Foreign employees with a work permit, practice certificate, or practice licence granted by Vietnamese authorities and under non-fixed-term labour contracts or contracts with a term of one full year and above shall be subject to compulsory social insurance. — Photo dantri.com.vn

HÀ NỘI — The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and Việt Nam Social Security (VSS) have been working with other countries on bilateral agreements to ensure the benefits to foreign workers employed in Việt Nam who are required to make social insurance payments, said Đào Việt Ánh, VSS deputy general director yesterday at a media briefing.

Under a newly-issued decree which will take effect from December 1st this year stipulating compulsory social insurance for foreign employees in Việt Nam, foreign employees with a work permit, practice certificate, or practice licence granted by Vietnamese authorities and under non-fixed-term labour contracts or contracts with a term of one full year and above shall be subject to compulsory social insurance.

They will be entitled to the following social insurance regimes – sickness, maternity, workplace accident, occupational disease, retirement, and survivor benefits. According to Đinh Thị Hiền, deputy head of VSS’ social insurance policy department, from December 1 this year until December 31, 2021, employers are obliged to contribute amounts equal to 3 per cent of the employee’s monthly salary to the sickness and maternity funds and 0.5 per cent into occupational accidents and hazards.

From January 1, 2022, employers will have to contribute 14 per cent of the employee’s monthly salary into the retirement and survivor benefits fund. From January 1, 2022, the employee’s contribution to the retirement and survivor benefits fund is set at 8 per cent of their monthly salary, equivalent to the amount Vietnamese workers have to contribute, Hiền said.

VSS deputy general director Đào Việt Ánh said that there would be differing opinions towards the new decree from foreign employees and Vietnamese employers.

The VSS has completed the fourth round of negotiations on the agreement with the Republic of Korea – one of the countries with the biggest number of people employed in Việt Nam and is working with Japan and Germany, Ánh said, adding that VSS aims to sign bilateral agreements with all nations with large numbers of employees in Việt Nam.

“The bilateral agreements will fully support foreign employers in Việt Nam who are entitled to the compulsory social insurance scheme,” he said.

To help employers adapt to the new regulations, the compulsory social insurance payment for long-term retirement and survivor benefits fund will not be compulsory until 2022, he said.

According to statistics by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, the number of foreign employees in the country increased from 63,557 in 2011 to 83,046 in 2016. They mostly came from Asian countries like China, the Republic of Korea and Japan, accounting for 73 per cent of the total, followed by European nations (21.6 per cent), and North America (2.4 per cent). — VNS