Vietnam
Remote makes employment in Vietnam easy. With our localized contracts, easy invoice management, and best-in-class compliance, you can grow your global team with confidence. Note that we can currently employ contractors in Vietnam but our employer of record services are not yet live.
- Capital city
Hanoi
- Currency
Vietnamese đồng (₫, VND)
- Languages
Vietnamese
- Population size
96,208,984
Facts & Stats
- Capital city
Hanoi
- Currency
Vietnamese đồng (₫, VND)
- Languages
Vietnamese
- Population size
96,208,984
- Ease of doing business
Easy
- Cost of living index
38.05 (2021)
- Payroll frequency
Monthly
- VAT - standard rate
10%
- GDP - real growth rate
7.0 (2019)
Vietnam is a captivating paradise, filled with incredible contrasts in every corner. The country’s unique geography means this relatively small sliver of land sees intense equatorial conditions on the south coast, searing heat in the southern capital, and cooler misty conditions in the north. Similarly, Vietnam’s world-renowned food culture features a clash of influences from nearby Cambodia, China, Malaysia, and from their former French colonial rulers.
The incredible natural diversity of Vietnam, combined with a very low cost of living, makes this Southest Asian nation a magnet for digital nomads. Accommodation is cheap, and co-working spaces and communities are starting to build in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city in particular.
Home to one of Southeast Asia’s largest and fastest growing economies, Vietnam has witnessed rapid recovery since the days of the Vietnam War and has ramped up gains in the agriculture, transport, energy, and telecoms industries.
Grow your team in Vietnam with Remote
Looking to employ workers in Vietnam? Companies hiring in Vietnam must either own a legal entity in the country or work with a global employment solutions provider, usually one that provides employer of record services.
Remote can employ your team in Vietnam on your behalf through our local legal entity in the country and handle payroll, benefits, taxes, and compliance for your Vietnamese team. You can also pay contractors now in Vietnam with Remote in some currencies (talk to an expert now for full details).
Risks of misclassification
Vietnam, like many other countries, treats self-employed individuals or contractors and full-time employees differently. Misclassification of contractors in Vietnam may lead to fines and penalties for the offending company.
Employing in Vietnam
The 2021 Labor Code of the Republic of Vietnam defines provisions for employee protections and workers’ rights applicable to Vietnam’s workforce of 56.5 million. Employees in Vietnam enjoy protections against discrimination based on age, religion, sexual orientation, gender expression, and race.
Common questions that could come up during the hiring process include minimum wage, overtime rates, and guaranteed paid time off. Remote can help you offer a complete, competitive, and compliant benefits package to your employees in Vietnam.
Minimum wage
The Vietnamese government mandates a two-tier minimum wage for skilled and unskilled workers across four distinct regions within the country.
Region I: VND 4,420,000 ($192.80)
Region II: VND 3,920,000 ($170.99)
Region III: VND 3,430,000 ($149.61)
Region IV: VND 3,070,000 ($133.91)
Skilled workers are entitled to a minimum wage that’s at least 7% higher than the base rate defined for unskilled workers.
Payroll cycle
Wages are disbursed bi-monthly or once monthly.
Onboarding Timeline
We can help you get a new employee started in the Vietnam fast. The minimum onboarding time we need is only 19 working days.
Our team ensures your employees are onboarded and paid as quickly as possible while keeping your business compliant with all local employment legislation. The minimum onboarding time begins after the employee submits all required information onto the Remote platform. The onboarding timeline is also dependent upon registration with local authorities.
For all non-nationals of the country of employment, the Right to Work assessment (if applicable) will add three extra days to the total time to onboard. There may be extra time required if we need to follow-up on the right to work assessment. Please note, payroll cut-off dates can impact the actual first day of employment. Remote has a payroll cut-off date of the 10th of the month unless otherwise specified.
11 Public holidays
Competitive benefits package in Vietnam
Remote supports our clients by offering competitive benefits packages that will help you attract and retain the best talent across the globe! Our benefits specialists have done the research on norms and requirements in each local market and have crafted packages that will allow your employees to thrive, no matter what country they live in.
Our benefits packages in Vietnam are tailored to fulfil the local needs of your employees. Typically, our packages contain some or all of the following benefits:
Health Insurance
Dental Insurance
Vision Insurance
Mental Health Support
Pension or 401(K)
Life and Disability Insurance
Taxes in Vietnam
Learn how employment taxes and statutory fees affect your payroll and your employees’ paychecks in Vietnam.
17.5%
Social Insurance
3.00%
Health Insurance
1.00%
Unemployment Insurance
2.00%
Trade Union Fund (Charged for corporate employers only)
Types of Leave
After working for an employer for 12 months, employees are entitled to 12 working days of paid vacation annually, with an additional day of paid vacation added every five years of employment. This increases to 14 days for minors, and 16 days for workers who do intensive, laborious, or dangerous work (mining is one example).
Employees who’ve been working for less than a year are entitled to paid vacation equivalent to their tenure with the employer, i.e., around 1 day off for every month worked.
Employment termination
Termination process
Employee contracts can be terminated if a just cause is established, such as dishonesty, negligence, fraud, or other work-related offences. That aside, notice should be provided in advance – provided both parties agree to it.
Notice period
Employers must provide prior notice three days in advance for employees bound by seasonal contracts (i.e., contracts lasting less than a year); 30 days for indefinite labor contracts (i.e., contracts lasting between one to three years); or 45 days for indefinite labor contracts.
Severance pay
Employees are entitled to a severance package equivalent to half month’s wages for every year worked, or a month’s wages for every year, if the decision is due to redundancy, or economic.
Probation periods
Probation periods in Vietnam are not mandatory and can last anywhere from six to 60 days, depending on the skill level required for the position. Employees must be paid at least 85% of their normal wages during the probation period and should be notified of the probation outcome at least three days before the test period ends.