Ministry proposes 7% increase in regional minimum wage from 2026
VGP - The Ministry of Home Affairs has put foward a 7 percent increase in regional minimum wage from January 1, 2026 in a proposal submitted to the Government.
If approved by the Government, the regional minimum wage shall increase by VND250,000 -VND350,000 (from over US$9 to US$15) per month, depending on each region.
The minimum wage is the lowest amount of pay that employers are legally required to provide for simple jobs under normal working conditions. Its purpose is to ensure that workers can meet their most basic living needs.
Based on these minimum rates, employers and employees may negotiate actual monthly salaries, which must not fall below the prescribed minimum wage for each region.
Starting July 1, 2025, Viet Nam’s regional minimum wage applies across 34 provinces and centrally administered cities, following the restructuring of local administrative units.
Earlier, on July 25, the National Wage Council put forward a proposal to the Government to raise the regional minimum wage by 7.2 percent from January 1, 2026
Viet Nam sets monthly minimum wages across four regions, reflecting differences in local living standards:
Region 1: Covers the most developed and urbanized areas, home to key industrial and business hubs such as Ha Noi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hai Phong, and Da Nang.
Region 2: Includes areas with strong but less intensive industrial and economic growth than Region 1, such as most of the former Binh Duong and Dong Nai provinces in the south, and Can Tho City in the Mekong Delta.
Region 3: Consists of areas with moderate economic development, including emerging industrial and agricultural centers such as parts of the former Hai Duong province in the north, former Khanh Hoa province in the south-central region, and former Long An province in the Mekong Delta.
Region 4: Comprises the least developed areas, generally rural or less industrialized, where agriculture and small-scale industries remain dominant.
Earlier, from July 1, monthly minimum wage was raised to VND 4.96 million (US$194.50) in Region 1, VND 4.41 million (US$172.90) in Region 2, VND 3.86 million (US$151.30) in Region 3 and VND 3.45 million (US$135.30) in Region 4. Meanwhile, the hourly minimum wage was also adjusted between VND 16,600 (US$0.65) and VND 23,800 (US$0.93) depending on the region.
Region | The monthly minimum wage at present (VND/month) | Minimum proposal per month (VND/month) | Minimum proposal per hour (VND/hour) |
Region I | 4,960,000 | 5,310,000 | 25,500 |
Region II | 4,410,000 | 4,730,000 | 22,700 |
Region III | 3,860,000 | 4,140,000 | 20,000 |
Region IV | 3,450,000 | 3,700,000 | 17,800 |
