01
Regulatory Monitoring
- Track changes to the Labour Code, decrees and circulars
- Alert you whenever a change affects your business
- Apply the regional minimum wage update each July
- Roll social insurance and tax changes into your payroll
Labour compliance in Vietnam.
Vietnam's labour rules don't stop once a contract is signed. Social insurance, work permits, minimum wage, statutory filings — staying compliant is a year-round job, and inspectors can arrive with three days' notice. Forra watches your status, keeps you inspection-ready, and answers the day-to-day questions as they come up.
At a glance
Inspection-Ready
Proactive compliance that holds up to a surprise inspection at any time.
Fixed Monthly Retainer
All-inclusive monitoring and advice, for predictable budgeting.
2-Day Response SLA
Prompt, expert answers to your employment-law questions.
Foreign Workforce Expert
Specialised handling of the extra rules for foreign staff.
What is labour compliance
Compliance is something you keep up — not something you finish.
Having signed contracts is just the start. Staying compliant means paying social insurance correctly every month, applying the Labour Code to everyday HR decisions, filing on time, and being able to prove all of it if an inspector shows up — sometimes with only three days' notice.
Most problems aren't deliberate. They come from missing a rule change, falling behind on an update, or relying on a document that was written once and never revisited. Forra tracks your position continuously and flags anything that needs action before it becomes a problem.
Different from HR Administration
HR Administration looks after the paperwork of employment — contracts, records, leave. Labour Compliance is the layer on top: watching for rule changes, checking your practices still comply, advising on specific decisions, and handling inspections. Most companies take both.
Scope of service
Six areas of ongoing compliance, managed for you.
For foreign-invested employers, labour compliance spans regulatory monitoring, social insurance, foreign staff, inspection readiness, and advice on specific decisions. Forra covers all of it under one monthly retainer.
02
Social Insurance
- Check contributions are calculated and paid correctly each month
- Enrol and remove employees on the right effective dates
- Confirm the salary base used meets legal requirements
- Handle social insurance audits and queries on your behalf
03
Foreign Employees
- Monitor work permit expiry and start renewals early
- Check each foreign hire works within their permitted role
- File the required headcount reports to the Labour Authority
- Confirm tax residency status and rate for each person
04
Inspection Readiness
- Yearly health check against current inspection criteria
- Organise and review your documents before inspectors arrive
- Attend inspections and liaise with officials for you
- Respond to findings and fix any issues raised
05
Employment Law Advice
- Written answers to your questions within 2 business days
- Guidance on lawful termination before you act
- Advice on working hours, overtime caps and shift premiums
- Trade union and collective bargaining obligations
06
Statutory Filings
- Semi-annual labour use report (31 May and 30 November)
- Annual health and safety report where it applies
- Foreign employee reports to the Labour Authority
- Deadline tracking so nothing is missed
Penalty framework
What violations actually cost.
Vietnam fines labour violations per violation, not per company — so several gaps found in one inspection add up fast. These are the ranges for organisations under the 2022 penalty framework; individuals pay half. Amounts in Vietnamese dong (M = million).
Violation
Penalty range
Risk
No signed contract before the first working day
3M – 7M per employee
Medium
Wrong contract type used (e.g. fixed-term where indefinite is required)
3M – 7M per employee
Medium
Internal Labour Regulations not registered
5M – 10M
Medium
Social insurance unpaid or miscalculated
12–15% of the unpaid amount + interest, up to 75M
High
Foreign national working without a valid permit
75M – 100M per employee
High
Foreign headcount not reported to the Authority
5M – 10M
Medium
Paying below the regional minimum wage
20M – 75M
High
Overtime above the annual statutory limit
20M – 75M
High
Semi-annual labour use report not filed
1M – 3M
Low
No employment certificate within 3 days of departure
2M – 5M per employee
Low
No signed contract before the first working day
Medium
3M – 7M per employee
Wrong contract type used (e.g. fixed-term where indefinite is required)
Medium
3M – 7M per employee
Internal Labour Regulations not registered
Medium
5M – 10M
Social insurance unpaid or miscalculated
High
12–15% of the unpaid amount + interest, up to 75M
Foreign national working without a valid permit
High
75M – 100M per employee
Foreign headcount not reported to the Authority
Medium
5M – 10M
Paying below the regional minimum wage
High
20M – 75M
Overtime above the annual statutory limit
High
20M – 75M
Semi-annual labour use report not filed
Low
1M – 3M
No employment certificate within 3 days of departure
Low
2M – 5M per employee
Penalties stack. An inspection that finds five problems applies five separate fines. Work-permit violations are among the highest in the framework and can trigger deportation and entity-level sanctions in serious cases.
How it works
Ongoing monitoring from the day you engage.
Labour compliance isn't a project — it's a continuous function. A fixed monthly retainer covers all monitoring, alerts, advice and statutory filings. One-off work like inspection support is quoted separately.
1
Initial compliance check
We review where you stand today — social insurance records, contracts, ILR, foreign staff documents and filing history — and agree a plan to fix any gaps before ongoing monitoring begins.
2
Monthly monitoring
Each month we run your position through a checklist: contributions paid, permits valid, filings due, wages compliant, leave within limits. Anything off is flagged straight away.
3
Regulatory change management
Within 5 daysWhen the law changes, we assess the impact on your business within five working days and send a short note with the actions needed and their deadlines.
4
Event-triggered advice
Within 2 daysFacing a dismissal, a new foreign hire, or a change to working hours? Ask your advisor and get a written answer within two business days on the correct steps and paperwork.
5
Annual compliance report
YearlyOnce a year we summarise your compliance position, what was fixed, what is changing in the next twelve months, and your priorities — useful evidence of a proactive programme if you are ever inspected.
Quick self-check
Is your entity inspection-ready?
Inspectors can arrive with three days' notice. Run through this list — if anything is unclear, Forra can check your position and close the gaps before an inspection window opens.
All employment contracts signed and current
Internal Labour Regulations registered and up to date
Social insurance paid for every employee
All foreign staff hold valid work permits
Salaries at or above the regional minimum wage
Labour use reports filed (May and November)
Overtime within the annual legal limit
Foreign employee reporting up to date
Common Questions
What clients ask about labour compliance in Vietnam.
How often do inspections happen, and who runs them?
There's no fixed schedule. Inspections are run by the provincial Labour Authority and, separately, by social insurance inspectors. They're triggered by complaints, sector-wide campaigns, or routine oversight. Announced visits need three days' notice; unannounced ones are allowed where a violation is suspected.
Foreign-invested companies, businesses with many foreign staff, and sectors like manufacturing, F&B and tech tend to be inspected more often. Forra watches for sector-level campaigns and warns you when your industry is under closer scrutiny.
How is this different from HR Administration?
HR Administration handles the paperwork — drafting and maintaining contracts, Internal Labour Regulations, personnel files, leave tracking and offboarding documents. Labour Compliance is the monitoring and advice layer: tracking rule changes, checking your practices still comply, advising on specific decisions, and managing inspections.
They work best together. Companies that take documentation without monitoring often have tidy files that quietly fall out of compliance as the rules change.
What actually happens during an inspection?
Inspectors arrive, present their credentials and inspection decision, and usually request a set of documents within the first hour: your business registration, employee list, contracts, ILR, social insurance payment records, payroll for the period, and work permit copies for any foreign staff.
They review the documents, may interview staff, and issue preliminary findings before leaving. A formal conclusion with any penalties follows later. Forra attends, manages the documents, and keeps your responses accurate and consistent — so nothing is misunderstood or wrongly admitted on the spot.
Can penalties be appealed or reduced?
Yes. Penalty decisions can be appealed through the administrative complaint process within 90 days. Where a violation genuinely happened, though, the faster route is usually to fix it promptly and ask for a reduction — the law allows lower penalties when problems are corrected before the inspection concludes.
Forra advises on whether to appeal, runs the appeal where it makes sense, and makes sure any remediation is done on the most favourable timeline.
What extra rules apply to foreign employees?
Hiring a foreign national adds a separate layer of employer obligations, including:
- Applying for and renewing the work permit (the employer is the applicant)
- Notifying the Labour Authority of each foreign hire within 3 working days
- Reporting headcount and permit changes in the semi-annual labour use report
- Checking the role stays within the approved scope of the permit
- Confirming tax residency, which sets the withholding rate
- Registering accommodation shortly after arrival
Forra manages all of these, coordinating with our Global Mobility team for work permit and residence card matters.
Get Started Today
Get your labour compliance properly managed.
Book a free call with a Forra compliance advisor. We'll assess where you stand, flag any immediate risks, and send a clear, fixed-fee proposal within one business day.
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