Teachers in Vietnam have a great salary and benefits. They have a legal working week of 40 hours, with two hours off each day. The minimum monthly salary is around 18.000192.200 USD per month (USD10-40 more than Vietnam), which can be increased with some extra responsibilities or qualifications. Teachers receive a bonus at the end of the year, usually in November or December, which is calculated based on how much they contribute to their school’s academic work and assessment scores.
The average monthly salary for a teacher in Vietnam is VND 946,000. This is inclusive of bonuses and other benefits. The median salary for a primary school teacher is VND 869,800, while the same for high school teachers is VND 986,000.
Teacher Salary In Vietnam Overview
The average teacher salary in Vietnam is about $2,000 USD per month. This is a very low salary for a country that requires all teachers to have at least a bachelor’s degree and teaching license. The average salary for international schools and private schools is higher than this, but still not enough to live on comfortably. Many teachers choose to move to Vietnam with their families or take up another job in addition to teaching to supplement their income.
Why Teach Abroad in Vietnam?
How and why has such an underdeveloped country made itself to the top of the teaching destinations list, up there with China and South Korea?
As the Vietnamese economy has grown in the years since the war, they have placed a huge emphasis on learning English from an early age in the hopes that the future generation of Vietnamese will be able to compete in the career sphere of the global economy.
This means that youngster Vietnamese students are learning English from primary school onwards, and many young people, including some of my university students, are prepping for IELTS so that they can study abroad in English-speaking countries. With so many potential teaching opportunities–in public schools, private schools, English/IELTS test prep centers, and at universities, there is a higher demand for native speaking English teachers than ever before!
How Much Can You Make Teaching English in Vietnam?
Let’s get into some salary basics. Here are some of the salary ranges you might expect for different types of teaching jobs in Vietnam:
- Private language centers: $1,200-$1,800 per month
- Public schools: $1,500-$2,100 per month
- Universities: $900-$2,200 per month
- Tutoring: $60-$100 per hour
- Other jobs: $25-$30 per hour
Let’s dive into each of these a bit more to explain those salaries.
1. Private Language Centers: $1,200-$1,800 per month
Salary and potential earnings
The average teacher salary in Vietnam is approximately £14,700, or 417 Million Vietnamese Dong.
See the table below to get an idea of how a general English teacher in Vietnam salary compares to other popular regions for foreign teachers around the world. The salary range available in Vietnam may be low compared to some of the higher paying middle-eastern locations, but it is complemented by a low tax rate (the figure in the table would fall into the 5% bracket) which we also discuss more later.
| Annual Salary | |
|---|---|
| Vietnam | 417 million VND /£14,700 |
| Thailand | 31,200K / £28,750 |
| Singapore | S$57,868/approx. £32,900 |
| Abu Dhabi | 137,137 AED/ £30,000 |
| Dubai | 97,861 AED/ £21,500 |
| UK | £26,000 |
Please bear in mind that these represent the average salary in Vietnamese public schools and will vary depending on the school, role, subject and the experience you have to offer.
Teacher salary per education level
There are a range of teaching opportunities available at all levels of education in Vietnam, which you can see in some further approximate salary rates below:
- Universities: £1,500 to £2,000 per month
- Private tutoring: £50 to £100 per hour
- Private language schools: £1,000 to £2,000 per month
Tax system in Vietnam
To understand the taxation rules for foreign workers in Vietnam, you should first be aware of the residency rules:
You will be considered a tax resident if you:
- Have been living in Vietnam for at least 183 days during the calendar year, or for 12 months consecutively after arrival.
- Own a permanent place of residence in Vietnam. This is classed as a property registered as a place of permanent residence, or a leased house, guest house, hotel room etc. for at least 183 days of a calendar year. You must also be able to show a certificate of tax residency for your native country.
Vietnamese tax rates
In terms of actual tax rates, you should expect to pay the following from your Vietnam teacher salary:
| Monthly Income (VND) | Tax rate | Payable tax |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 5,000, 000 | 5% | Income – 5% |
| 5,000,000 up to 10,000,000 | 10% | Income – 10% – 250,000 |
| 10,000,000 up to 18,000,000 | 15% | Income – 15% – 750,000 |
| 18,000,000 up to 32,000,000 | 20% | Income – 20% – 1,650,000 |
| 32,000,000 up to 52,000,000 | 25% | Income – 25% – 3,250,000 |
| 52,000,000 up to 80,000,000 | 30% | Income – 30% – 5,850,000 |
| Over 80,000,000 | 35% | Income – 35% – 9,850,000 |
If you do not meet the residency criteria set out above, you will have to pay a flat tax rate of 20%.
Vietnamese teacher benefits
Working in Vietnam offers great career opportunities that you may not be able to enjoy anywhere else. One of the greatest benefits is the general low cost of living, which extends from rental costs, through to travel and food prices. Of course, everyone has different lifestyle needs, but cities like Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) are generally viewed as being more affordable than many similar sized cities around the world.
Vietnam is also perfectly positioned for anyone who wants to combine travel with their work. Whether you are taking on temporary roles that allows you to move from country-to-country, or you want to explore South East Asia during your time off work, Vietnam borders with Thailand, Cambodia and Laos, while also being a short distance away from Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan and China, making it easy to discover more about the continent as a whole.
Depending on the size of the school you work for, some of the benefits offered by schools in Vietnam could include:
- Subsidised accommodation either on or offsite
- Travel costs for some international flights
- Health insurance packages
- Free places for children in the school
- Pension contributions
- Bonuses and performance-based incentives
Another reason teachers head to Vietnam is to further their careers, with international schools potentially setting up new job opportunities they may not get elsewhere. For example, Nord Anglia Education schools are present in the country, and their links with the Juilliard School and the Massachusetts Institute and King’s College London enable employees to work towards their Executive Master’s in International Education.
