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Hiring employees in Vietnam (2026)

Here's what you need to know before you hire in Vietnam: what it really costs an employer, the employment laws that shape the contract, and how an employer of record in Vietnam lets you hire compliantly without opening a local entity. Every figure below is sourced and dated.

21.5%Employer cost on top
sectoralMinimum wage / mo
12 daysMinimum paid annual leave
Days, not monthsTime to hire via EOR
Robbin Schuchmann
Written by:
Robbin Schuchmann
Co-Founder at EOR Overview
Last updated: November 9, 2026

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The most common mistake foreign employers make in Vietnam is underestimating how much sits on top of the base salary. An Employer of Record (EOR) handles local payroll, contracts, and statutory contributions so you can hire without setting up a Vietnamese legal entity, but the cost structure still applies to you either way. Employer social security alone runs at 21.5% of gross, which is a meaningful addition to any compensation package you are budgeting.

Vietnam has a labour force of over 57 million people and an unemployment rate of around 1.5%, so competition for skilled workers is real. The statutory work week is 48 hours, annual leave starts at 12 days, and maternity leave runs 26 weeks, one of the longer entitlements in Southeast Asia. The 13th-month salary is customary here, meaning candidates will expect it even if it is not written into law, so factor it into your offer from day one.

Vietnam employment facts

The statutory facts that drive a hire in Vietnam. Each row shows where the figure comes from and how current it is, so you can trust the number and check it yourself.

Pay & working time

Minimum wageper monthsectoralCurrentNational government · 2026
Legal weekly hoursthe normal full-time week set by law, not hours actually worked48 hours/weekCurrentStatutory working time (national labour law) · 2019
Payroll cyclemonthlyCurrentManual / editor · 2026
13th-month salarynoneCurrentNational government · 2026

Employer cost & tax

Employer social securityof gross salary21.5%CurrentManual / editor · 2026
Employee social securitywithheld from pay10.5%CurrentManual / editor · 2026
Corporate tax rate20%CurrentNational government · 2026

Termination

Notice period (average over 1, 5 and 10 years)employer notice for an economic dismissal4.3 weeksDatedManual / editor · 2021
Severance pay (average over 1, 5 and 10 years)unconditional severance for an economic dismissal8.7 weeksDatedNational government · 2021

Leave & time off

Paid annual leave (minimum, once eligible)12 daysCurrentNational government · 2026
Public holidays12 daysCurrentNational government · 2026
Maternity leave26 weeksCurrentNational government · 2026
Paternity leavepaid leave reserved for the father or partner, including reserved parental-leave quotas1 weekCurrentNational government · 2026

Labour market

State pension agenormal statutory pensionable age62CurrentNational government · 2026
Unemployment rate1.5%AgingWorld Bank Open Data · 2025
GDP per capita$5,066AgingWorld Bank Open Data · 2025
Union density49.6%DatedILOSTAT · 2018
Collective bargaining coverage24.5%DatedILOSTAT · 2018

Each row shows the year of the most recent citable source for that figure. Where a year looks old, that is the newest comprehensive source available, and we keep the sourced figure rather than substitute an unsourced newer one. Statutes may have changed since.

What it costs to hire in Vietnam

Salary is only part of the bill. On top of gross pay you owe employer social security and statutory contributions. Here's what an example salary of $5,000 a year actually costs you as the employer.

Gross annual salary$5,000
Employer contributions≈ 21.5% of gross+ $1,075
Total employment cost$6,075
Your EOR handles the filings

Illustrative, based on the employer social-security rate above. An EOR adds its own service fee on top of this total and runs the income-tax withholding and statutory filings, which are withheld from the employee's pay, not paid by you.

The employer cost in Vietnam is driven by four statutory contributions stacked on top of gross salary: social insurance at 17.5%, health insurance at 3%, unemployment insurance at 1%, and a trade union fee at 2%, bringing the total employer social security burden to 23.5% of gross. Employees also contribute 10.5% from their side, so the combined payroll tax load is substantial and worth spelling out clearly in any internal budget model.

Income tax in Vietnam

Income taxPaid by employee · progressive
$0 to $120,000,0005%
$120,000,000 to $360,000,00010%
$360,000,000 to $720,000,00020%
$720,000,000 to $1,200,000,00030%
$1,200,000,000 +35%
Employer contributions
Social security21.5%
Employee contributions
Social security10.5%

Employment-law essentials

The rules an EOR enforces in your contracts, and the ones most likely to trip you up if you tried to hire in Vietnam on your own.

Working time
Legal weekly hours48 hours/week
Pay & 13th salary
Minimum wagesectoral
Payroll cyclemonthly
13th-month salarynone
Leave
Paid annual leave (minimum, once eligible)12 days
Public holidays12 days
Maternity leave26 weeks
Paternity leave1 week
Termination
Notice period (average over 1, 5 and 10 years)4.3 weeks
Severance pay (average over 1, 5 and 10 years)8.7 weeks

Figures from the cited sources. Notice and severance are averages over 1, 5 and 10 years of service, not the amount for any one employee. Collective agreements or contracts can be more generous; an EOR applies whichever is correct for the role.

Things to watch in Vietnam

A few specifics about Vietnam's employment rules are easy to miss until they show up as a surprise cost or a compliance gap.

  • Employer contributions add up fast. The 23.5% employer social security rate breaks into social insurance (17.5%), health insurance (3%), unemployment insurance (1%), and a trade union fee (2%). Budget for this on top of every gross salary figure you are comparing.
  • The 13th-month salary is customary. It is not codified as a strict legal mandate, but it is a firm market expectation. Skipping it or treating it as optional will hurt your ability to attract and keep people.
  • Severance averages about 8.7 weeks over 1, 5 and 10 years of service. Depending on tenure and circumstances, severance obligations are significant. Model this into your total cost of employment before you commit to a hire, especially for senior or long-tenure roles.
  • Notice averages about 4.3 weeks over 1, 5 and 10 years of service. That is not unusually long by global standards, but it is worth confirming in the employment contract so there is no ambiguity when either side wants to end the arrangement.

What changed in Vietnam

Checked against official sources on .

No rule changes recorded since we began logging them.

Corrections to this guide

  • Corrected 11 October 2026Employer social contributions: 21% → 21.5% · sourceSocial insurance 17% (14 retirement + 3 sickness/maternity) + occupational accident/disease 0.5% + health insurance 3% + unemployment 1%. Excludes 2% trade union fee (not SS).

EOR vs. opening your own entity in Vietnam

Use an EOR when…
You're hiring one to a handful of people in Vietnam.
You want someone working in weeks, not months.
You'd rather not own local payroll, tax and compliance.
You're testing the market before committing.
Open your own entity when…
You're scaling to a large local team long-term.
Per-employee EOR fees outweigh the cost of an entity.
You need full control of local employment and IP.

Choosing an EOR for Vietnam

Providers with strong Vietnam coverage onboard faster and carry less risk. A shortlist to start from:

Compare all EOR providers in Vietnam

Best employer of record in Vietnam: ranked providers

Local players in Vietnam

EOR and global-employment providers headquartered in Vietnam:

Common questions about hiring in Vietnam

Common questions about hiring in Vietnam through an EOR.

Do I need a legal entity to hire someone in Vietnam? +
No. An Employer of Record (EOR) already has a legal entity in Vietnam and employs the person on your behalf, so you can hire compliantly without opening your own entity. You manage the day-to-day work; the EOR handles the local contract, payroll, taxes and statutory benefits.
How much does it cost to employ someone in Vietnam? +
On top of gross salary, employers in Vietnam contribute roughly 21.5% in social security and statutory costs. An EOR adds its own service fee on top of that total employment cost.
What is the minimum wage in Vietnam? +
The statutory minimum wage in Vietnam is sectoral. Pay below this is not permitted, and an EOR will hold contracts to at least this floor.
How hard is it to terminate an employee in Vietnam? +
Averaged across 1, 5 and 10 years of service, an economic dismissal in Vietnam comes with notice of 4.3 weeks and severance of 8.7 weeks. The amount owed depends on the reason for termination and the employee's tenure. An EOR runs the offboarding in line with local law to limit your risk.
How much paid leave do employees get in Vietnam? +
Employees in Vietnam are entitled to 12 days of paid annual leave, and paid public holidays come on top. Statutory leave is one of the entitlements your EOR administers automatically.
About the author
Robbin Schuchmann
Robbin Schuchmann
Co-Founder at EOR Overview
Robbin is the co-founder of EOR Overview, an independent research site for Employer of Record services. He has been in the international hiring space for over a decade.
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