hire in Vietnam

Vietnam PEO &
Employer of Record

SALARY PAYMENT IN Vietnamese Dong (VND, ₫)

CONTRACT LANGUAGES Vietnamese / English

PAYROLL TAX 21.50%

PAYROLL CYCLE Monthly

TIME TO HIRE 24 hours
Get Started

The Horizons PEO solution allows you to hire in Vietnam, without setting up a costly subsidiary.

Horizons has the most fair price point on the market with zero hidden fees. Contact us for a cost breakdown

With extensive experience in the Vietnam hiring market, Horizons can hire new employees in as little as 24 hours.

Horizons' HR management platform was built to easily manage international teams, based on client feedback at each step of development.

Hire and pay talents
with Horizons in
180+ countries

Get started

Vietnam

Hire in Vietnam

Employment Laws

Compensation & Benefits

FAQs

SIMPLE, COMPLIANT HIRING WITH HORIZONS PEO

Hire in Vietnam

Horizons ensures day-to-day guidance to help your business navigate Vietnamese labor laws and regulations. We also provide mandatory monthly payroll requirements, and absorb all local employment liabilities. Partnering with our Vietnam PEO is the quickest and most cost-effective way to enter the Vietnamese market.

Facts & Stats

PEO Platform Hire in Vietnam, and pay employees through our platform or app.	PEO Cost Our Vietnam PEO solution is the most affordable on the market.	Time-to-hire Fast onboarding in Vietnam, hire in as little as 24 hours.
Contracts We draft labor contracts compliant with Vietnamese labor law.	Local Benefits We administer all mandatory benefits and contributions in Vietnam.	180+ Countries It doesn’t stop with Vietnam — we are an international PEO

stay compliant with Vietnam labor laws

Employment Laws

Employment contracts in Vietnam

Vietnamese law requires employers to draft written employment contracts when hiring staff. Contracts should be concise, strongly-worded, and outline an employee’s compensation, benefits, job responsibilities, and any rules around termination.

Letters of offer and employment contracts should be drafted in both Vietnamese and English. Any reference to salary and benefits should be made in Vietnamese dong (VND), rather than a foreign currency.

By partnering with our Vietnam PEO, Horizons’ team of local experts can provide assistance for drafting strong employment contracts that are compliant with local regulations.

Fixed-term

Probationary period	Managers: max. 180 days Position requiring technical qualification or college degree: max. 60 days Technical workers or operations employees: max. 30 days Others: max. 6 days
Termination notice period	Contract for <1 year: 3 days notice required Contract for 1+ year: 30 days notice required
Severance	‘Severance’: if 1+ year of service: 0.5 months’ salary per year of service ‘Job loss allowance’: if 1+ year of service and terminated for a business reason: 1 month’s salary per year of service, 2 months salary min.
Important note	During probation, employees are paid only 85% of full salary in employment agreement

Indefinite

Probationary period	Managers: max. 180 days Position requiring technical qualification or college degree: max. 60 days Technical workers or operations employees: max. 30 days Others: max. 6 days
Termination notice period	45 days (during and after probation)
Severance	‘Severance‘: if 1+ year of service: 0.5 months’ salary per year of service ‘Job loss allowance‘: if 1+ year of service and terminated for a business reason: 1 month’s salary per year of service, 2 months salary min.
Important note	During probation, employees are paid only 85% of full salary in employment agreement

Working hours in Vietnam

In Vietnam, employees typically work eight hours per day and 48 hours per week. Employers are required by law to provide their employees with one day off per week. In most work arrangements, a day off is taken on Sundays.

A standard work week in Vietnam is Monday to Friday, with eight hours per day.

Overtime is permitted under strict conditions: It is generally capped at 40 hours per month, and 200 hours overtime per year for each employee. Under special circumstances this can be extended by applying to the Government for permission to do so.

Hire compliantly in Vietnam without a local entity.

Quick, compliant hiring in 24 hours—no subsidiary required.

Holidays in Vietnam

Holiday Schedule in Vietnam [2023]

In Vietnam, there are 9 public holidays each year. The Tet Lunar New Year is a week long holiday. Public holidays are as follows:

Date	Holiday name
1 Jan Sunday	International New Year’s Day
2 Jan Monday	Day off for International New Year’s Day
20 Jan Friday	Tet Holiday
21 Jan Saturday	Vietnamese New Year’s Eve
22 Jan Sunday	Vietnamese New Year
23 Jan to 26 Jan	Tet holiday
29 Apr Saturday	Hung Kings Festival
30 Apr Sunday	Liberation Day/Reunification Day
1 May Monday	International Labor Day
2 May Tuesday	Day off for Hung Kings Festival
3 May Wednesday	Day off for Liberation Day/Reunification Day
1 Sep Friday	Independence Day Holiday
2 Sep Saturday	Independence Day
3 Sep Sunday	Independence Day Holiday
4 Sep Monday	Independence Day observed

Vietnam tax

Entities, enterprises, and organizations in Vietnam may be subject to Statutory Social Insurance. This is dependent on whether employees are hired under indefinite-term labor contracts or fixed-term labor contracts with a duration of more than three months. Vietnam’s social insurance fund pays allowances for:

Maternity leave
Sick leave
Occupational disease
Work-related accidents
Pensions

There is also a mandatory social, health, and unemployment insurance scheme in Vietnam. Both employees and employers must provide contributions this scheme. Contributions are determined by an employee’s monthly salary, as stipulated in the relevant labour contract (capped at 20 times Common Minimum Wage for SI / HI) and 20 times Minimum Regional Wage for UI.

Mandatory unemployment insurance is only applicable to enterprises with 10 or more employees.

Local: Employers contribute 21.5% of payroll to social insurance; local employees contribute 10.5%
Expat: Employers contribute 6.5% of payroll to social insurance; expat employees contribute 1.5%
Union Fee: 1% (only compulsory when a professional joins TU organization).
Trade Union: 2% (compulsory to the employer).

Health benefits

In Vietnam, standard insurance is provided through the national system. By law, employers must provide health insurance for their employees. Additionally, employers must offer employees regular annual health checks.

Vacation Leave

Vietnamese labor law stipulates that employees are entitled to 12 day’s annual leave. Leave conditions are as follows:

For employees with at least 12 month’s experience with an employer, they are entitled to 12 day’s paid annual leave. Employees with less than 12 month’s company service are entitled to prorated leave.
Employees are entitled to an extra paid vacation day for every five years’ company service.
For leave not taken by the end of a year, employees are entitled to pay in lieu of annual leave. Employers will generally allow an employee to carry over unused annual leave to the following year, but no later than March 31st of the following year. This would be an alternative to payment in lieu of unused leave.
As a supplementary benefit, employees working in hazardous conditions may earn additional leave (this is negotiated between an employee and employer).
In Vietnam, vacation leave is classified as separate to sick leave or maternity leave.

Employees in Vietnam are also entitled to paid personal leave for their wedding or the wedding of their child. Additionally, paid or unpaid personal leave is typically available to employees after the death of a parent, spouse, or child.

Sick leave

Employees suffering from an illness or injury may be eligible to receive an allowance that is paid for by Vietnam’s social insurance fund. To be granted this allowance, an employee must submit the required medical certification supporting their leave. In Vietnam, sick leave allowance is based on an employee’s salary, which is then used to calculate the social insurance premium. The maximum entitlement is:

30 days per year – if an employee has contributed to the social insurance fund for a duration that is less than 15 years
40 days per year – if an employee has contributed to the social insurance fund for a duration that is between 15 and 30 years
60 days per year – if the employee has contributed to the social insurance fund for a duration that is more than 30 years

Maternity and paternity leave

Female employees in Vietnam are eligible for six month’s paid maternity leave at full salary (the base salary of the social insurance contribution). An employee’s maternity leave is paid for by compulsory social insurance.

A female employee who is pregnant, on maternity leave, or has a child younger than 12 months of age, can only be dismissed if her employer ceases operation. There are no other grounds on which an employee in these circumstances can be dismissed.

Employers in Vietnam are not required to pay salary to an employee who is on maternity leave. However, an employee’s maternity leave is based on their salary and used to calculate the social insurance premium. The maximum entitlement is VND 29.800,000.

Fathers in Vietnam are eligible for between five and 14 day’s paid paternity leave. This is dependent on whether a child is born naturally or by caesarean; and whether it is a single or multiple birth.

Termination and severance

In Vietnam, an employee’s rights regarding termination are dependent on their employment contract and the reason for dismissal. This has an impact on notice periods and any severance payments. When hiring new employees in Vietnam, it is common for employers to arrange a probation period. For work that requires specialized or highly technical skills, probationary periods are not allowed to exceed 60 days. For all other types of work, probationary periods must not exceed 30 days. Employers are permitted to terminate a fixed-term labor contract by serving advance notice of 30 working days. For indefinite-term labor contracts, 45 working day’s notice is required. In both instances, employers must have sufficient legal grounds for termination. In order to legally terminate an employment contract, sufficient grounds can include performance issues, prolonged illness, a force majeure event, or dissolution of the company. A termination may be declared unlawful if the employer cannot prove legal grounds or if they fail to follow proper statutory procedures. If a termination is proven to be wrongful, an employer may be required to reinstate the employee and/or pay the employee’s salary for the period that they were not allowed to work. Additionally, an employer may be forced to pay two months of the employee’s salary as a penalty for the wrongful termination. In most cases, settlements and resignations can be negotiated with an agreed amount of severance pay that is provided to the employee. Navigating employee terminations and handling severance packages can be complicated for companies expanding overseas for the first time. Horizons’ Vietnam PEO can mitigate risk for foreign companies and provide guidance through this process. Learn more about employee rights in Vietnam in our Complete Guide to Vietnam Labor Law.

hassle-free Vietnam compensation & benefits

Compensation & Benefits

Vietnam compensation laws

Minimum wage laws in Vietnam are determined by the area in which a business is operating. This is due to wages being adjusted to factor depreciation and socioeconomic conditions for workers and their families.

There are four regional minimum wages in Vietnam, with the minimum wage ranging from VND3,070,000 to VND4,420,000 per month, with workers in big cities having a higher minimum wage.

Minimum Wage Country Comparison Chart	(Per month in USD)
Switzerland (Geneva)	$4,000
Italy	$2,255
Australia	$1996
Algeria	$156
Uzbekistan	$22

Guaranteed benefits in Vietnam

Employers need to be mindful of all statutory benefits required by Vietnamese law. This includes time off for both holidays and vacations.

Employees in Vietnam are entitled to time off for the country’s nine public holidays. The Tet Lunar New Year is a week-long celebration, which means that employees receive the whole week off.

Vietnam’s nine public holidays are separate to the country’s minimum vacation requirements. Vacation leave is determined by the length of time that an employee has worked for a company. As an example, employees with 12 month’s company service receive 12 day’s paid annual leave. Employees receive an extra day’s paid vacation for every five year’s company service thereafter.

Vietnam benefit management

Employers in Vietnam should also consider providing supplemental benefits for their employees. This can have a significant impact of employee retention rates. Whilst these benefits are not compulsory, many employees will expect them as part of their compensation.

For employees that have been with a company longer than a year, employers will often provide a 13-month bonus. This bonus can range from a month to a year’s salary and is normally paid before the Lunar New Year Holiday.

Although Vietnam offers standard health insurance through its national system, many employers will elect to provide their employees with supplementary health and life insurance. Alternatively, an insurance allowance may be paid to employees.

Benefits and compensation restrictions

For expanding businesses, one of the major restrictions to benefits and compensation involves setting up a local entity. Employers are generally prohibited from hiring and paying employees without first establishing a subsidiary in Vietnam. This process can take months to complete, which causes significant business delays.

With Horizons’ Vietnam Employer of Record & PEO, businesses can begin operating in Vietnam in as little as 48 hours. Horizons acts as your employees’ Employer of Record, which means there’s no need to establish a subsidiary in Vietnam. And as the only Vietnam Employer of Record & PEO with an in-house recruitment team, we can help you source, hire, and onboard top local and international talent.

Hire in Vietnam in 24h
without your own local entity.

With Horizons, you get quick service, transparent pricing, and expert support.

FAQs

What is the difference between a Vietnam PEO and a Vietnam EOR?

A Vietnam PEO and a Vietnam EOR are two types of companies which specialize in providing human resources services to businesses in Vietnam.

The main difference between a Vietnam PEO and a Vietnam EOR is in the scope of their services.

Vietnam PEOs provide a full range of HR services, including payroll, benefits administration, and employee recruiting—all under one roof as a co-employer. Engaging a Vietnam PEO is essentially outsourcing your HR duties in Vietnam.

Vietnam EORs actually take over as the legal employer of your employees based abroad. Vietnam EORs become responsible for labor compliance for your employees in Vietnam.

At Horizons, we offer both PEO and EOR services in Vietnam. Get in touch now and let us know what service you are seeking.

Can a PEO in Vietnam hire both local and foreign nationals to work in Vietnam?

A PEO in Vietnam can feasibly hire both local and foreign nationals to work in Vietnam.

However, the ability of Horizons to sponsor your foreign national employee in Vietnam may be limited due to visa quotas practiced in many countries.

Contact us with your requirements and our Global Mobility team with review the case and get back to you within 2 business days.

How long does Horizons' Vietnam PEO service take to hire an employee?

In most cases, Horizons’ Vietnam PEO can hire & onboard your employee within 24 hours. The actual start date of the employee will depend on their notice period obligation to their previous employer as well as any relevant hiring rules in Vietnam.

Is it possible to get a work visa in Vietnam?

It is possible to get a work visa in Vietnam. Horizons’ Global Mobility team is a dedicated team of work visa experts. They assess the details of each case to determine feasibility and costs before Horizons applies for the work visa on behalf of your employee. If the Global Mobility team determines that your case is feasible, the process is smooth and transparent. Visa spots in Vietnam are limited, however—get started today to secure your employees’ visa spot.

hire in Vietnam

Vietnam PEO & Employer of Record

SIMPLE, COMPLIANT HIRING WITH HORIZONS PEO

Hire in Vietnam

Facts & Stats

stay compliant with Vietnam labor laws

Employment Laws

Employment contracts in Vietnam

Fixed-term

Indefinite

Working hours in Vietnam

Hire compliantly in Vietnam without a local entity.

Holidays in Vietnam

Vietnam tax

Health benefits

Vacation Leave

Sick leave

Maternity and paternity leave

Termination and severance

hassle-free Vietnam compensation & benefits

Compensation & Benefits

Vietnam compensation laws

Guaranteed benefits in Vietnam

Vietnam benefit management

Benefits and compensation restrictions

Hire in Vietnam in 24h without your own local entity.

FAQs

Hire Anywhere. Today.

Vietnam PEO &
Employer of Record

Hire in Vietnam in 24h
without your own local entity.