Global Payroll Services in Vietnam

Already have a Vietnamese entity, or running payroll across several countries? We place you with a vetted Vietnamese payroll partner who keeps income tax, social-insurance contributions, and Vietnam Tax Department (Tong cuc Thue) and Vietnam Social Security filings exactly right, while you stay the legal employer and we stay on your side.

  • Independent advice
  • Vetted partners
  • Multi-country ready

What running payroll in Vietnam involves

If you already employ people through your own Vietnamese entity, you stay the legal employer, but you still have to run payroll correctly every month: income tax and social-insurance contributions withheld on the capped bases and remitted to the Vietnam Tax Department (Tong cuc Thue) and Vietnam Social Security, the labour-use declarations that go with them, regional minimum wages applied by place of work, and any agreed contractual allowances configured correctly. A specialist partner makes every payslip right from the first run.

01

You stay the employer

You stay the legal employer of your Vietnamese staff. The payroll partner runs the monthly mechanics; you keep the employment relationship.

02

Accurate every cycle

Income tax and social insurance calculated and withheld correctly, payslips issued, and statutory filings made to the Vietnam Tax Department (Tong cuc Thue) and Vietnam Social Security on schedule, every month.

03

Multi-country consolidation

Run payroll across several markets under one partner and one process, rather than a different vendor and standard in every country.

How managed Vietnamese payroll works, step by step

From onboarding your employee data to filing and reconciliation.

01 — Scope & onboard

We map your entity, headcount, and where you employ people, place you with the right vetted Vietnamese payroll partner, and onboard your employee data.

02 — Set up calculations

Income tax, social-insurance contributions, and the agreed contractual allowances (such as the Tet bonus where agreed) configured correctly to current Vietnamese rules, so every payslip is right from the first run.

03 — Run monthly payroll

Salaries calculated, income tax and social insurance withheld, payslips issued, and people paid on schedule — in VND for local employees — every cycle.

04 — File & reconcile

Statutory filings to the Vietnam Tax Department (Tong cuc Thue) and Vietnam Social Security made on time, with the annual personal-income-tax finalisation and social-insurance reconciliation handled.

What payroll in Vietnam costs

Your statutory employer costs, plus a payroll partner fee. Vietnam’s employer burden is a flat percentage of a capped base rather than of full salary; the value of the partner is accuracy and time, in a system where the wrong region, the wrong rate class or a missed deadline is an easy, visible mistake.

Employer contributions

For Vietnamese employees the employer contributes approximately 21.5% of the capped contribution base — 17.5% social insurance, 3% health insurance and 1% unemployment insurance — with 10.5% withheld from the employee (Social Insurance Law 41/2024); the trade-union fund contribution is separate and additional where applicable. For foreign employees, the compulsory social-insurance component is around 17% employer and 8% employee. A 13th-month or Tet bonus is customary where agreed: contractual, not statutory. Fully costed before you commit.

Minimum wage (2026)

Regional hourly floors from VND 17,800 to VND 25,500, with monthly rates from VND 3.70 million to VND 5.31 million (Decree 293/2025, from 1 January 2026). The applicable region follows the place of work — one uplift missed is every payslip wrong.

Income tax (employee)

Five progressive bands from 5% to 35% on monthly taxable income under the 2026 regime, calculated after the personal and dependant deductions and filed correctly on every payslip.

Payroll partner fee

A transparent per-employee or per-payslip fee. We benchmark across our vetted network, typically 15 to 25% below going direct.

Why run it through Bradford Jacobs

One partner, many countries

If you run payroll across several markets, we consolidate it through vetted partners under one point of contact, not a different vendor and a different standard in every country.

  • Independent advice
  • Vetted partners only
  • On your side at renewal

Pricing you can’t get direct

Vietnam’s payroll runs across several insurance funds on capped bases with separate foreign-employee rates, and missing a regional wage uplift or an agreed allowance on a payslip is an easy, visible mistake. We benchmark across our payroll network for rates typically 15 to 25% below going direct, and renegotiate for you at renewal.

  • 15-25% below direct
  • Network benchmarking
  • Renegotiated for you

The rules a generic payroll run misses

The capped multi-fund contributions, the foreign-employee rate distinction, the VND payment requirement for local staff, and the annual finalisation deadline. We place you with partners who get the specifics right, and we stay on your side if anything needs escalating.

  • Direct escalation
  • No support queues
  • Named account contact

20+ years and the local detail

Two decades running compliant payroll across global markets, the deadlines, the filings, the year-end detail that exposes risk.

  • Two decades of payroll
  • Deadlines & filings
  • Year-end handled

Built to scale across markets

Run payroll in one country or twenty through one partner and one process. As you add markets, the standard does not fragment, you keep a single point of contact and consistent compliance everywhere.

  • One process everywhere
  • Single point of contact
  • Consistent compliance

The payroll slips the Vietnam Tax Department (Tong cuc Thue) and Vietnam Social Security never misses

These are the ones that catch foreign employers, and the reason a specialist partner pays for itself.

Tax & deduction rates

Misapplying the five-band monthly withholding or the personal and dependant deductions. Using Vietnamese-employee contribution rates for foreign employees, or the reverse. Applying the wrong region’s minimum wage. Each is easy to get wrong alone, and visible to the Vietnam Tax Department (Tong cuc Thue) and Vietnam Social Security when you do.

Filings, deadlines & reporting

A late monthly or quarterly remittance, or a missed annual finalisation with the Vietnam Tax Department (Tong cuc Thue), draws penalties and attention — and unpicking a filing error costs far more than filing correctly the first time.

What managed payroll covers

One transparent fee covers the full monthly payroll cycle. No hidden extras.

Tax & social security

Compliant Vietnamese payroll processed monthly, with income tax and social insurance correct every run.

Payroll & filings

Monthly payroll run, with income tax and social insurance calculated, withheld, and filed correctly each month.

Statutory benefits

All statutory benefits administered: annual leave, sick pay, parental leave, and statutory notice.

Compliance & support

Ongoing HR compliance and a single point of contact, for the life of the engagement.

Your questions answered

Straight answers on running compliant payroll in Vietnam.

Do I need a Vietnamese entity to use payroll services?

Yes. Payroll outsourcing assumes you are the legal employer, which usually means you have a Vietnamese entity. If you have no entity and do not want one yet, you need an EOR instead, where the partner is the legal employer. We will confirm which applies to you.

Income tax calculation and remittance, employer and employee social-insurance contributions, the agreed contractual allowances (such as the Tet bonus where agreed), statutory benefits and leave, payslips, and all statutory filings to the Vietnam Tax Department (Tong cuc Thue) and Vietnam Social Security. You keep the employment relationship; they keep it compliant and on time.

Four recent changes catch foreign employers. Regional minimum wages were uplifted from 1 January 2026 (Decree 293/2025). Personal income tax moved to a five-band monthly table with materially higher personal and dependant deductions (Law 109/2025). The new Social Insurance Law 41/2024 took effect on 1 July 2025, including how foreign employees are enrolled. And work permits are now governed by Decree 219/2025, with state labour administration sitting with the Ministry of Home Affairs since March 2025 (Decree 25/2025). A specialist partner prices all of this in from the first payslip.

Predictable, and flatter than most markets: employer contributions of roughly 21.5% of the capped contribution base for Vietnamese employees (17.5% social, 3% health and 1% unemployment insurance; the trade-union fund is a separate addition where applicable), and for foreign employees a compulsory social-insurance component of around 17% (Law 41/2024), plus any agreed contractual allowances such as a 13th-month/Tet bonus. Because the base is capped, the marginal cost of senior salaries falls rather than rises. We give you the all-in figure before you commit.

Yes, and it is one of the main reasons companies come to us. One point of contact and a consistent process across markets, rather than a separate provider and a different standard in every country.

Yes. When you incorporate and become the legal employer, we move your people from the EOR arrangement onto your own compliant Vietnamese payroll, and manage the handover so nothing is missed.

Need compliant payroll in Vietnam?

Tell us your entity setup and headcount and we will come back with the right partner and pricing you will not get direct, usually within a day. One process, every country you operate in.

Tax and labour data verified August 2026 (Vietnam Tax Department — Tong cuc Thue, Vietnam Social Security, Ministry of Home Affairs guidance, official gazette texts). Figures change; we confirm the current position when we scope your hire.

Running payroll in Vietnam: routes, registrations and compliance

Payroll options in Vietnam:

  • Remote payroll – This option allows businesses to operate under a single payroll system, by adding employees in Vietnam to your parent company’s payroll. However, these employees must operate under different regulations, which is likely to cause problems.
  • Internal payroll – You may operate payroll for your subsidiary, especially if you are committed to growing your company’s presence in Vietnam. However, this does require hiring dedicated HR staff who understand Vietnamese employment and compliance laws.
  • Vietnam payroll processing company – If you are considering outsourcing, then working with a Vietnamese payroll company will help in processing your payroll – but not when it comes to compliance.
  • Vietnam payroll outsourcing – There is another option available that solves both concerns – working with Bradford Jacobs. We can handle payroll and compliance for all your employees in Vietnam.

Companies expanding into the Vietnam economy and planning to run their own payroll will need to establish a legal entity. Running payroll in Vietnam demands in-depth knowledge of the employment Labor Code, and the Vietnam Tax Department and Social Insurance Agency regulations. Filing runs under the Tax Administration Law regime (2020, as amended). Overseas companies must comply with the Foreign Contractor Tax (FCT) in addition to personal, corporate and sales tax rates and withholding deductions from employees’ salaries.

Outsourcing payroll services in Vietnam will streamline operations, by dealing with the following:

  • Remitting withheld deductions to the Vietnam Tax Department (Tong cuc Thue).
  • Remitting social security deductions to relevant funds via the Social Insurance Agency (SIA).
  • The tax year runs from January 1 until December 31, or 12 months from date of arrival before reverting to normal tax year.
  • Provisional employment income tax is remitted on the statutory monthly or quarterly schedule.
  • Annual reconciliation returns are filed with the Vietnam Tax Department on the statutory calendar.
  • Periodic labour reports follow the statutory reporting calendar. – Annual reconciliation reports on personal and corporate tax payments and advice on Business License Tax payment.

Requirements for setting up payroll in Vietnam can vary depending on how foreign companies establish their presence. Setting up a subsidiary is one option as a first step. However, this takes time and can be a complex process depending on where you incorporate your company as well as the type of entity you choose to establish.

Foreign businesses planning to set up a legal entity in Vietnam to run their own payroll will typically form a limited liability company as a Wholly Foreign-Owned Enterprise (WFOE). The subsidiary operates within Vietnam’s Companies Law and must comply with registration legalities to be able to onboard staff and run payroll for their staff.

The process includes documented confirmation of registered business address and legal status of the parent company; sufficient ‘charter capital’ to cover initial costs; investors’ notarised financial documents and proof of identity. Other requirements include:

  • Investment Registration Certificate (IRC) from the Department of Planning and Investment.
  • Business Registration Certificate (BRC) also known as Enterprise Registration Certificate (ERC), issued by the Department of Planning and Investment.
  • The BRC is also the company’s tax number, necessary to pay taxes online; capital deposits are made within the statutory window after the BRC is issued.
  • Payment of Business License Tax.
  • Registration with Vietnam Tax Agency (Tong cuc Thue) and Vietnam Social Insurance Agency (SIA) via the competent labour authority (since 1 March 2025, state management of employment, labour, wages and social insurance sits with the Ministry of Home Affairs — Bo Noi vu — under Decree 25/2025/ND-CP, superseding MOLISA).