On May 15, 2026, Ministry of Home Affairs issued Circular No. 08/2026/TT-BNV Detailed regulations and guidance on the implementation of some articles of Decree No. 337/2025/ND-CP dated December 24, 2025 of the Government on electronic labor contracts (“Circular 08”). The issuance of this Circular takes place amidst the State’s strong promotion of digital transformation in labor management, while also perfecting the legal framework for electronic transactions in the labor and employment sector, in line with the spirit of the Labor Code 2019 and the Electronic Transactions Law 2023. 

Notable Regulations: 

• Each electronic labor contract (hereinafter referred to “e-labor contract“), upon submission to the e-labor contract platform, is assigned a unique ID, not duplicating any other eContract and is used throughout the entire labor contract negotiation process; 

• The structure of the identification code for an e-labor contract consists of 01 letter and 12 digits; 

• E-labor contract Identification Code Issuance Process includes 04 main steps: (i) Negotiation and data submission; (ii) Reception and verification; (iii) ID issuance; (iv) Synchronization and storage; 

• eContract providers and relevant agencies are responsible for reporting compliance with e-labor contract laws quarterly and ad-hoc reporting upon request; Employers are responsible for reporting changes in labor status; 

• As from 1 July 2026, any electronic labour contract, upon being duly executed, must be transmitted to the Electronic Labour Contract Platform for the purpose of obtaining an identification code (ID) in accordance with this Circular. Concurrently, no later than 20 July 2026, eContract service providers are required to complete the connection of their eContract systems to the Electronic Labour Contract Platform. 

1. KeyArticles of the Circular08/2026/TT-BNV 

1.1. Scope of Regulation and Applicable Subjects 

Circular 08/2026/TT-BNV comprehensively regulates issues related to e-labor contracts, including the issuance of contract identification codes; registration, locking, and unlocking of access accounts to the E-labor contract Platform; management and utilization of the Platform; as well as updating, storing, exploiting, and sharing e-labor contract data. 

The subjects of application include three main groups: employees and employers; electronic contract (hereinafter referred to “eContract”) service providers; and competent state management agencies. 

1.2. E-labor contract Identification Code 

A major legally outstanding point enacted by Circular 08/2026/TT-BNV is the mechanism for issuing identification codes for e-labor contracts. Accordingly, each e-labor contract, after being submitted to the e-labor contract platform will be assigned a unique and continuous identification code throughout the contract execution period by the parties. 

According to Article 3.5 of Decree 337/2025/ND-CP, the e-labor contract identification code (or “ID”) is a unique sequence of numbers issued by the E-labor contract Platform for each e-labor contract and e-labor contracts converted from paper labor contracts. 

This identification code is not only connected to the original contract but is also used to manage all annexes, contract amendments, renewals, suspensions, or terminations. In addition, the identification code is connected to display codes and lookup codes to facilitate data exploitation, thereby enhancing information traceability and the evidentiary value of the contract in case of disputes.. 

The identification code for an e-labor contract consists of 01 letter and 12 digits: 

• Letter character: A, B, C classify corresponding to e-labor contracts concluded from July 01, 2026, paper labor contracts converted to eContracts, and e-labor contracts concluded before July 01, 2026; 

• Numeric characters: The first 02 characters correspond to the last 02 digits of the year the e-labor contract was issued an ID, the following 10 characters are a randomly assigned sequence of natural numbers. 

1.3. Process for Issuing E-labor contract Identifiers 

The e-labor contract platform does not issue identifiers and automatically sends notifications of reasons for not issuing IDs in the following 03 cases: 

• E-labor contracts concluded from July 01, 2026 onwards do not meet the conditions and methods for concluding e-labor contracts as per Article.1 6 of Decree 337/2025/ND-CP, or the conditions for collecting, updating, and managing data on the e-labor contract Platform; 

• E-labor contracts converted from paper documents do not comply with the regulations on conversion format as per Article 8.1 of Decree 337/2025/ND-CP, or lack conversion log information; 

• E-labor contracts concluded before July 01, 2026, do not have sufficient signature additions or the identity authentication information is incorrect. 

1.4. Obligations of Employees, Employers for E-labor contracts 

Registration, login, and use of the e-labor contract Platform are performed by integrating with the VNeID electronic identification account. The platform does not independently establish or assess the legal status of an account but directly utilizes the validity status from the National Electronic Identification and Authentication System. Accordingly, when the electronic identification account of an employee or employer is locked or its status changes, access and usage rights to the Platform will be adjusted accordingly without requiring additional administrative procedures. 

Data on e-labor contracts, contract annexes, and related documents are stored on the Platform for ten years from the date the contract terminates. In cases where parties conclude multiple labor contracts consecutively, the storage period is calculated from the termination date of the last labor contract.. 

1.5. Obligations of eContract Providers for E-labor contracts 

eContract Providers are responsible for connecting their systems to the E-labor contract Platform and submitting connection application dossiers to the Ministry of Home Affairs. Within twenty working days from the date of receiving complete and valid dossiers, the Ministry of Home Affairs shall conduct inspection, evaluation, and notify the provider of the connection account issuance. In cases where the dossier is not valid or technical testing fails, the Ministry of Home Affairs will notify the eContract Provider at the email address or head office address stated in the connection application and clearly state the reasons for rejecting the connection to the E-labor contract Platform. 

1.6. Suspension and Termination of eContract Connection with the E-labor contract Platform 

The Ministry of Home Affairs has the right to suspend eContract connections in cases where the provider requests it, fails to comply with the registered technical plan, does not implement reporting regimes, or has a cumulative rate of e-labor contracts not being issued identifiers exceeding 5% within one month. The suspension period shall not exceed 06 months.  

Termination of eContract connection is applied in cases where the provider ceases operations, discontinues services, falsifies dossiers, violates prohibited acts according to the Law on Electronic Transactions, or fails to rectify the causes leading to the suspension of connection. Upon termination of connection, the provider is obligated to cooperate in the full transfer of contract data to the Platform.

1.7. Incident Handling 

2. Solutions and Actions

For employers, compliance with Circular 08 requires the establishment of an internal labor data management mechanism that aligns with regulations on storage, exploitation, and sharing of data on the E-labor contract Platform. Enterprises need to clearly define the scope of personal data, sensitive data, access authority, and storage periods to mitigate legal risks related to personal data protection,cybersecurity, and data safety in the cyberspace environment. 

For eContract providers, Providers must proactively implement legal and technical solutions to ensure valid connection capabilities and maintain stable connections with the E-labor contract Platform. Firstly, providers must thoroughly review legal conditions regarding operational eligibility, service scope, and the validity of connection application dossiers, ensuring dossiers are prepared completely, uniformly, and in accordance with the Ministry of Home Affairs’ requirements from the initial submission stage.Concurrently with completing legal dossiers, eContract providers must seriously invest in technical connection plans, including technology infrastructure, system integration capabilities, information security, and actual operational capacity. Furthermore, after being granted a connection account, eContract providers must establish internal compliance mechanisms to ensure system operation aligns with the registered technical plan, fully implement reporting regimes as stipulated, and control the rate of e-labor contracts not issued an identifier code within permissible limits. 

Overall, compliance with Circular 08/2026/TT-BNV should not be approached as a mere formality, but as a comprehensive restructuring of human resource management and legal risk management in the digital era, where labor data becomes a valuable long-term legal asset.. 

#Circular08 #tax #electroniclaborcontract #economics #eContract #legal #VCILegal 

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