Circular 05/2025/TT-BGDDT prescribing the work regime for general education and pre-university teachers

CIRCULAR

Prescribing the work regime for general education and pre-university teachers

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Pursuant to the Law on Education dated June 14, 2019;

Pursuant to the Labor Code dated November 20, 2019;

Pursuant to Decree No. 37/2025/ND-CP dated February 26, 2025 of the Government defining the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Education and Training;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 84/2020/ND-CP dated July 17, 2020 detailing a number of articles of the Law on Education;

At the proposal of the Director of the Teachers and Educational Managers Department;

The Minister of Education and Training hereby issues the Circular prescribing the work regime for general education and pre-university teachers.

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulation

This Circular prescribes the work regime for teachers teaching at general education institutions and pre-university schools, covering their responsibilities, working time, annual leave, teaching load, reduction in teaching load and conversion of the time spent doing other activities into class periods.

Article 2. Subjects of application

1. This Circular applies to teachers directly involved in teaching and teachers holding managerial positions (including principals and vice-principals) at primary schools, lower secondary schools, upper secondary schools, multi-level general education schools, boarding ethnic minority general education schools, semi-boarding ethnic minority general education schools, schools for the gifted, schools and classes for students with disabilities (hereinafter collectively referred to as general education schools), and pre-university schools.

2. Directors and deputy directors of continuing education centers and vocational education - continuing education centers shall implement the working regime of principals and vice-principals as prescribed in this Circular until other regulations are issued by competent authorities.

Teachers teaching continuing education programs at continuing education centers and vocational education - continuing education centers shall implement the work regime for general education and pre-university teachers as prescribed in this Circular until other regulations are issued by competent authorities.

3. Principals of private general education schools shall, based on each school’s organizational and operational regulations and the resolutions of the Board of Trustees, prescribe the work regime for teachers ensuring compliance with this Circular and the law regulations on labor.

Article 3. Principles for determining the work regime

1. The working time of a teacher is calculated per academic year and converted into class periods, which includes the total number of class periods per academic year and the average number of class periods per week according to the teaching load prescribed in Article 7 of this Circular. The working time of a principal or vice-principal is at least 40 hours per week, including the class periods prescribed in Article 8 of this Circular.

2. The assignment and allocation of tasks for teachers must ensure compliance with regulations on teaching loads, working hours, and rest periods in accordance with law regulations; and ensure transparency and fairness among teachers within the same school. In cases where it is necessary to assign teachers to concurrent positions, the principal should prioritize those whose class periods are below the average weekly teaching load and ensure they meet the necessary requirements for the assigned positions.

Based on the educational plan, the actual teaching staff conditions, and the teaching load for 01 academic year, the principal shall assign teachers to class periods within the average weekly teaching load. In cases where it is necessary to assign a teacher to additional class periods beyond the average weekly load (including class periods converted from the time holding concurrent positions), the excess class periods in 01 week must not exceed 50% of the average weekly teaching load and the total excess class periods in 01 academic year must not exceed the overtime limits set by the law regulations on labor.

3. Each teacher shall not hold concurrently more than 02 positions prescribed in Article 9, Article 10, and Article 11 of this Circular.

For those holding positions prescribed in Chapter III of this Circular (excluding concurrent positions mentioned in Clause 3 and Clause 5, Article 9; and Clause 1, Clause 2, and Clause 3, Article 10), if they receive remuneration or allowances for these positions, their teaching load shall not be reduced, nor shall the time spent in such positions be converted into class periods.

4. Any teacher at a multi-level general education school who is appointed to a teacher professional title at a certain educational level shall comply with the teaching load as prescribed for teachers at such educational level.

In cases where a teacher is assigned to teach at the educational level corresponding to his/her appointed professional title and is also assigned to teach at another educational level, each class period at the other educational level shall also be included as 01 class period in his/her teaching load.

5. For any position for which the reduction in teaching load is not prescribed in Article 9, Article 10, and Article 11 or in which the time spent has not been converted into class periods as prescribed in Article 13 of this Circular, the principal shall, based on the complexity and workload of the position, estimate the number of class periods that can be converted from the time spent in such position and seek the opinion of the Board of Trustees. After reaching a consensus, the principal shall decide on the number of class periods that can be converted from the time spent in the position and report it to the competent management authority. In cases where there is no Board of Trustees, the principal shall seek the opinions of the vice-principals, the Party Committee, and the heads and deputy heads of subject groups.

Chapter II

RESPONSIBILITIES, WORKING TIME, ANNUAL LEAVES AND TEACHING LOAD

Article 4. Responsibilities of teachers and form teachers

1. Teachers shall perform the responsibilities as prescribed in the charter, organizational and operational regulations of each educational level and institution, and regulations on responsibilities by professional title rank issued by competent authorities.

2. Form teachers in primary schools, specialized schools and other educational institutions implementing the primary general education program shall perform the responsibilities as prescribed in the Charter of Primary Schools.

3. Form teachers in lower secondary schools, upper secondary schools, multi-level general education schools, specialized schools and other educational institutions implementing the lower and upper secondary general education programs, and pre-university schools shall:

a) Perform the responsibilities of teachers as prescribed by the regulations;

b) Proactively gather information about the students in the classes to which they are assigned as form teachers; formulate and implement class activity plans to promote the progress of the classes and students; organize class activities;

c) Closely coordinate with parents or guardians, subject teachers, the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, the Ho Chi Minh Young Pioneer Organization, other relevant mass organizations and social organizations to organize educational activities and support and monitor the learning and practice of students in the classes to which they are assigned as form teachers; compile comments and evaluations of students at the end of the first semester and the end of the academic year; guide students in voting and proposing commendations; compile lists of students proposed for grade promotion, students not eligible for grade promotion, students required to practice during the summer break; and complete academic records of the students;

d) Guide and manage students participating in experiential activities, educational activities, and student training organized by the school;

dd) Report, on a periodic or ad hoc basis, on the situation of their classes to the principals.

Article 5. Working time for principals, vice-principals, and teachers

1. The working time during the academic year for principals, vice-principals, and teachers in general education schools is 42 weeks, which includes:

a) 37 weeks for teaching the curriculum content of the general education program (including 35 weeks of actual teaching and 02 reserve weeks);

b) 03 weeks for professional development and in-service training;

c) 02 weeks for pre-academic year preparation and end-of-academic-year wrap-up activities.

2. The working time during the academic year for principals, vice-principals, and teachers in pre-university schools is 42 weeks, which includes:

a) 28 weeks for teaching and organizing educational activities in accordance with the academic year plans;

b) 12 weeks for professional development and in-service training, development of materials, scientific research and a number of other activities in accordance with the academic year plan;

c) 02 weeks for pre-academic year preparation and end-of-academic-year wrap-up activities.

3. In cases where there are unexpected or emergency situations for disaster prevention and control, epidemic prevention, or urgent cases requiring adjustments to the annual academic year timeframe, the number of weeks for teaching the curriculum content in the general education program shall comply with the adjusted regulations of the competent authorities.

Article 6. Annual leave of principals, vice-principals, and teachers

1. Annual leave of a teacher comprises of:

a) The summer break as prescribed at Point a, Clause 1, Article 3 of the Government’s Decree No. 84/2020/ND-CP dated July 17, 2020 detailing a number of articles of the Law on Education.

During the summer break, the teacher may participate in training and professional development as prescribed for their job positions, and get involved in the organization of the national high school graduation exam and student admission activities when summoned by competent authorities;

b) Public holidays and other leave days as prescribed by the Labor Code and the Law on Social Insurance;

c) Based on the annual plan, the scale, characteristics, and specific conditions of each school, the principal shall arrange the annual leave of teachers appropriately and correctly within the academic year timeframe.

2. In cases where the summer break and maternity leave of a female teacher overlap, in addition to the leave prescribed at Point b, Clause 1 of this Article, she shall be entitled to:

a) The maternity leave as prescribed by the regulations;

b) The summer break time outside of the maternity leave (before or after maternity leave);

c) In cases where the summer break time as prescribed at Point b of this clause is shorter than the annual leave entitlement under the Labor Code, the teacher shall be granted additional leave days. The total of these additional leave days and the summer break days prescribed at Point b of this Clause shall be equal the annual leave entitlement prescribed by the Labor Code. These additional leave days shall be scheduled flexibly through mutual agreement between the teacher and the principal.

3. In cases where a male teacher is entitled to paternity leave when his wife gives birth as prescribed by the Law on Social Insurance, during the paternity leave period, the male teacher is considered to have taught the full teaching load as prescribed by the regulations and is not required to make up for missed class periods. In cases where the paternity leave period of a male teacher when his wife gives birth overlaps with the summer break, he is not entitled to compensatory leave.

4. Annual leave of the principal and vice-principal(s):

a) The annual leave of the principal and vice-principal(s) includes the summer break; public holidays, and other days off as prescribed by the Labor Code and the Law on Social Insurance;

b) The summer break of the principal and vice-principal(s) shall be scheduled flexibly within the academic year and during the summer break of the teachers to ensure the normal operation of the school and the fulfillment of any duties if they are summoned by the management authorities at all levels (if any). The summer break schedule of the principal and vice-principal(s) must be reported to the competent management authorities or follow the applicable decentralization regulations.

Article 7. Teach load for teachers

1. Teaching load means the total number of theoretical (or practical) class periods that each teacher is required to teach (either in person or online) within 01 academic year.

2. The teaching load per academic year is calculated as follows:

Where: the number of teaching weeks is the number of weeks during which the teacher teaches the curriculum content of the educational program (excluding the reserve weeks).

3. Average weekly teaching load

a) 23 class periods for primary school teachers, 19 class periods for lower secondary school teachers, 17 class periods for upper secondary school teachers;

b) 21 class periods for primary semi-boarding ethnic minority general education school teachers, 17 class periods for lower secondary semi-boarding ethnic minority general education school teachers, 17 class periods for lower secondary boarding ethnic minority general education school teachers, 15 class periods for upper secondary boarding ethnic minority general education school teachers;

In addition to fulfilling the teaching load as prescribed above, teachers at semi-boarding ethnic minority general education schools and boarding ethnic minority general education schools shall perform other responsibilities for their schools, such as managing students, teaching extra classes, enhancing student talents, and organizing school-specific educational activities, which are assigned by the principals to ensure the overall operation of the schools;

c) 21 class periods for teachers in schools and classes for people with disabilities at the primary level, 17 class periods at the lower secondary level, and 15 class periods at the upper secondary level;

d) 12 class periods for teachers in pre-university schools;

dd) 02 class periods for teachers who serve as General Managers of the Ho Chi Minh Young Pioneer Organization in primary schools with 28 or more classes in Region 2 and Region 3, or with 19 or more classes in Region 1; or 08 class periods for those in other primary schools.

The regions shall be identified in accordance with Circular No. 20/2023/TT-BGDDT dated October 30, 2023 of the Minister of Education and Training, which provides guidelines on the framework of job positions and staffing quotas in public general education institutions and public specialized schools;

e) 02 class periods for teachers who serve as General Managers of the Ho Chi Minh Young Pioneer Organization in lower secondary schools with 28 or more classes in Region 2 and Region 3, or with 19 or more classes in Region 1; or 06 class periods for those in other lower secondary schools;

g) 02 class periods for teachers who serve as General Managers of the Ho Chi Minh Young Pioneer Organization in multi-level general education schools with a total number of primary and lower secondary classes of 28 or more in Region 2 and Region 3, or of 19 or more in Region 1; 06 class periods for those in other multi-level general education schools.

Article 8. Teaching load for principals and vice-principals

1. In addition to leadership and management responsibilities, principals and vice-principals of general education schools and pre-university schools must teach a number of class periods covering the curriculum content of the education program to comprehend such content, the objectives of the education program, and the learning situation of students, thereby enhancing the effectiveness of their leadership and management.

2. The teaching load per academic year is calculated as follows:

Where: the number of teaching weeks is the number of weeks during which the teacher teaches the curriculum content of the general education program (excluding the reserve weeks).

3. Average weekly teaching load

a) 02 class periods for principals;

b) 04 class periods for vice-principals.

4. Principals and vice-principals shall not substitute the reduction in teaching load granted for concurrent positions, as prescribed in Article 9, Article 10, and Article 11 of this Circular, for the teaching load prescribed in Clause 3 of this Article.

5. After fulfilling the teaching load prescribed in Clause 3 of this Article, principals and vice-principals may apply Article 13 of this Circular to calculate the total number of class periods when calculating overtime class periods (if any).

Chapter III

REDUCTION IN TEACHING LOAD AND CONVERSION OF THE TIME SPENT DOING OTHER ACTIVITIES INTO CLASS PERIODS

Article 9. Reduction in teaching load for teachers who concurrently hold professional positions

1. For teachers who concurrently serve as form teachers in general schools, the teaching load shall be reduced by 04 class periods per week.

2. For teachers who concurrently serve as form teachers in pre-university schools, the teaching load shall be reduced by 03 class periods per week.

3. For teachers who concurrently serve as leaders of professional groups or subject groups, the teaching load shall be reduced by 03 class periods per week; for those who concurrently serve as deputy leaders of professional groups or subject groups the teaching load shall be reduced by 01 class period per week.

4. For teachers who concurrently serve as leaders of student management teams at boarding ethnic high schools or semi-boarding ethnic high schools shall be reduced by 03 class periods per week; for those who concurrently serve as deputy leaders of student management teams at boarding ethnic high schools or semi-boarding ethnic high schools shall be reduced by 01 class period per week.

5. For teachers who concurrently serve as heads of operational departments at pre-university schools shall be reduced by 06 class periods per week; for those who concurrently serve as deputy heads of functional departments at pre-university schools shall be reduced by 05 class periods per week.

6. If a school lacks public employees in charge of equipment or laboratories, the teaching load for the teachers concurrently responsible for subject-specific classrooms (excluding computer labs) shall be reduced by 03 class periods per subject per week and for those in charge of educational equipment rooms shall be reduced by 03 class periods per week.

Article 10. Reduction in teaching load for teachers who concurrently hold positions of the Communist Party units, mass organizations and other organizations of the schools

1. For teachers who concurrently serve as Secretaries of Party Committees or Party Cells (where no Party Committee is established) in the schools with 28 or more classes in Region 2 and Region 3, of with 19 or more classes in Region 1, the teaching load shall be reduced by 04 class periods per week; for those in other schools, the teaching load shall be reduced by 03 class periods per week.

2. For teachers who are concurrently responsible for trade unions, the teaching load shall be reduced in accordance with Circular No. 08/2016/TT-BGDDT, dated March 28, 2016 of the Minister of Education and Training, which prescribes the reduction in teaching loads for teachers and lecturers performing non-professional trade union responsibilities in public educational institutions within the national education system.

3. For teachers who concurrently serve as the school-level youth union secretaries or youth assistants, youth union advisors, or deputy youth union secretaries, the teaching load shall be reduced in accordance with Decision No. 13/2013/QD-TTg dated February 06, 2013 of the Prime Minister on the regime and policies for cadres of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union and the Vietnam National Union of Students in educational and vocational training institutions.

4. For teachers who concurrently serve as chairpersons and secretaries of the boards of trustees, the teaching load shall be reduced by 02 class periods per week.

5. For teachers who concurrently serve as heads of the people’s inspection boards, the teaching load shall be reduced by 02 class periods per week.

Article 11. Reduction in teaching load for teachers who concurrently hold other positions

In cases where positions cannot be filled by dedicated personnel and teachers must be assigned concurrently, the school may count the time spent in such positions as class periods, specifically as follows:

1. For teachers who are concurrently responsible for academic affairs

a) The teaching load for teachers who are concurrently responsible for academic affairs shall be reduced by a number of class periods which shall be decided by the principal, ensuring the principle of appropriateness to the workload assigned concurrently. The total number of class periods reduced for all teachers concurrently responsible for academic affairs shall not exceed the number of class periods dedicated for academic affairs of the school as prescribed at Point b of this clause;

b) 08 class periods per week shall be dedicated for academic affairs in high schools with 28 or more classes in Region 2 and Region 3, or with 19 or more classes in Region 1; or 04 class periods per week in other high schools.

2. For teachers who are concurrently responsible for student counseling

a) The teaching load for teachers who are concurrently responsible for student counseling shall be reduced by a number of class periods which shall be decided by the principal, ensuring the principle of appropriateness to the workload assigned concurrently. The total number of class periods reduced for all teachers concurrently responsible for student counseling shall not exceed the number of class periods dedicated for student counseling of the school as prescribed at Point b of this clause;

b) 08 class periods per week shall be dedicated for student counseling in high schools with 28 or more classes in Region 2 and Region 3, or with 19 or more classes in Region 1; or 04 class periods per week in other high schools.

3. For teachers who are concurrently responsible for information technology (in charge of the computer labs), the teaching load shall be reduced by 03 class periods per week.

4. For teachers who are concurrently responsible for clerical duties, the teaching load shall be reduced by 03 class periods per week.

5. For teachers who concurrently serve as librarians (in charge of the libraries), the teaching load shall be reduced by 03 class periods per week.

6. For teachers who are concurrently responsible for educational support for people with disabilities, the teaching load shall be reduced by 03 class periods per week.

7. For teachers who are concurrently responsible for administrative duties in operational departments in pre-university schools, the teaching load shall be reduced by 03 class periods per week.

Article 12. Reduction in teaching load in other cases

1. For probationary teachers, the teaching load shall be reduced by 02 class periods per week.

2. For female teachers raising children under 12 months of age teaching in primary schools, the teaching load shall be reduced by 04 class periods per week; for those teaching in other educational institutions, the teaching load shall be reduced by 03 class periods per week.

3. Teachers undergoing medical examinations or treatment (within the prescribed time limit), with the approval of the school principal and certification from a competent medical facility, are not required to make up missed class periods assigned in the teaching plan and these class periods shall still be counted toward the teaching load of the teachers.

Article 13. Conversion of the time doing other professional activities into class periods

1. 01 class period doing the professional activities below (either in person or online) is converted into 01 standard class period of the teaching load:

a) Online teaching in accordance with the educational plan of the school (where classes are not organized) in cases where the number of students participating is less than the average total number of students in 02 classes (the average number of students per class is prescribed in Circular No. 20/2023/TT-BGDDT);

b) Teaching Vietnamese to ethnic minority children before they enter Grade One as prescribed by the regulations (unless otherwise prescribed at Point d, Clause 2 of this Article);

c) Inter-school teaching (which means a teacher teaching simultaneously in two or more schools as assigned by a competent authority);

d) Tutoring students for entrance exams or graduation exams as prescribed by the regulations.

2. 01 class period doing the professional activities below (either in person or online) is converted into 1.5 standard class periods of the teaching load:

a) Being a reporter at training and professional development sessions for teachers (including core teachers) organized by the principal or competent authority;

b) Demonstrative teaching during professional activities as prescribed by the regulations;

c) Reporting at extracurricular activities, experiential activities, or career guidance activities organized by the school for students at the grade level or school level (with lesson plans, teaching plans, or report outlines);

d) Teaching Vietnamese to ethnic minority children during the summer break before they enter Grade One;

dd) Online teaching in accordance with the educational plan of the school for 02 classes (at the same time) or in cases where classes are not organized and the number of students participating is less than the average total number of students in 02 classes (the average number of students per class is prescribed in Circular No. 20/2023/TT-BGDDT).

3. 01 in-person class period of teachers teaching extra classes or tutoring students with below-passing subject learning results at the end of the immediately preceding semester in accordance with the educational plan of the school shall be converted into a maximum of 1.5 standard class periods of the teaching load. The school principal, based on the organizational scale of the extra classes or tutoring classes, and the learning capacity of students in the extra classes or tutoring classes, shall specify the conversion of class periods as prescribed in this Clause after reaching a consensus of the Board of Trustees.

4. 01 class period (either in person or online) of teachers fostering gifted students, training students participating in the Phu Dong Health Festival, training students participating in the National Defense and Security Education Sports Festival, guiding students to participate in science and technology competitions, or guiding students to participate in student startup idea competitions in accordance with the educational plan of the school shall be converted to a maximum of 02 standard class periods of the teaching load. The school principal, based on the scale and level of the competition, shall specify the conversion of class periods as prescribed in this Clause after reaching a consensus of the Board of Trustees.

5. 01 class period of teachers teaching specialized subjects in specialized classes within the schools for the gifted shall be converted into 03 standard class periods of the teaching load.

6. 01 in-person judging session of teachers assigned as judges in school-level competitions or contests for teachers as planned (competitions or contests as prescribed by the Ministry of Education and Training) shall be counted as 01 standard class period of the teaching load.

Chapter IV
ORGANIZATION OF IMPLEMENTATION

Article 14. Organization of implementation

1. The People's Committees of provinces and municipalities shall direct the respective provincial-level Departments of Education and Training, the district-level People's Committees, and relevant authorities within their assigned competence to guide and inspect the implementation of the work regime for teachers prescribed in this Circular.

2. Principals of general schools and pre-university schools shall be responsible for the implementation of the work regime and create conditions for teachers to implement the work regime in accordance with this Circular.

Article 15. Implementation provisions

1. This Circular takes effect on April 22, 2025.

2. This Circular supersedes Circular No. 28/2009/TT-BGDDT dated October 21, 2009 of the Minister of Education and Training promulgating regulations on the work regime for general education teachers; Circular No. 15/2017/TT-BGDDT dated June 09, 2017 of the Minister of Education and Training amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Regulations on the work regime for general education teachers promulgated under Circular No. 28/2009/TT-BGDDT dated October 21, 2009 of the Minister of Education and Training.

3. Article 9 of Circular No. 16/2017/TT-BGDDT, dated July 12, 2017, of the Minister of1 Education and Training, which provides guidelines on the framework of job positions and staffing quotas in public general education institutions, shall cease to be effective from the effective date of this Circular.

4. In cases where the documents incorporated by reference into this Circular are amended, or replaced, the amendments, supplements, or replacements shall prevail.

5. The Chief of the Office, Director of the Teachers and Educational Managers Department, heads of related units under the Ministry of Education and Training; chairpersons of People’s Committees of provinces and municipalities, directors of provincial-level Departments of Education and Training, heads of district-level Divisions of Education and Training, principals of general education schools and pre-university schools, related organizations and individuals shall be responsible for implementing this Circular./.