📌 Key points regarding penalties for violations of social insurance and unemployment insurance regulations according to Decree 283/2026/ND-CP, effective from 10/09/2026:
- Unresolved violations arising before September 10, 2026 will be processed according to the new regulations.
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Penalties (for individuals and household businesses):
- 🔸 Delayed contribution: A penalty of 12%-15% of the overdue amount will be imposed. The maximum penalty is 75 million VND.
- 🔸 Evading payment: A penalty of 18%-20% of the amount evaded will be imposed. The maximum penalty is 75 million VND.
- 🔸 No registration, insufficient number of participants registered. The penalty will depend on the number of people missed and the nature of the violation.
- The penalty applicable to organizations and businesses are twice those applicable to individuals.
- Paying the fine does not relieve the obligation: The outstanding amount must still be paid in full, as well as an additional late payment charge of 0,03%/day of delay; Repeat offenders who evade payment may face criminal prosecution.
Decree 283/2026/ND-CP, effective September 10, 2026, replacing Decree 12/2022/ND-CP on the basis for imposing penalties for administrative violations in the fields of labor and social insurance. This article updates the new points of Decree 283, the penalty levels for violations, and proposed reviews that need to be implemented this month.
New points in Decree 283/2026/ND-CP
Decree 283/2026/ND-CP issued by the Government on August 23, 2026, effective from September 10, 2026; replacing the old Decree 12/2022/ND-CP. The Decree clearly distinguishes two groups of behaviors between delayed contribution and evasion of payment. For the same overdue amount, the penalty is higher if your case is classified as evading payment.
- What is the difference between 'delayed payment' and 'avoiding payment'?
According to Clause 2, Article 67 of Decree 283, violations that occurred before the effective date of this Decree but remain unresolved when the Decree comes into effect shall be handled according to the new provisions of this Decree.
Penalties for violations related to social insurance and unemployment insurance.
According to Clauses 1 & 3 of Article 7 of the Decree, the penalties for violations stipulated in this Decree are the penalties for individuals and household businesses, except in certain specific cases. The penalties for organizations and enterprises are twice this amount.
Late payment of mandatory social insurance and unemployment insurance contributions (Articles 43 & 45) is defined as failure to pay or insufficient payment as per registration within 60 days from the expiration date as stipulated. The penalty for this offense is 12%–15% of the total amount of overdue payment at the time the report is made, with a maximum of 75 million VND (24%–30%, with a maximum of VND 150 million for businesses). If the amount of the violation is less than 400.000 VND, only a warning will be issued.
Evading mandatory social insurance and unemployment insurance contributions(Articles 44 & 46) is defined as:
- Registering a salary lower than the prescribed amount for social insurance contributions as stipulated in Clause 1, Article 31 of the Social Insurance Law.
- Failure to pay or insufficient payment of the registered fee after 60 days from the payment deadline, and having been urged by the competent authority, but not to the extent of incurring criminal liability.
The penalty for this offense is 18%–20% of the total amount of evaded contribution, with a maximum of 75 million VND (36%–40%, with a maximum of VND 150 million for businesses).
In cases where the employer fails to register or fails to fully register the number of people required to participate in mandatory social insurance and unemployment insurance; the fine is calculated based on the number of omitted workers and the nature of the violation, ranging from 5 to 75 million VND (social insurance) and from 500.000 to 40 million VND (unemployment insurance). This fine is doubled for businesses.
Paying a fine does not remove the obligation.
In addition to the aforementioned fines, the Decree clearly stipulates the remedial measures:
- Pay all outstanding social insurance and unemployment insurance contributions.
- Late payment fee: 0,03%/day calculated based on the outstanding amount and the number of delayed days.
💡Example
Company A, with 60 employees, was issued a violation notice for overdue social insurance contributions totaling 900 million VND, with an average delay of 90 days.
- Fine: 24%–30% × 900 million = 216 ~ 270 million → exceeding the limit, maximum fines of 150 million VND.
- Overdue contribution: 900 million VND.
- Pay an additional 0,03% per day: 900 million × 0,03% × 90 days = 24,3 million VND.
Total obligation ~1.074,3 million dong.
ⓘ The data is for illustrative purposes only; actual practice depends on the official records and penalty decisions.
Furthermore, according to Clause 2, Article 4, in cases where the act shows signs of a crime (repeated offenses such as evading contributions, falsifying documents to receive benefits, etc.), the case file will be transferred to the criminal prosecution agency for criminal liability.
📜 For specific penalties, please refer to the following article: The crime of evading social insurance, health insurance, and unemployment insurance contributions for employees.
What should businesses do?
- Compare the actual list of employees with the list of those participating in social insurance. Review all probationary, seasonal, and part-time employees — compare their time sheets and payroll records for the last 12 months, not just the personnel list.
- Verify each person's salary as the basis for contribution payments. Compare the current contribution amount with the terms of the employment contract, salary regulations, and actual allowances paid.
- Compare the balance with the Social Insurance agency up to the most recent payment period. If there are outstanding payments, determine how many days have passed and whether a reminder notice has been received — this is the basis for determining whether it falls under the category of late payment or evasion.
- Please pay the remaining balance as soon as possible. An additional 0,03% per day is charged based on the actual number of days, so each day of delay increases the obligation.
- Review existing employment records. and standardize the process of closing accounts and confirming unemployment benefits upon contract termination, setting a timeframe of 2 working days.
- Prepare documentation for inspections and audits. The Director of the Provincial Social Insurance Agency has the authority to impose penalties and apply remedial measures (Articles 57 and 63), meaning that most social insurance cases can be handled at the provincial level. (Reference) Guidelines for businesses when social insurance inspectors are present.
Q&A
What is the difference between late payment and evasion of social insurance contributions?
Delayed contribution means that the payment has not been made or the full amount paid according to the registration form has not been paid by the latest payment deadline.
Evading payment includes registering a salary base for tax purposes that is lower than the prescribed amount, or failing to pay the full amount after 60 days from the deadline and despite being reminded by the competent authority. The penalties for businesses are 24%–30% and 36%–40% of the amount of the violation, respectively.
What is the maximum penalty for businesses in the social insurance sector?
150 million VND for a violation. The fine stipulated in the Decree (75 million VND) is for individuals; the fine for organizations is twice the fine for individuals.
Which decree governs the handling of outstanding social insurance contributions prior to September 10, 2026?
Depending on whether the behavior has ended or is still ongoing. If the violation occurred and ended before September 10, 2026, the regulations in effect at the time of the violation will apply. If the violation started before that date but is still ongoing after that date — for example, overdue payments that have not been made — then Decree 283/2026/ND-CP (Article 67) will be applied.
What are the penalties for household businesses that violate social insurance regulations?
The penalty rate for individual business owner will be applied (Clause 3, Article 7). For example, failure to register social insurance for fewer than 10 employees after 60 days: household businesses will be fined 6-12 million VND, and enterprises will be fined 12-24 million VND for the same offense.
Will violations committed for several consecutive months result in multiple penalties?
For the offenses under Articles 43, 44, 45, and 46, if the violations occur at different times without prior processing and the statute of limitations has not expired, only one offense will be penalized, and the aggravating circumstance of "repeated violations" (Clause 4, Article 7) will be applied.
Specifically, the act of evading payment and repeated offenses may result in the case being transferred to the criminal prosecution agency in accordance with Clause 2, Article 4.