☑️ The Basics

Currency: VND, Vietnamese dong (Rate)

Public Holidays: 12 public holidays (see here)

Employer Taxes: 21.5% of gross salary

Official Language: Vietnamese

Payroll frequency: Monthly

13th / 14th Salary: (what's this?) ****It is common in Vietnam to offer a 13th month salary bonus across all sectors.

Three things to know about employing in Vietnam

  1. A bonus is not compulsory in Vietnam but is encouraged. It is customary to pay all employees a "13th salary" before the Lunar New Year holiday or at the year-end.
  2. Apart from salary and bonuses, Vietnamese employees may also be entitled to other allowances and benefits. Some such taxable benefits include payments for power and water; transportation allowances; premiums for life insurance; housing rent; healthcare services; and even membership fees to golf clubs, tennis courts, and other exclusive clubs.
  3. Post-employment non-compete agreements are not enforceable in Vietnam

Employment in Vietnam

Notice Period

The notice period is three working days for seasonal contracts (contracts lasting less than one year), 30 days for fixed-term labour contracts, and 45 days for an indefinite-term labour contracts.

Termination & Severance

Terminated employees (except those dismissed for a breach of company's rules) who have been working for an employer for at least one year are entitled to severance payments. This must be equal to half a month's wage for each year of employment.

Severance will not be required if the employee is absent from work without justifiable reason for five consecutive working days or more.

If the employer made contributions to the employee's unemployment insurance fund, they are not required to pay severance for the duration of time that the employees participated in the unemployment insurance fund.

Probationary period

Varies between 6 and 60 days

Minimum Wage

Minimum wages vary by region:

For trained employees, the minimum salary must be at least 7% higher than the regional minimum salary.

IP protection and non-compete agreements

Post-employment non-compete agreements are not enforceable in Vietnam. They may, in some cases, be enforceable in a civil contract between employer and employee.

Working Hours

Eight hours a day, 48 hours per week.