Guide · Developers
Hire software developers in Vietnam.
How to employ engineers in Vietnam properly: the contract, intellectual property, remote work and equipment, data rules and the real monthly cost.
Updated 22 October 2026 · General information, not legal or tax advice
Short answer
How do you hire software developers in Vietnam?
To hire software developers in Vietnam without your own entity, employ them through an employer of record: the EOR signs a Vietnamese labour contract, runs payroll in dong, pays social insurance and withholds income tax, while your team leads direct the work. Three points matter most for engineers. Intellectual property must pass from the developer to the employer under the labour contract and then to you under the service agreement. Remote work, equipment and working hours should be written into the contract. And personal data handled by the team falls under Vietnam’s data protection law from 2026. On a ₫30,000,000 gross salary, the employer’s monthly cost is ₫37,050,000 before the EOR fee.
Intellectual property
Make sure the code is yours.
Under Vietnam’s Intellectual Property Law, work an employee creates in their assigned duties belongs to the employer by default. With an EOR the employer is the EOR, so the chain needs two links: the labour contract confirms the employer owns what the developer creates, and the service agreement assigns those rights to you. Source code, customer data and know-how are protected separately by a confidentiality agreement, which Article 21 of the Labour Code allows. Both links are standard in Nhân Kiệt’s contracts.
The contract
What to put in a developer’s contract.
- Remote or hybrid work: the workplace, and how equipment is provided and returned.
- Working hours: up to 8 hours a day and 48 a week; on-call or release work outside hours counts as overtime, paid at 150% or more.
- Night work: work between 10pm and 6am carries a premium of at least 30%.
- Probation: up to 60 days for roles requiring a college degree or higher, at no less than 85% of salary.
- Allowances: a meal allowance of up to ₫1,200,000 a month is tax-free when documented separately.
- 13th-month salary: customary in the market, though not required by law; state your policy.
Cost
What a developer costs each month.
| Gross salary | Before EOR fee | With Nhân Kiệt |
|---|---|---|
| ₫30,000,000 | ₫37,050,000 | ≈ ₫39.7–42.3 million |
| ₫50,000,000 | ₫61,750,000 | ≈ ₫64.4–67.0 million |
Try any salary in the employer cost calculator. Most companies hire engineers in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and Da Nang.
Questions
Hiring developers in Vietnam: FAQ
Can I hire developers in Vietnam as contractors?
If you direct their daily work, Vietnamese law treats them as employees regardless of the contract name, and reclassification brings back-dated insurance, tax and fines. An EOR avoids that risk.
Who owns the code a developer writes through an EOR?
You do, if the labour contract gives it to the employer and the service agreement assigns it to you. Both are standard in Nhân Kiệt’s contracts.
Is overtime paid for on-call or release work?
Yes. Work outside normal hours is overtime, paid at no less than 150% on working days, 200% on weekly rest days and 300% on public holidays.
How much does a developer on ₫30,000,000 cost the employer?
₫37,050,000 a month before the EOR fee, or about ₫39.7–42.3 million with Nhân Kiệt’s fee before VAT.
Hiring in Vietnam? We handle all of this as your employer.
Nhân Kiệt employs your team, runs payroll, insurance, tax and work permits. Fee: US$99–199 per employee a month, plus VAT.
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