The rise in remote work & tougher visa regulations is creating a massive opportunity for businesses to hire remote workers in emerging economies to meet their talent needs. With half of its large population under the age of 35, Vietnam is SouthEast Asia’s next growth story and a force to be reckoned with as a talent hub for a highly-skilled, connected and low-cost remote workforce.

Here are a few things you need to know before hiring your first remote worker in Vietnam:

Capital & Major Cities

Hanoi (Capital), Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang

Time Zone & IDD

UTC+7 (Vietnam Standard Time), IDD +84

Currency & Exchange Rates

đồng (₫) (VND) 1USD= approximately 23,000 VND.

Spoken Language(s)

Vietnamese – English

Public Holidays

There are 11 official paid holidays in Vietnam, including the Tet Lunar New Year which is a week-long celebration. Visit this link for details.

Overview of the Talent Pool

• Vietnam has the third-largest population in SouthEast Asia and one of the youngest populations in the world, with over half of the population being under the age of 35.
• Vietnam offers a growing pool of highly skilled digital talent with some of the highest internet and mobile adoption rates in the world.
• Vietnam’s massive investments into its education system, in particular in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math, have created a thriving IT outsourcing industry, comprising a large pool of highly skilled software developers. While traditionally, the engineering environment was centred primarily around outsourcing, this is changing with the growth of the local startup ecosystem.
• Vietnamese developers want jobs in foreign multinational companies. While engineers in Vietnam generally don’t have much global experience yet, this is changing very quickly as many companies focus on hiring remote workers and building offshore teams in Vietnam.
• The Vietnamese government has recently launched a number of initiatives to attract its overseas population, leading to huge numbers of returnees (locals who lived or studied overseas, typically in Western countries, and eventually return home to work). These returnees are highly sought-after talent for remote work due to their language skills & international exposure.
• Vietnamese engineers are particularly sought after for relational database skills, web frontend development with Microsoft, Samsung & Intel setting up hubs in Vietnam, they are also increasingly sought after for big data.

Cultural insights

• Vietnamese workers are known to be intelligent, hard-working and eager to learn new things. They are agile and able to quickly adapt to new work environments.
• Career advancement is a huge motivator for Vietnamese employees and they are usually willing to work overtime and under pressure to advance their careers.
• Culturally, Vietnam is highly influenced by Confucianism’s hierarchical structure and Vietnamese employees duly respect people who are older than them or have a higher position in the company. This typically results in Vietnamese employees not openly disagreeing with their managers. While they might be smiling, it does not mean they are happy / in agreement. Similarly, they might say “yes” or “ok” to acknowledge they are listening to you, not that they agree with you. Therefore, it is imperative to listen carefully for any signs of hesitation in order to build a constructive working relationship with a Vietnamese employee.
• As in other Asian nations, the concept of ‘face’ is critical and explains most misunderstandings between Westerners and Vietnamese professionals.
• In Vietnamese culture, it is very important to build rapport and trust outside the office in order to increase teamwork and collaboration. It is customary for companies in Vietnam to have a budget for regular team dinners or drinks or to sponsor team-building activities and we recommend you find ways to personally bond with your Vietnamese remote workers. This includes taking the time for small talks, sharing about your own background/family/hobbies and inquiring about your employee’s own story.
• The same is valid with clients and business partners and a contract is more likely to be signed after an invitation for dinner, drinking or other entertainment activity.

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Salaries & Benefits in Vietnam

• In general, salaries in Vietnam are low and you can hire high-quality talent at lower salaries as compared to India and China. It is customary for employees in Vietnam to have a salary as well as 10-15% of their gross salary in additional benefits. Supplementary life and health insurance, or an allowance in lieu of arranging insurance, is usually provided to the employee. A bonus is not compulsory in Vietnam but is encouraged. It is common practice to pay the 13th salary at Tet holiday or at the year-end.
• While the Vietnamese labor law stipulates a minimal annual leave requirement of 12 days, it is customary for Vietnamese employees to negotiate additional vacation time. Remote workers should also be offered a stipend for work equipment such as a laptop, the payment of business expenses and the ability to work from a co-working space if so desired.
• Given the importance of bonding outside the office, team outings and company trips are commonly expected by the employees and are considered a bonus.

Terminating employees

The notice period and severance payment conditions when terminating a Vietnamese employee are relatively reasonable, yet unilateral termination by the employer is restricted and can happen only for proper legal grounds. Therefore, in most cases, bilateral termination shall be agreed upon and employers must meet the statutory conditions and provide notice for any terminations.

Employing remote workers in Vietnam

Employment laws in Vietnam can be complex to understand. Metasource’s Employer on Record Partners can seamlessly employ & payroll your remote Vietnamese talent to ensure you stay compliant while doing away with the need for you to create complex structures. Contact us today for a free consultation.