single notary fee as well.

The only additional charges are for each document translation requested.

The consulate still (as of 7/2022) provides the handy printout with directions to and information about the MOFA office.

Maybe most important:

The MOFA office closes at 4 PM but stops accepting new customers at 3 PM (the "take a number & wait" machine gets taken away).

If a person is thinking about taking care of business at both locations in one day, they should grab the earliest possible appointment time at their consulate (any foreign consulate that requires appointments in HCMC) in order to get to the MOFA office before 3 PM.

Thank you both: @OceanBeach92107 @THIGV for more detailed information. I an currently residing in Da Nang and temp visa that will expire on April 30th. I was told by my employer to have someone (a family member) in the united states, to send the documents to VN Embassy in Washington DC. But they first need to be notarized and verified locally. I do not know if this is a simple notary stamp that can be obtained anywhere in the states. Or if it is a more specific type, where the person notarizing verifies the documents (such as contacting the college to verify).

I was told once the documents are in DC, then the DC embassy forwards them to Vietnam. Then once they are forwarded to Vietnam, They are in some sort of database so that the VN Government knows that my Degree is legitimate. Once in this system, Then the VN employer can submit for the work permit since the necessary documents are in the system.

I like the idea of handling it all in person, however it seems that the documents need to be verified in the united states, then sent to VN? Also as I mentioned, I am currently in Da Nang, so I do not know if it can be done here.

Thank you both: @OceanBeach92107 @THIGV for more detailed information. I an currently residing in Da Nang and temp visa that will expire on April 30th. I was told by my employer to have someone (a family member) in the united states, to send the documents to VN Embassy in Washington DC. But they first need to be notarized and verified locally. I do not know if this is a simple notary stamp that can be obtained anywhere in the states. Or if it is a more specific type, where the person notarizing verifies the documents (such as contacting the college to verify).
I was told once the documents are in DC, then the DC embassy forwards them to Vietnam. Then once they are forwarded to Vietnam, They are in some sort of database so that the VN Government knows that my Degree is legitimate. Once in this system, Then the VN employer can submit for the work permit since the necessary documents are in the system.
I like the idea of handling it all in person, however it seems that the documents need to be verified in the united states, then sent to VN? Also as I mentioned, I am currently in Da Nang, so I do not know if it can be done here.
-@JON92

Last question/answer first:

You missed the most recent opportunity last December (2022)

usembassy.gov/limited-consular-services-event-in-da-nang/

I don't know of a new visit being planned as of today.

(Anyone interested should follow the instructions on that webpage to subscribe to the email embassy newsletter and other alerts.)

As for notarizing and certifying (apostille) in the United States, forgive me but I think you still might not understand the difference between the two things.

I'm virtually certain that you don't need to be in the United States in order to get a document apostille done by the relevant secretary of state's office.

That process is simply certifying that the document source is genuine, nothing more.

the state Secretary of state's office will usually have website instructions about how to do that through the mail.

The notarization, on the other hand, requires you to "appear before" any legal notary public and swear that your written statement (claiming that YOU are the person listed in the documents) is true.

In this digital age, it's probably possible for you to find a notary public who will agree to have you "appear before them" via the internet (Skype, etc).

So yes, get those two things done long distance in the USA, then have the packet (dossier) sent to a consulate or the embassy of Vietnam there.

Many of us recommend:

San Francisco Consulate of Vietnam

Legalization and Authentication of Documents

vietnamconsulate-sf.org/en/2017/05/11/legalization-authentication-of-documents-for-use-in-viet-nam/

Based on what their website says, the certified documents will be returned to you in the United States, and then you would just need to have them sent to Vietnam.

it's worth a try to call to the consulate to ask if forwarding to Vietnam for entry into that database you mentioned is possible.

If not, ask to pay for the postage to have the finished documents sent directly to you at an address in Vietnam.

Then you bypass the US Embassy/Consulate & the MOFA office and submit the dossier to your prospective employer for processing, if they haven't already been entered into the database.

I don't know this for a fact but it's probably a good idea to include your notarized copy of whatever police report is required in the dossier that you send to the consulate in San Francisco.

In fact, I'm pretty sure they have a list of what's required for a dossier for employment in Vietnam, because they have one for marriage documents.

I had a nice conversation with them on the phone when I was thinking of submitting my marriage documents to them, and they told me that it would be okay for me to submit documents individually or as a total packet.

Good luck with all of that.

If you get too close to the expiration date of your current business visa and you don't have everything together yet, it's possible that you can get it extended, either through your employer or by yourself through an agent in Đà Nẵng.

Hopefully my responses have not been too pedantic for you, but on some of these issues pertaining to immigration, it's often necessary to make sure that there is crystal clear understanding about all the requirements, in order to save you the misery of having to resubmit something.

Good luck!

A lot of good information from the contributors here. Excuse me if I've duplicated any advice.

Vietnam is not a signatory to the Hague Convention on apostille, so you should get an alternate authentication for non-apostille nations.

If I recall, the university registar notarizes your transcripts and the state police do the same for your background check. Then you send those notarized documents to the secretary of state for non-apostille authentication. At least in my state, the secretary of state will ask you what country it is for and if you want your document apostilled or stamped with the alternate authentication. 

Check the websites for your secretary of state, state police, and university registrar for more information. They commonly do this for people working abroad.

While it is best (i.e., guaranteed acceptance by the authorities) to have the Vietnamese embassy in your country approve the documents, it can take a long time. Many will instead get them notarized at the U.S. consulate and then legalized at the MOFA. It's not guaranteed that Vietnam will accept the consulate's approval, but they usually do.

The U.S. consulate in Saigon books appointments well in advance so make sure you schedule an appointment soon.

All TEFL certificates are not equal. The Cambridge and the Trinity certificates are the most reputable internationally and have highly rigorous programs. However, they are expensive.  In reality with the current job market for TEFL in Vietnam not many employers will care about which certificate you have. 

There are some other certificates which may be good too but I can't speak to them. The best programs will have a little theory on second language acquisition, a little grammar, and a lot of practical instruction for the classroom: how to make a lesson plan, teaching in a monolingual setting, error correction, comprehension checking, etc. So it is best to check accreditation and read reviews of potential programs.

While some may say just take the cheapest and quickest TEFL certificate program, that's unethical. This is a developing country and students are paying a lot of money to learn English. For many, their future chances of success will depend on their English ability. They deserve qualified and skilled teachers.

Thank you both: @OceanBeach92107 @THIGV for more detailed information. I an currently residing in Da Nang and temp visa that will expire on April 30th. I was told by my employer to have someone (a family member) in the united states, to send the documents to VN Embassy in Washington DC. But they first need to be notarized and verified locally. I do not know if this is a simple notary stamp that can be obtained anywhere in the states. Or if it is a more specific type, where the person notarizing verifies the documents (such as contacting the college to verify).
I was told once the documents are in DC, then the DC embassy forwards them to Vietnam. Then once they are forwarded to Vietnam, They are in some sort of database so that the VN Government knows that my Degree is legitimate. Once in this system, Then the VN employer can submit for the work permit since the necessary documents are in the system.
I like the idea of handling it all in person, however it seems that the documents need to be verified in the united states, then sent to VN? Also as I mentioned, I am currently in Da Nang, so I do not know if it can be done here.
-@JON92

You are in luck.

The Embassy just announce a community outreach later this month in Đà Nẵng:

Residents of Da Nang, save yourself the trip to Ho Chi Minh City or Hanoi!  Representatives from the American Citizen Services unit of the U.S. Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City will be in Da Nang at Six on Six Café, 64 Ba Huyen Thanh Quan, Bac My An, Ngu Hanh Son, Da Nang on Friday, March 24th from 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. for an Acceptance Event.  We will accept passport applications and perform notarial services.

Please note that these services are by appointment only and customers must pay with exact change.  We will only be accepting passport applications and providing notarial services during this event.  If you are eligible for the Passport Renewal by Mail program, you can also drop off your application at the event.  Consular Report of Birth Abroad applicants should make an appointment in Ho Chi Minh City or Hanoi

usembassy.gov/consular-services-events-in-ho-chi-minh-city-d1-da-nang/

@THIGV Somebody has to finish at the bottom of every class.