Decree No. 337/2025/ND-CP on Electronic Employment Contracts: Mandatory Updates for Businesses

What does Decree No. 337/2025/ND-CP regulate?

Decree No. 337/2025/ND-CP is the first specialized legal instrument governing the conclusion and performance of electronic employment contracts, as well as the development and operation of the National Electronic Employment Contract Platform in Vietnam. The Decree was issued by the Government on December 24, 2025, at the proposal of the Minister of Home Affairs.

Specifically, the Decree establishes three core foundations: the legal framework governing the validity of electronic employment contracts, the mandatory technical architecture for the contracting process and an implementation roadmap based on two clearly defined milestones.

Definition of an electronic employment contract under Decree No. 337:

Under Clause 1, Article 3, an electronic employment contract is an employment contract concluded and established in the form of a data message in accordance with labor law and the law on electronic transactions, and has the same legal validity as a written paper employment contract.

Scope of application under Article 2:

The Decree applies to three groups:

• Employees as defined in Clause 1, Article 3 of the Labor Code when concluding and performing electronic employment contracts.
• Employers as defined in Clause 2, Article 3 of the Labor Code when concluding and performing electronic employment contracts.
• Other agencies, organizations and individuals involved in implementing the Decree, including eContract service providers.

Two important effective-date milestones under Article 28:

Important note on the transitional period under Article 29: Electronic employment contracts concluded before January 1, 2026 that remain valid may continue to be performed in accordance with labor law and the law on electronic transactions until the end of their contractual term, and have equivalent legal validity to electronic employment contracts that satisfy the requirements of this Decree.

Which key regulations on electronic employment contracts must businesses understand?

There are two core groups of technical requirements that businesses must comply with: requirements relating to the contract identification code and requirements relating to the legally effective time of the contract. These are the two factors that determine whether an electronic employment contract is legally recognized under Articles 6 and 7 of Decree No. 337.

What is an electronic employment contract identification code and how is it issued?

Under Clause 5, Article 3, an electronic employment contract identification code, or ID, is a unique numerical sequence issued by the Electronic Employment Contract Platform for each electronic employment contract, including contracts converted from paper form into electronic form.

Role of the identification code:

The ID is the official identification number that enables the National Platform to record the contract status and allows state authorities to access and verify employment contract information. Under Articles 14 and 15, contract data is centrally stored and shared for purposes such as processing administrative procedures, supporting state administration of labor matters and providing data services to businesses and individuals.

Identification code issuance process under Clause 4, Article 6:

Step 1 – Contract creation and identity verification: The contract is created on the eContract system. The identities of the contracting parties are verified in accordance with the law on electronic identification and authentication.

Step 2 – Digital signing and timestamping: Both parties digitally sign the contract, and a timestamp is attached to each party’s digital signature in accordance with applicable regulations. The eContract service provider certifies the contract data message through the eContract system.

Step 3 – Submission to the Platform for ID issuance: Within 24 hours from the time the final party signs, the eContract service provider must submit the electronic employment contract to the Electronic Employment Contract Platform for an ID to be assigned in accordance with regulations issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs. This is the responsibility of the eContract service provider, not a task that the business must perform directly.

Step 4 – The eContract service provider returns the contract with the assigned ID: Under Clause 1, Article 21, the eContract service provider is responsible for sending the electronic employment contract bearing the assigned ID to both the employee and the employer in the form of a data message.

How is the effective time of an electronic employment contract determined?

Under Article 7 of Decree No. 337, an electronic employment contract takes effect from the time the final party digitally signs, the timestamp is attached to the digital signatures of the contracting parties and the eContract service provider certifies the contract data message, unless otherwise agreed by the parties.

Three elements jointly determine the contract’s effectiveness:

1. Digital signature of the final signing party: The contract is only completed when both parties have digitally signed it. The time at which the final party completes the digital signature is an important milestone for determining legal effectiveness.
2. Timestamp attached to the digital signature: A timestamp must be attached to the digital signatures of the contracting parties in accordance with Point c, Clause 2, Article 6, meaning that a timestamping service compliant with the law on electronic transactions must be used.
3. Data-message certification by the eContract service provider: This is the third mandatory element and demonstrates the indispensable role of the eContract service provider in the contracting process. Without this certification, the contract does not fully satisfy the effectiveness requirements under Article 7.

Practical scenario to note:

A business sends an electronic contract to a new employee for signature at 5:00 PM on Friday. The employee signs immediately, but the company’s authorized representative does not approve and sign until 9:00 AM on Monday. The contract becomes effective when the eContract service provider completes the data-message certification after the final party, the company, has signed. This directly affects the probation commencement date and the official contract term.

How does the legal validity of an electronic employment contract differ from that of a traditional paper contract?

Under Clause 1, Article 3 of Decree No. 337, an electronic employment contract has the same legal validity as a paper employment contract. Paper contracts may be more familiar in practice and do not require technical infrastructure, while electronic employment contracts offer stronger traceability, protection against forgery and integration with modern HR management systems.

However, for an electronic employment contract to achieve full legal equivalence in practice, Decree No. 337 imposes specific technical conditions that do not apply to paper contracts. The comparison table below highlights the differences across key criteria.

Comprehensive comparison table:

Key consideration: The legal equivalence of an electronic employment contract under Decree No. 337 is conditional. The contract must fully satisfy the requirements under Article 6 and be assigned a valid ID. An electronic employment contract missing any of the three elements, including a digital signature, timestamp or eContract certification, does not fully satisfy the effectiveness requirements under Article 7.

Additional advantage of electronic employment contracts: Under Point c, Clause 1, Article 19, employers are permitted to share and use contract data from the Platform for labor utilization reporting and related administrative procedures. This is a digital HR transformation advantage that paper contracts cannot provide.

Are businesses required to convert all paper employment contracts into electronic contracts from 2026?

No. Businesses are not required to convert all existing paper employment contracts into electronic form. Decree No. 337 adopts an encouraged-use approach under Clause 3, Article 4 and does not impose a mandatory conversion obligation. However, there are three practical situations in which businesses should prioritize early conversion to ensure compliance and optimize HR administration.

Specifically, Clause 3, Article 4 states: “The use of electronic employment contracts is encouraged as an alternative to written paper employment contracts in employers’ HR administration and in the processing of administrative procedures relating to employment contracts.”

Three situations in which businesses should prioritize early conversion:

Situation 1 – Conclusion of new contracts from July 1, 2026: Once the National Platform officially becomes operational, concluding electronic employment contracts under Decree No. 337 will become a recommended best practice because it ensures full legal validity from the outset, facilitates integration with HR management systems and enables businesses to use data services from the National Platform for related administrative procedures.

Situation 2 – Amendment or supplementation of existing paper contracts: Under Clause 2, Article 9, when a business wishes to amend, supplement, suspend or terminate a paper contract through a data message, the paper contract must first be converted into electronic form before the relevant change can be made. In practice, this is the point at which conversion becomes necessary if the business wants to process the contract electronically.

Situation 3 – Businesses seeking to use contract data through the National Platform: Businesses wishing to use electronic employment contract data services from the National Platform for reporting, social insurance reconciliation or administrative procedures under Articles 15 and 19 must have electronic employment contracts with valid IDs.

Regarding the conversion process from paper to electronic form under Clause 1, Article 8: The identities of the contracting parties must be verified in accordance with the law on electronic identification; the converted electronic contract must be digitally signed by the employer’s authorized representative to confirm its accuracy and completeness compared with the original; and the converted contract must be assigned an ID.

What risks do businesses face for violating or failing to comply with Decree No. 337?

There are three main groups of risks when businesses violate or fail to comply with Decree No. 337: using an eContract provider that does not satisfy legal eligibility requirements, using electronic employment contracts that do not fully meet the conditions for legal effectiveness and may lead to disputes, and being unable to access data services from the National Platform for administrative procedures.

More importantly, these risks do not arise only from intentional violations. They may also result from a lack of technical understanding, such as selecting an eContract provider without a valid license, omitting data-message certification or incorrectly assuming that a contract signed through email is sufficient. The following sections analyze each risk group under the actual requirements of the Decree.

How is the Level 3 information security standard for eContract service providers regulated?

Under Point c, Clause 3, Article 6, an eContract service provider must hold a license to provide trust services, specifically data-message certification services in accordance with the law on electronic transactions. This is a license issued by a competent state authority, not an ordinary technical certificate.

Important note on the Level 3 information security standard: Under Point b, Clause 2, Article 16, the minimum Level 3 information security requirement applies to information systems of state agencies and organizations when they officially connect to the Electronic Employment Contract Platform. It is not a separate requirement applying exclusively to eContract service providers. Businesses should distinguish between these two requirements to avoid confusion when evaluating vendors.

Mandatory technical requirements for eContract under Clause 1, Article 6 that businesses should verify when selecting a provider:

☐ Uses digital signing and digital signature verification software that complies with the law on electronic transactions.

☐ Implements security measures to protect customer information and electronic employment contract data, and maintains technical plans to ensure continuity and recovery of electronic contract certification services in the event of an incident.

☐ Maintains storage solutions that ensure the integrity of electronic documents and enable retrieval of electronic employment contracts concluded through the eContract system.

☐ Includes functions to correctly identify contracting parties and verify the identities of employees and employers in accordance with the law on electronic identification and authentication.

☐ Includes functionality to certify electronic employment contracts in accordance with the law on electronic transactions before submitting them to the Electronic Employment Contract Platform for ID assignment.

☐ Supports conversion between electronic employment contracts and written paper employment contracts in accordance with the law on electronic transactions.

☐ Connects to the Electronic Employment Contract Platform through a standardized application programming interface, or API, in accordance with regulations issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

☐ Holds a license to provide trust services, specifically data-message certification services, under Point c, Clause 3, Article 6.

Risks of selecting an unqualified eContract service provider:

If a provider does not satisfy the requirements under Clauses 1 and 3, Article 6, contracts concluded through that system may not qualify for an ID from the National Platform. This means that the contracts may not achieve full legal validity under Article 7. Under Clause 6, Article 22, the Ministry of Home Affairs is responsible for publishing a list of eligible eContract service providers. Businesses should check this list before selecting a provider.

How is converting an electronic contract into a paper copy for inspection different from signing a paper contract?

Converting an electronic employment contract into paper form is a process specifically regulated under Clause 2, Article 8 and must be carried out in accordance with Clause 2, Article 12 of the Law on Electronic Transactions. It is entirely different from signing a new paper contract because the conversion process does not create a new contract and does not amend any terms of the original electronic contract.

Core principle under Clause 3, Article 8: A contract converted into paper or electronic form has the same validity as the original if it satisfies all conditions under the law on electronic transactions. This means that a properly converted paper copy has the same value as the original electronic contract, but only when all legal conditions are met. Simply printing the contract and adding handwritten signatures is not sufficient.

Practical risk businesses should avoid:

Some businesses mistakenly print electronic contracts and add handwritten signatures when requested during an inspection. This does not comply with the conversion procedure under Clause 2, Article 8 and may create a document with uncertain legal validity, causing additional difficulties during the inspection process.

Correct process when presenting an electronic contract to a state authority:

Step 1 – Extract the contract from the eContract system: Extract the original electronic contract file together with the ID, timestamp and certification data.

Step 2 – Convert the contract into paper form under Clause 2, Article 8: Follow the conversion procedure under Clause 2, Article 12 of the Law on Electronic Transactions so that the paper version has the same legal validity as the electronic original.

Step 3 – Use data services from the National Platform: Under Article 18, businesses and state authorities may access and verify contract information directly through the Platform using the ID. This is the fastest and most accurate verification method during an inspection.

Are employment contracts signed through email, Viber or Zalo recognized under Decree No. 337?

No. Employment contracts signed through email, Viber or Zalo do not satisfy the requirements of Decree No. 337 because they lack all three mandatory elements under Articles 6 and 7: a digital signature from a licensed trust service provider, a legally valid timestamp and data-message certification by an eContract service provider. As a result, they cannot be assigned an ID by the National Platform.

Analysis of each missing requirement:

1. No valid digital signature under Point a, Clause 1 and Point c, Clause 2, Article 6: The digital signature must be created using digital signing software that complies with the law on electronic transactions. Typing a name in an email, inserting an image of a handwritten signature or sending a message stating “I agree” through Zalo does not satisfy this requirement.

2. No valid timestamp under Point c, Clause 2, Article 6: The parties must use a timestamping service compliant with the law on electronic transactions. The timestamp displayed in email or Zalo only reflects the sender’s device or system time and is not a timestamp issued by a licensed timestamping service.

3. No data-message certification by an eContract service provider under Article 7: Email and messaging applications are not licensed eContract systems and therefore cannot perform the required data-message certification. Without this element, the contract does not satisfy the effectiveness requirements under Article 7.

Practical legal consequences:

Practical note: Before Decree No. 337, many businesses used email to confirm recruitment terms as a temporary form of agreement. From July 1, 2026, when the Platform officially becomes operational, businesses should migrate the entire new contract execution process to a qualified eContract platform, particularly during employee onboarding, where confirmation of contractual terms is one of the most legally significant steps.

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