Introduction
Although it has been contemplated under the Labour Code 2019 that employers and employees can enter into labour contracts in an electronic form, the legal framework for such e-labour contract arrangement was only introduced recently when the Government of Vietnam issued Decree 337/2025/ND-CP on 24 December 2025 (“Decree 337”). Article 3.1 of Decree 337 defines e-labour contract as “a labour contract concluded and established in the form of a data message via electronic means in accordance with the labour laws and the law on electronic transactions, having the same legal validity as a written labour contract.” The usage of e-labour contracts is encouraged in human resource management and in the handling of administrative procedures related to employment issues, while employers are free to continue with the paper-based arrangement.
While Decree 337 came into effect from 1 January 2026, the execution and performance of e-labour contracts under Decree 337 will only be implemented from 1 July 2026, which is also the final deadline for the electronic employment contract platform (“E-Platform”) (as further discussed below) developed and operated by the Ministry of Home Affairs (“MOHA”) to be put into operation.
Article 29 of Decree 337 also states that e-labour contracts concluded before the effective date of Decree 337 (i.e. 1 January 2026) may remain effective and are deemed to have equivalent validity to contracts executed under Decree 337. This provision seems to refer to labour contracts the parties may voluntarily sign using their respective digital signatures in accordance with general regulations on e-transactions. However, it is unclear how certain provisions of Decree 337 will apply to such contracts (e.g. whether such contracts must be signed through the E-Contract System (as defined below) and how such contracts will be sent to the E-Platform to obtain relevant identification numbers, as further discussed below).
Infrastructure for E-Labour Contracts
According to Article 6 of Decree 337, the execution of e-labour contracts must be conducted through an information system (“E-Contract System”) developed by licensed organizations or enterprises (“Service Providers”)※1 that would enable employers and employees to create, electronically sign, store, retrieve, and manage labour contracts; enable employers to report on labour utilization; and allow the authentication of e-labour contracts by the relevant Service Providers.
The E-Contract System must (i) satisfy certain technical and safety conditions, such as being capable of connecting to the E-Platform via a standard application programming interface (API) and (ii) have certain functions, such as authenticating e-labour contracts, converting between e-contracts and paper-based contracts, and supporting employers in reporting on labour issues.
In addition, the E-Contract System must connect to the E-Platform to centrally manage e-labour contract data and provide nationwide shared services. The E-Platform may also share data with other State authorities for management purposes.
MOHA is required to publish the Service Providers which have connected their E-Contract Systems to the E-Platform within 24 hours of successful connection※2. However, the list of Service Providers does not appear to be publicly available on MOHA’s website※3 while certain enterprises are advertising that they are qualified Service Providers.
E-Labour Contracts
Requirements applicable to employer and employee
In order to conclude e-labour contracts via the E-Contract System, the employer and employee must satisfy the following conditions:
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Having identity documents:
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For individuals: these include a citizen identity card, a level-2 electronic identification account, or a valid passport (for foreigners, a valid entry visa or documents evidencing visa exemption are additionally required); or
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For organizations: these include an establishment decision, enterprise registration certificate, investment registration certificate, etc., and identity documents of the individual legal representative; and
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A valid e-signature using time-stamping services※4.
Effectiveness of e-labour contracts
Unless otherwise agreed, an e-labour contract takes effect when the last party signs it digitally, provided that the digital signatures are time-stamped and the contract is authenticated by the Service Provider.
Submission of e-labour contracts to the E-Platform
Within 24 hours after the e-labour contract is fully signed by the parties, the Service Provider must send the signed e-labour contract to the E-Platform in order for the contract to be issued a specific identification number.
Conversion of paper-based contracts into e-contracts
Paper-based employment contracts can be converted into e-labour contracts if the following conditions, other than general conditions for conversion of paper-based contracts into e-contracts as specified in Article 12.1 of the Law on Electronic Transactions, are met:
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Parties to paper-based contracts can be authenticated in accordance with the law on electronic identification and authentication; and
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The converted e-contracts must be digitally signed by authorized personnel of the employers to certify the accuracy and completeness against the originals and such personnel are responsible for the converted contents.
The converted e-contracts will presumably be sent to the E-Platform to be assigned relevant identification numbers.
Amendment, suspension, and termination of e-labour contracts
Article 9.1 of Decree 337 states that if the original labour contract was signed electronically, the amendment, supplement, suspension, or termination of such contract will be carried out in the same manner as the execution of such e-labour contract and must be performed on the E-Contract System, unless otherwise agreed by the parties.
If the parties originally sign a paper-based labour contract but wish to amend it electronically, such contract must first be converted into an e-labour contract and then the parties can digitally sign the amendment to such contract via the E-Contract System.
It is noted that appendices to labour contracts, agreements on suspension, and termination notices of e-labour contracts (including converted contracts) must be assigned the same identification number as the relevant contract to ensure consistency and traceability of transaction history between the parties.
Conclusion
Although Decree 337 has been in effect for some time, the E-Platform for management of e-labour contracts has just become operational. Therefore, while the legal framework and conditions for e-labour contracts seem available at this stage, it is unclear whether any e-labour contracts have been executed in accordance with provisions of Decree 337 in practice. If implemented and used, the e-labour contracts regime can help save costs and reduce the burden of administrative procedures.
Endnotes
*1
The Service Providers must satisfy certain conditions specified under Article 6 of Decree 337 and obtain licenses for the provision of trust services with service scopes including the provision of data message authentication services.
*2
The suspension or cessation of connection must also be published.
*3
It appears that in order to access the list of Service Providers, an ID is required to log in to the E-Platform.
*4
A timestamp issued by the digital signature service confirming the time of signing.
