A practical Vietnam offshoring checklist for Singapore founders and CTOs covering structure, compliance, hiring, tax, costs and scaling.
Language
Vietnam allows Singapore companies to reduce operating costs while maintaining high engineering quality. Realistic setup timelines for 2025–2026 range from 2 to 6 months, depending on your chosen model.
Singapore founders must decide early whether Vietnam headcount sits under the Singapore company, a new Vietnam entity (requiring an investment registration certificate and enterprise registration certificate), or an EOR partner.
Good offshoring is not about cheap labour. It is about local execution, clear communication, and disciplined processes around recruitment, payroll, tax filings, and workforce management.
Hyer Talents supports employment, payroll, and workforce management in Vietnam, helping Singapore tech leaders reduce hiring friction without compromising standards.
This checklist is designed for practical use by Singapore founders and CTOs planning 2024–2026 build-outs of Vietnam product and engineering teams.
The 2025–2026 window is a practical time for Singapore startups to build teams in Vietnam. Vietnamese universities continue to produce strong STEM graduates, the Vietnamese government has expanded digital infrastructure incentives, and English-language proficiency among professionals in major cities is rising steadily.
Office rents in Singapore are higher than in Vietnam, and Vietnam's overall business environment for tech operations has matured significantly. Consulting local market guides can aid understanding of Vietnam's regulatory and talent landscape before committing resources.
Beyond cost, Vietnam gives access to mid-to-senior engineers, product managers, QA and test leads, and data engineers in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Da Nang-roles that are scarce or expensive in Singapore.
Government support through FDI incentives, free trade agreements across Southeast Asia, and preferential treatment for high-tech and R&D activities make Vietnam increasingly attractive for foreign investment.
Incorporating in Singapore boosts international credibility for businesses, and Singapore allows 100% foreign ownership of companies-making it the natural HQ for investor relations, IP, and banking.
Vietnam serves as the execution hub for engineering, data pipelines, and operations. Typical use cases include offshoring product squads for SaaS or mobile apps, setting up 24/6 technical support, data teams, and back-office operations, while keeping client-facing and regulatory-heavy roles in Singapore.
Even graduates from a Singapore university often find that building cross-border teams is now standard operating procedure, not the exception.
Hyer Talents takes an employer-first approach, focusing on long-term development of team quality rather than volume hiring.
There are three clear options for a Singapore private limited company considering Vietnam: form a Vietnam subsidiary, use an Employer of Record (EOR), or adopt a hybrid model in which core staff sit within an entity and edge roles go through an EOR.
Establishing a local subsidiary in Vietnam is beneficial for permanent engineering teams. This is typically justified when planned headcount exceeds 15–20 staff, when you expect to operate for years, need local contracts, or will generate annual revenue locally.
Legal structures in Vietnam include Foreign-Invested Enterprises and Joint Ventures. You can register as a limited liability company or a joint stock company-both require at least one shareholder and at least one director.
Foreign investors can hold 100% ownership in certain industries in Vietnam, though they may need local partnerships in others. Singapore companies must comply with Vietnamese foreign ownership regulations.
You may also consider a representative office or a virtual office for early-stage presence, though neither allows revenue-generating activities.
Singapore has a streamlined incorporation process taking days, with a minimum paid-up capital of S$1. By contrast, setting up a company in Vietnam can take one to two months, whereas incorporation in Singapore can often be completed within a few days.
To create a foreign-owned Vietnamese company, you must first obtain an investment registration certificate (IRC) and then an enterprise registration certificate (ERC). Individual investors or an existing company from Singapore can invest directly through this route.
The EOR model suits teams of 3–20 staff, founders testing offshoring in Vietnam before full commitment, or companies without internal capacity to manage HR and compliance directly.
Hyer Talents provides local Vietnam execution for global hiring, including recruitment, EOR support, payroll coordination, HR support, and workforce management for Singapore companies.
Each unique company has different needs, so a decision checklist helps: what is your planned team size in 12–24 months? Will revenue flow from Vietnam? Do you have internal compliance capacity? What is your tolerance for government interactions? What are your banking needs, including the need for a corporate bank account and local bank account?
Singapore legal entities offshoring to Vietnam must manage both Singapore compliance filings with ACRA (the corporate regulatory authority), returns to the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS), and company secretary obligations, as well as Vietnamese regulations covering licensing, labour law, and social insurance.
Companies must file an Annual Return with ACRA, and may benefit from an audit exemption if they meet the qualifying thresholds in Singapore.
Singapore investors need an investment registration certificate (IRC) for foreign direct investment projects.
The IRC application process can be complicated and time-consuming; Singaporean investors often face delays in IRC or ERC approval due to the volume of documentation and review cycles.
Once the IRC is granted, the enterprise registration certificate (ERC) creates the local company and its official business profile. Statutory processing is 15 working days for the IRC and roughly 3 working days for the ERC, but in practice, expect one to two months.
Language barriers hinder communication with Vietnamese authorities, and differences in laws complicate business setup for Singaporeans. Inconsistent information in documents can cause setup delays, so accuracy matters.
A Vietnam business profile mirrors Singapore's official business profile from ACRA: registered name, address, legal representatives, specific business lines (as per Vietnam's national classification), investment capital, company charter, and tax code.
Legal documents include a company charter and capital contribution plan. The registration process also requires a lease contract for the registered address, financial statements or bank statements proving financial capacity, and board resolutions from the Singapore parent.
A registered filing agent in Singapore may also be needed for intercompany documentation. Vietnam requires specific licenses for certain business lines, and additional licensing requirements apply to industries such as fintech, payments, and health data.
The project location must be confirmed and consistent across all filings.
Once the entity is active, compliance with Vietnamese employment laws and tax implications is essential for foreign businesses. Key obligations include:
Singapore founders must also maintain proper intercompany agreements between the Singapore company and the Vietnam entity or EOR to satisfy both the IRAS and the Vietnam tax authorities regarding transfer pricing and service arrangements. If any discrepancies arise during audits, clean documentation protects both sides.
The goal is to remain predictable and conservative on tax in both jurisdictions while lawfully using available incentives. Aggressive arbitrage creates audit risk; clarity and consistency do not.
Singapore's corporate tax rate is capped at 17%. Younger Singapore companies may benefit from the start-up tax exemption (SUTE) scheme, which can partially or fully exempt the first tranche of taxable profits.
This is relevant for startups using Vietnam offshoring to extend runway. Vietnam's corporate tax rate is 20%, though preferential rates of 10% or 15% may apply if the company qualifies for encouraged sectors such as software development, AI, or R&D in designated zones-these are meaningful tax exemptions worth structuring for.
When the Singapore entity invoices clients and books revenue, while Vietnam operates mainly as a cost centre, the interplay of corporate income tax, value added tax, and personal income tax across both countries must be managed carefully.
The Singapore entity should document cross-border service fees, cost recharges, and transfer pricing policies. Singapore has a favourable tax treaty with Vietnam to avoid double taxation, and Vietnam has a double taxation agreement with Singapore.
These tax treaties reduce withholding rates on dividends, interest, and royalties. Services tax (goods and services tax in Singapore, VAT in Vietnam) must also be tracked-particularly when the Singapore company provides management or technical services to the Vietnam entity.
Capital gains treatment and annual revenue thresholds vary between the two jurisdictions.
Hyer Talents can coordinate with your Singapore tax adviser to align payroll data, benefit costs, and headcount information for clean year-end reporting and audit support.
Successful offshoring starts with a clear workforce design: roles, levels, salary bands, reporting lines, and a 12–36 month growth plan.
Vietnam offers lower salaries than Singapore, but operating costs should be evaluated in terms of value per role and team productivity, not just headline salary differences.
Singapore founders usually offshore these roles first:
Product managers and engineering managers follow later, once trust and operating rhythm are established.
In Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, mid- to senior-level full-stack engineers typically earn between USD 60,000 and USD 80,000 per year. Senior specialists at larger firms may command higher figures.
Benefits commonly include a 13th-month bonus, health insurance, meal and commuting allowances, and performance bonuses. Employer social insurance contributions add approximately 23.5% to gross salary for Vietnamese staff, so the total cost to the company must reflect this.
Frame every hire by what they deliver, not what they cost. Long-term development of team capability in Vietnam is the real return on investment.
Hyer Talents applies executive-search discipline to Vietnam tech hiring, focusing on structured assessments, cultural fit for Singapore companies, and clear English communication standards.
Singapore founders often need to move leadership and specialists between Singapore and Vietnam. This requires clear policies around work passes and assignments.
For Singapore-based staff, the employment pass (EP) governs work rights in Singapore. When a CTO or tech lead-whether a permanent resident or foreign national-spends extended periods in Vietnam, a Vietnam work permit and temporary residence card (TRC) are typically required.
Work permits are valid for up to two years, and the employer must submit a foreign labour need report at least 15 days before work begins.
Employment contracts for Vietnam-based staff must follow Vietnam's Labour Code-probation rules, working hours, overtime, and termination conditions apply even when reporting lines run to Singapore.
Contracts should be bilingual where needed, and bilingual support in documentation reduces misunderstandings. For short-term assignments, internal secondment letters keep both payroll and regulatory records clean, with clear demarcation of tax, visa, and payroll obligations.
Hyer Talents can support practical workforce arrangements around visas, local employment contracts, and cross-border coordination while keeping employers in control of role definitions and performance standards.
Offshoring works best when Singapore HQ and Vietnam teams share disciplined processes from day one. Communication practices are critical for successful offshore teams in Vietnam-and success depends on setting expectations early rather than fixing problems later.
Recommended operating rhythms:
Clear communication in English:
Security and data:
Hyer Talents' ongoing workforce management support helps keep Vietnam teams aligned with Singaporean culture and expectations, including performance reviews, engagement initiatives, and HR interventions as needed.
A phased approach is often recommended for offshore initiatives in Vietnam. Proper planning over 6–18 months produces better outcomes than a one-off hiring sprint.
| Phase | Duration | Activities |
|---|---|---|
| Phase 0 | 0–2 months | Strategy, operating model decision (entity vs EOR), headcount projection, location selection |
| Phase 1 | 2–4 months | Entity setup (IRC/ERC) or EOR onboarding, legal work, bank account opening, lease contract signing |
| Phase 2 | 3–9 months | Core team hiring, establishing operating rhythm, security policies, initial delivery cycles |
| Phase 3 | 9–18 months | Scaling, leadership localisation, process refinement, retention strategies |
Budget conservatively for 2025–2026: include buffers for salary inflation in Vietnam's tech sector, currency movements versus SGD, and one-off setup or advisory fees. Investment projects should carry contingency for regulatory delays.
Hyer Talents helps founders and CTOs model different cost scenarios-EOR-only versus entity plus workforce support-so they can pick the business structure that best matches their funding stage and growth targets.
This is not a complete-in-a-box solution; it is practical workforce support tailored to each stage.
Planning can start as early as seed or pre-Series A, but most founders commit when they have a stable product roadmap-usually between late seed and Series B, roughly 12–36 months after incorporation.
Early planning helps align fundraising, use of start-up tax exemptions, and operating structures in both Singapore and Vietnam. Hyer Talents can provide an initial feasibility review even before any formal hiring begins, helping you scope roles, costs, and timelines.
Singapore requires at least one local resident director-a citizen or permanent resident. Vietnam's requirement is different: you need legal representatives for the entity, who can be either foreign or Vietnamese, but must meet residency and documentation requirements.
Many Singapore founders appoint a trusted senior local hire or a professional service provider as legal representative. Where an EOR model is used, the EOR provider acts as local employer for regulatory purposes, while the Singapore company retains day-to-day control.
For Singapore, resident directors remain essential, and a holding company structure is common for cross-border governance.
Long-term arrangements where individuals physically work from Vietnam typically trigger Vietnamese labour and tax rules. Pure Singapore-only contracts are usually insufficient and carry risks of misclassification, unexpected tax liabilities, and immigration exposure.
The recommended path is to use proper Vietnam employment contracts-via a local entity or EOR-or structured, time-bounded secondments supported by immigration and tax advice.
Many VCs across Southeast Asia are comfortable with Singapore holding-company structures running Vietnam teams, provided that IP, key banking, and governance remain in Singapore.
Document clear IP assignments, intercompany arrangements, and data controls to streamline future due diligence. Professional workforce partners like Hyer Talents can help provide clean documentation on employment structures, payroll records, and HR policies for investor reviews.
The engagement follows a practical flow: an initial scoping call, workforce and structure recommendation, a role-by-role hiring roadmap, and then ongoing employment, payroll, and workforce management support in Vietnam.
Clear communication, international standards, and an employer-first process keep the CTO in control of technical direction and team culture. You can start small-a handful of engineers-and scale into a larger Vietnam team as the Singapore business grows.
Hyer Talents supports employment, payroll, and workforce management in Vietnam with 15+ years of local hiring experience.
A practical Vietnam offshoring checklist for Singapore founders and CTOs covering structure, compliance, hiring, tax, costs and scaling.
Vietnam developers are embracing AI fast. Here’s how Singapore firms can separate true engineering discipline from risky vibe coding.
Build a high-performing Vietnam remote team with the right hiring model, communication rhythm, compliance, onboarding and leadership.
See which roles offer the strongest offshore value in Vietnam for Singapore startups and SMEs, based on cost, talent and management needs.
Should you use an EOR or open a Vietnam entity? Compare speed, cost, control, compliance, and the right choice for each growth stage.
Vietnam can cut hiring costs 40–60%, but startups need the right model, contracts, payroll, and management plan.
A practical guide for Singapore firms building Vietnam offshore development teams with the right roles, costs, process, and local support.
Compare Singapore vs Vietnam developer hiring costs, salaries, hidden fees, speed, and talent quality before building your next tech team.
A practical 2026 guide for Singapore companies hiring Vietnam staff through EOR without costly entity setup.
Singapore companies can hire Vietnam employees without opening an entity. Here’s the EOR route, costs, risks, and first steps.