Cambodia Foreign Work Permit and Employment Card in 2026

Cambodian labour law separates the right to stay from the right to work.

Article 261 of the official Labour Law published by the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training states that a foreigner may not work unless they possess a work permit and employment card issued by the labour ministry.

The law also requires lawful entry, a valid passport, valid residency permission and fitness for the job.

One-year validity rule

The Labour Law states that the work permit is valid for one year and may be extended, but not beyond the period authorized by the foreigner's residence permission.

Current applications and employer/foreign-worker administration use the labour ministry's Foreign Workers Centralized Management System.

Visa is not a work permit

An ordinary Type E visa or EB business extension addresses immigration status. Labour authorization is a separate layer.

This distinction matters for employees, founders who work in their own Cambodian company, and freelancers physically performing work in Cambodia.

Remote workers

The official sources reviewed do not publish a broad exemption saying that foreign remote workers can ignore the work-permit system. Because the Labour Law is framed broadly, ReloTide does not advise treating tourist status or online work as automatically exempt.

See remote worker and freelancer options.

Investors

Cambodia's investment law gives qualifying registered-project investors and eligible foreign employees rights to request work permits and employment books through investment-status certification, but the permit itself remains a labour authorization. See QIP investor long-term stay.

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Verified against MLVT and CDC sources on 19 September 2026.

Official and supporting sources

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