Vietnam Holiday & Leave Entitlement Policy: A Complete Overview

Vietnam's Labor Code regulates the holiday and leave entitlements of employers and employees. This includes public holidays, annual leave, sick leave, maternity leave, and other leave types. Public holidays such as Tet and National Day provide a paid day off, with premium pay for those who work. Annual leave is based on length of service, with a minimum of 12 days per year. Maternity leave is 6 months for female employees who have worked for at least 12 months, and paternity leave is 5 days for male employees. Other types of leave include compassionate, study, and personal leave. Employers may choose to offer more generous benefits.

Public Holiday 

As an employee in Vietnam, public holidays are an important aspect of your work-life balance. 

Employees are granted 11 paid holidays throughout the year, which include:

• New Year's Day - January 1 
• Lunar New Year (Tet) 

*Usually falls in late January or early February and lasts for several days

• Hung Kings' Commemoration Day 

*10th day of the third lunar month, which falls in March or April 

• Reunification Day/Liberation Day - April 30
• International Labour Day - May 1
• National Day - September 2

Additionally, employees from foreign countries who work remotely in Vietnam are entitled to two holidays that include their traditional national public celebration as well as Vietnam's National Day.

If a public holiday coincides with an employee's regular day off, they are granted an additional day off after their next scheduled shift. Employees who work during the daytime of a holiday are compensated at three times their usual rate, while night workers receive 390% of their regular wage.

Leave Entitlement Policy in Vietnam

In Vietnam, employees who have rendered continuous service to a company for at least 12 months are entitled to paid annual leave. The duration of their leave is determined by the nature of their work, with 12 days off for those engaged in typical labor conditions, 14 days for minors, disabled individuals, and those performing arduous, poisonous, or hazardous tasks, and 16 days for exceptionally difficult and dangerous work. Furthermore, employees are granted an additional day of leave for every five years of continuous employment with the same employer.

Employees who have worked for less than 12 months are given paid leave on a pro-rata basis, with one day of leave provided for each month of service. In case an employee is terminated or resigns before availing all their entitled annual leave, they will receive payment in lieu of those days off. Employers and employees can mutually decide on how to utilize the annual leave, either by splitting it into parts or spreading it over a maximum of three years.

Types of Leave 

In Vietnam, employees are entitled to several types of leave, including:

Annual leave 

Employees who have worked continuously for at least 12 months with the same employer are entitled to paid annual leave. The duration of the leave depends on the nature of their work, with 12 days off for those engaged in typical labor conditions, 14 days for minors, disabled individuals, and those performing arduous, poisonous, or hazardous tasks, and 16 days for exceptionally difficult and dangerous work. Employees receive an additional day of leave for every five years of continuous employment with the same employer. Employees who have worked for less than 12 months are given paid leave on a pro-rata basis.

Sick leave 

Employees are entitled to paid sick leave for a maximum of 30 days per year. If an employee is sick for more than three consecutive days, they must provide a medical certificate from a doctor or hospital.

Maternity leave 

Female employees are entitled to take maternity leave for up to six months, with two months of paid leave covered by the Vietnamese Social Insurance Fund. The employee is entitled to 100% of their salary during the leave period.

If there are multiple births, an additional month of leave is granted for each additional child, starting with the second one. If a mother wants to take more time off after the mandatory period, she can negotiate unpaid leave with her employer. Maternity leave is mandatory for a minimum of four months, and a medical certificate is required for a return to work after that time.

If an infant passes away within two months of birth, the mother is eligible for a four-month leave starting from the date of delivery. If the child passes after two months, the mother is entitled to two months of leave starting from the date of the child's death. However, the total maternity leave cannot exceed six months, and it does not count towards regular paid days off.

If the mother was registered for social insurance or passed away during childbirth, the father or direct foster parent can take the remaining maternity leave. If the mother contributed to social security for at least six months before delivery or adoption and died during that period, the father or direct foster parent can receive parental leave until the child reaches one year of age.

Maternity allowance includes weekends, national holidays, and New Year festivities. Vietnam labour law also provides for additional paid and unpaid time off for female employees, including leave for prenatal checkups, leave for contraceptive measures, and additional recovery time after maternity leave.

Paternity leave 

If a worker in Vietnam has been contributing to the public health fund and their partner gives birth, they can take advantage of maternity leave during the first 30 days from the date of birth. The duration of the leave depends on the circumstances, as follows:

• Five workdays
• Seven workdays, if his spouse went through a cesarean section or gave birth prior to 32 weeks of being pregnant
• 10 workdays of leave for twin births, with an additional three days of leave for each baby
• 14 workdays of leave if the spouse has more than two children and undergoes multiple childbirth-related operations.

Compassionate leave

Employees are entitled to take compassionate leave in the event of the death of an immediate family member, such as a spouse, child, parent, or sibling. The duration of the leave is determined by the employer.

Unpaid leave 

Employees can request unpaid leave for personal reasons, such as travel or family obligations. The duration of the leave is determined by the employer.

Carer’s leave

In Vietnam, employees are entitled to carer's leave if their child falls ill and requires care. The duration of the leave depends on the age of the child, with up to 20 working days of leave granted for a child under three years old and up to 15 working days for a child between three and seven years old.

Carer's leave is measured in working hours and does not include public holidays, weekends, or New Year celebrations. Employees are entitled to 75% of their usual salary as compensation for taking these genuine days off work. The amount of remuneration is adjusted based on the number of actual leave days taken.

These provisions provide important support to employees who need time off work to care for a sick child. By allowing employees to take leave to care for their children, employers can help promote work-life balance and support the well-being of their employees and their families.

*It is important to note that carer's leave is not a legally mandated benefit in Vietnam, and employers are not required to provide it. However, many employers do offer carer's leave as part of their employee benefits package.
 

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>>> Read more: ​​​​​​​Labour regulations in Vietnam