Many foreign-invested companies only realize their Internal Labor Regulations are non-compliant when approval is delayed, affecting hiring plans and operational timelines. In Vietnam, labor regulation registration is not a formality; it is a regulatory checkpoint that directly impacts workforce stability, dispute exposure, and investor confidence.
TL;DR
- Labor Regulation Registration in Vietnam often fails due to unclear working hours, non-compliant codes of conduct, and vague disciplinary provisions.
- Authorities scrutinize termination grounds, disciplinary measures, and wording precision especially for foreign-invested and fast-scaling companies.
- Early alignment with the Vietnam Labor Code reduces approval delays, legal disputes, and operational risk.
Why Labor Regulation Registration in Vietnam Is Closely Scrutinized
Under Vietnam’s Labor Law, Internal Labor Regulations (IRL) are not optional internal policies. They are mandatory legal requirements for businesses employing 10 or more employees and must be registered with the local Labor Authority before they can be enforced.
In practice, many companies underestimate this requirement. They often treat the IRL as an internal document and are surprised to learn that registration may take months rather than weeks, mainly because of repeated revision requests from state agencies.
Businesses often lack familiarity with administrative procedures and submit incomplete registration documents, leading to wasted time, rejections, and the need for further documentation.
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From the regulator’s perspective, IRL registration is not intended to approve a company’s management approach. Instead, it ensures that internal rules do not reduce employee protections established by law. This approach explains why IRL submissions, especially from foreign-invested and multinational companies, receive a detailed review.
Recognizing this regulatory approach clarifies why the following issues frequently arise during the registration process.
Common Issues That Delay or Reject Labor Regulation Registration
Unclear Working Hours, Rest Hours, and Annual Leave Schedules
Many companies state total working hours but do not clarify how these hours are organized in practice.
Common issues include:
- Missing details on start and end times
- Unclear weekend or shift arrangements
- Break schedules are often described as “rotating” or “flexible” without a legal basis.
Provisions that allow rotating breaks “to ensure work is not interrupted” are often rejected for roles that require fixed break times by law. Labor authorities closely review rest periods to confirm full compliance with statutory requirements.
Similarly, annual leave provisions are often flagged when they: reflect statutory minimum entitlements.
- Leave scheduling: Leave is scheduled entirely at the company’s discretion without legal justification. From a company’s perspective, a lack of specificity creates uncertainty and increases the risk of employee disadvantage, making revisions unavoidable.
Global Codes of Conduct That Are Not Consistent with Vietnam Labor Law
Multinational companies often incorporate a global Code of Conduct into their IRL. However, many global standards conflict with Vietnamese labor regulations in subtle but critical ways.
These conflicts typically arise when:
- Violations are defined too broadly
- Sanctions are imposed without following mandatory disciplinary procedures
- Dismissal is applied for conduct that does not meet the legal threshold under Vietnamese law
In such cases, companies are required to adjust or localize their Code of Conduct before it can be registered. Vietnamese labor law takes precedence over global policies, regardless of corporate hierarchy.
This is one of the most common sources of “inconsistency of views” between businesses and state agencies during IRL review.
Termination Provisions for Code of Conduct Violations That Lack Specificity
Some violations of a Code of Conduct may appear serious from a business perspective, even if they do not cause direct financial damage. Companies may therefore consider dismissal an appropriate response.
However, labor authorities assess termination strictly based on legal criteria, not business judgment. If the IRL does not clearly demonstrate that:
- The behavior falls within legally recognized dismissal grounds, and
- The extent and seriousness of the violation justify dismissal under the Labor Law,
then the termination provision will not be accepted.
The challenge for HR leaders is not deciding what behavior is unacceptable, but how to express this clearly and lawfully in IRL language so employees understand what is prohibited and what consequences may legally apply.
Combining Disciplinary Measures Contrary to the Labor Law 2019
This issue reflects a common carryover from earlier legal frameworks.
Under the 2012 Labor Law, disciplinary measures such as:
- Extension of salary increase period, and
- Dismissal
were sometimes applied together in practice.
However, under Article 124 of the Labor Law 2019, these disciplinary forms are clearly separated. Each violation may result in only one disciplinary measure.
When companies combine measures—such as extending a salary increase period and dismissing an employee for the same violation—labor authorities will require revisions, as this directly contradicts current law.
Use of “…” or Placeholder Language in Internal Labor Regulations
The use of placeholders such as “…” is still common in IRL drafts, often intended to account for unforeseen situations. However, from a regulatory standpoint, this approach creates unacceptable ambiguity.
Labor authorities require IRL provisions to be:
- Clear
- Specific
- Complete
Open-ended wording leaves room for discretionary interpretation, particularly in disciplinary matters. As a result, such language is routinely rejected during the registration process.
Different Legal Views on Grounds for Job Termination
A frequent area of misunderstanding involves situations where employees fail to meet work commitments or performance expectations.
From a legal perspective, termination can occur under two distinct frameworks:
- Disciplinary dismissal due to violations, or
- Unilateral termination of the labor contract due to failure to meet job requirements, as permitted by law
Confusion arises when companies attempt to treat performance issues as disciplinary violations, or vice versa. Labor authorities will closely examine whether the chosen termination basis aligns with the correct legal mechanism.
Misclassification often leads to rejection or post-termination disputes.
Including Regulations Outside the Scope of the Labor Law
Some labor management agencies require IRL content to strictly follow Article 118 of the Labor Law 2019, which defines the permitted scope of internal labor regulations.
As a result:
- Provisions related to Social Insurance, Taxation, or other laws may be required to be deleted.
- Or replaced with general references such as “in accordance with current law.”
Including benefits or internal policy details in IRL is also discouraged. If such policies change, the IRL would need to be re-registered, creating an unnecessary administrative burden.
Practical Guidance for a Smooth Labor Regulation Registration Submission Process
Labor regulations can be complex and vary by organization, so it is important to prepare carefully. HR teams should keep these points in mind:
- Check with your legal team or outside advisors to ensure everything complies with Vietnamese labor law.
- Ensure the IRL includes only the items listed in Article 118 of the Labor Law 2019.
- Write in a way that is clear and easy to understand, so there is no confusion.
- For large unskilled workforces, clearIf you have a large unskilled workforce, clearly list which behaviors are not allowed and what the consequences are.squarely within Article 125 of the Labor Law 2019, recognizing that authorities prioritize employee protection
- Keep internal benefit policies separate from the IRL to avoid re-registration later.
Let Sunbytes help you solve your HR challenges
Registering Internal Labor Regulations in Vietnam should protect your business, not add extra work, confusion, or hidden risks. Yet for many international companies, the process is slow, unclear, and often doesn’t align with how their organizations actually operate.
That’s why Sunbytes exists to make this process easier for you.
About us
Sunbytes is a Dutch technology company with a well-established delivery hub in Vietnam. For over 14 years, we’ve helped international leadership teams grow their workforces in complex regulatory environments, supporting them in scaling with clarity rather than compromise.
What makes Sunbytes different is that our HR and workforce support is built around how modern organizations actually operate.
Because we build and update digital products from start to finish, we understand how roles function in real teams, not just on paper. This lets us create labor regulations that fit daily operations and still meet Vietnamese labor law. For us, clear roles, practical rules, and fair termination processes help teams succeed and grow.
Our Secure by Design approach makes this even stronger. As organizations grow, compliance expectations rise not just in cybersecurity, but also in governance, accountability, and risk management. Labor regulations are at the center of these issues. By using structured, risk-aware thinking, we help companies create Internal Labor Regulations that protect both employee rights and organizational stability.
With Sunbytes, registering labor regulations becomes a solid foundation for your business, not just another box to tick. We help leadership teams do more than meet requirements, we help you build a workforce framework that supports long-term growth in Vietnam.
Contact us to begin building a compliant, delivery-ready workforce structure that integrates smoothly and scales with confidence!
FAQs
According to labor laws, internal labor regulations are issued by the employer after consulting with the employee representative organization at the workplace, if such an organization exists, to ensure compliance with legal regulations. Internal labor regulations are required to be in writing if the company employs 10 or more workers. After issuance, the regulations must be communicated to all employees and their main contents must be posted in necessary locations at the workplace.
When the company does not have an employee representative organization at the workplace, it must obtain the collective opinion of all employees on the content of the internal labor regulations.
If Internal Labor Regulations are not registered as required, employers may face administrative penalties under Vietnamese law. More importantly, unregistered IRL are not legally enforceable.
Typically 7–15 working days if documents are compliant. Note: The labor regulations will only take effect 15 days after the competent authority receives the complete registration documents.Rejections or revision requests can significantly extend timelines.
Businesses may face administrative penalties and lack a solid legal basis for disciplining or dismissing employees for violations of their internal regulations. Note: According to Article 118 of the Labor Law and Decree 12/2022/ND-CP, businesses with more than 10 employees are required to register their internal labor regulations.
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