Is it possible to conclude an employment contract online in Vietnam?

Hello, Lawnet would like to answer as follows:

1. Regulations on employment contracts in Vietnam

Clause 1, Article 13 of the Labor Code 2019 stipulates employment contract as follows:

Article 13. Employment contract

1. An employment contract is an agreement between an employee and an employer on a paid job, salary, working conditions, and the rights and obligations of each party in the labor relations.

A document with a different name is also considered an employment contract if it contains the agreement on the paid job, salary, management and supervision of a party.

When the two parties have an agreement between the employee and the employer on paid jobs, wages, working conditions, and the rights and obligations of each party in the labor relationship, it is considered an employment contract. 

2. Is it possible to conclude an employment contract online?

According to the provisions of Clause 10, Article 4 of the Law on E-Transactions 2005, electronic means are defined as follows:

- An electronic means is a means that operates based on electric, electronic, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electro-magnetic technologies or similar technologies.

Through the above regulations, it can be seen that signing an online employment contract is signing a contract through electronic means.

In addition, according to Article 14 of the Labor Code 2019, the forms of employment contract are prescribed by law as follows:

Article 14. Forms of employment contract

1. An employment contract shall be concluded in writing and made into two copies, one of which will be kept by the employee, the other by the employer, except for the case specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

An employment contract in the form of electronic data conformable with electronic transaction laws shall have the same value as that of a physical contract.

2. Both parties may conclude an oral contract with a term of less than 01 month, except for the cases specified in Clause 2 Article 18, Point a Clause 1 Article 145 and Clause 1 Article 162 of this Labor Code.

An employment contract may be signed in the following forms:

+ Direct signature (written contract)

+ Signing via electronic means (committed in the form of data messages)

+ For contracts with a term of less than 1 month, they can be signed verbally.

In addition, according to the provisions of Article 34 of the Law on E-Transactions 2005, the legal validity of e-contracts is also recognized by law, specifically:

Article 34. Recognition of legal validity of e-contracts

The legal validity of an e-contract cannot be disclaimed for the sole reason that it is expressed as a data message.

From the foregoing, it can be seen that an employment contract entered into via electronic means in the form of a data message in accordance with the law on e-transactions has the same value as a written employment contract.

However, your online employment contract needs to ensure 2 conditions as specified in Article 13 of the Law on E-Transactions 2005:

+ First, the contents of the data message are kept intact since its first origination in the form of a complete data message.

The contents of a data message are considered intact when they remain unchanged, except for changes in their appearance which arise in the process of sending, storing or displaying the data message.

+ Second, the contents of the data message are accessible and usable in its integrity for reference when necessary.

For the online employment contract to be valid as the original, the content of the contract has not been changed. In addition, the content of the contract is accessible and usable in its complete form as needed.

Thus, if your online contract meets the conditions specified in Article 13 of the Law on E-Transactions 2005 above, then signing an online employment contract between you and the company is legal and guaranteed by the law on rights and obligations under the labor law.

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