Malaysia, Taiwan, the Republic of Korea (RoK), Japan and Middle East countries have remained the largest markets for Vietnamese labourers. The RoK and Japan have received around 8,000 Vietnamese guest workers.

The Middle Eastern countries, especially the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar and Libya, have been considered potential markets for Vietnamese workers as they have large demands for foreign workers in all sectors, ranging from maids working in households to construction workers to high-tech specialists. However, Vietnam still has difficulties in sending its workers to new markets with high salaries such as Australia, Canada and Italy.

Over recent years, the export of labour has become an important source of revenue for Vietnam, bringing in about US$1.5 billion annually from approximately 400,000 Vietnamese labourers working abroad.