Virtual Assistant Contract Template (2026): Scope, Access & Pay

You hire a virtual assistant to handle your inbox, calendar, and customer replies. A week in, the assistant has your email login, you have a hazy idea of the hours, and nobody has said who pays when a task takes twice as long as expected. A short written contract settles those questions before they turn into arguments.

A virtual assistant (VA) contract is a written agreement between a client and a remote assistant that sets the services, hours, pay, confidentiality, access to systems, and how the relationship ends. This guide gives you a copy-ready template, a worked retainer example, and onboarding and offboarding checklists. Short on time? Jump to the template.

Contractor or Employee? Settle This First

Most VAs work as independent contractors: they run their own business, choose their methods, serve more than one client, and use their own equipment. That arrangement works only if it matches how the two of you actually operate.

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service looks at three groups of facts: behavioral control (do you direct what the worker does and how), financial control (who sets pay, supplies tools, and reimburses expenses), and the type of relationship (written contracts, benefits, and whether the work continues and is central to your business). Working remotely does not make someone a contractor. The IRS notes that a remote worker is an employee under common-law rules if you control what will be done and how.

In practice, a VA who works fixed hours set by you, uses your tools under your direction, and serves only you for years can start to look like an employee. If your setup looks like that, talk to an accountant or employment adviser before you sign a contractor agreement. The guide to independent contractor vs. employee explains the risks in more detail.

Tax Paperwork and Hiring Across Borders

Tax paperwork depends on where each side lives. A U.S. business commonly collects Form W-9 from a U.S. contractor and Form W-8BEN from a contractor outside the U.S. Ask an accountant which applies to you.

If your VA lives in another country, also check that country's rules on contractor status, and plan how you will pay. Transfer fees, currency, and timing all change the real cost. The notes on hiring remote contractors across borders cover these points in more detail.

Hourly, Retainer, or Packages: Choosing How to Pay

How you pay a VA shapes how you both behave. Hourly pay rewards time spent, a retainer rewards availability, and a package rewards finishing a defined task.

Model	Works best when	Watch out for
Hourly	The workload is uncertain or the relationship is new	Open-ended cost, so set a weekly or monthly cap and require approval for extra hours
Monthly retainer	Tasks recur and you want reliable availability	Unused hours, so decide whether they roll over or expire
Fixed package	A task has a clear start and end, such as a data cleanup or an inbox reset	Scope creep, so list exactly what the package includes

Many clients start hourly with a monthly cap and move to a retainer once the work settles. The comparison of project vs. retainer contracts covers the same trade-offs for larger engagements.

What Should a Virtual Assistant Contract Cover?

A VA contract does not need to be long, but it does need to be specific about the points that cause most disputes: what is included, how many hours, who can see what, and how payment works.

Ten points are worth covering:

• Scope. List the tasks that are included and the ones that are not. "Help with admin" is not a scope. "Inbox triage, calendar scheduling, and first-draft replies to customer emails" is.
• Hours and availability. State monthly or weekly hours, the time zone, overlap hours, expected reply times, and how extra hours get approved.
• Communication and reporting. Name the channels and the cadence: a weekly summary, a shared task tracker, or both.
• Access and security. Share logins through a password manager or the tool's own user invitations, never in chat. Give access only to what the tasks need, turn on two-factor authentication, and plan to remove access when the engagement ends.
• Confidentiality and data. Cover your business information and any customer data the VA sees. If personal data is involved, a data processing agreement may be required.
• Work product. Decide who owns documents, templates, and content the VA creates. Most clients want ownership of everything made for them, while the VA keeps general know-how and their own tools.
• Fees and payment. Choose hourly, a monthly retainer, or fixed packages. Set the invoice date, payment method, currency, who covers transfer fees, and whether unused hours roll over.
• AI tools. Say which AI tools the VA may use and that customer or confidential data stays out of tools you have not approved.
• Subcontracting. Require approval before the VA hands any work to someone else.
• Term and ending. Include a trial period, a notice period, and offboarding steps.

Virtual Assistant Contract Template

Copy the text below and replace each bracketed field. Delete clauses that do not apply and adapt the rest to your situation and jurisdiction.

VIRTUAL ASSISTANT SERVICES AGREEMENT

This Agreement is made on [date] between:

Client: [name or business, address, email]
Assistant: [name or business, address, email]

1. SERVICES
The Assistant will provide the services listed in Schedule A (the
"Services"). Tasks not listed in Schedule A are outside this
Agreement unless the Client approves them in writing, and may be
charged at the rate in Schedule A.

2. HOURS AND AVAILABILITY
The Assistant will provide up to [number] hours of Services per
[week / month]. The Assistant works in [time zone] and will be
available [days and hours]. The Assistant will reply to messages
within [number] business hours. Work beyond the agreed hours needs
the Client's prior approval.

3. FEES AND PAYMENT
The Client will pay [an hourly rate / a monthly retainer] as set out
in Schedule A. The Assistant will invoice [weekly / monthly] and the
Client will pay within [number] days by [payment method]. Unused
hours [roll over for one month / expire at the end of each period].
[Rate review: the rate may change on [number] days' written notice.]

4. INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR
The Assistant is an independent contractor, not an employee. The
Assistant decides how and when to do the work within the agreed
hours, supplies their own equipment, and is responsible for their
own taxes, insurance, and benefits. The Assistant may work for other
clients if this does not conflict with Section 7.

5. TOOLS AND ACCESS
The Client will give the Assistant access only to the accounts and
systems needed for the Services, through [a password manager / each
tool's own user invitation]. The Assistant will not share
credentials, will use two-factor authentication where available,
will keep their devices secured and updated, and will tell the
Client immediately of any suspected security incident. The Client
may change or remove access at any time.

6. AI TOOLS
The Assistant may use AI tools only [as listed in Schedule A / with
the Client's written approval]. The Assistant will not enter the
Client's confidential information, or personal data about the
Client's customers, into any AI tool the Client has not approved.

7. CONFIDENTIALITY AND DATA
The Assistant will keep confidential all non-public information
about the Client, its business, and its customers, use it only to
provide the Services, and not copy or store it outside approved
systems. This duty continues for [number] years after this Agreement
ends. Where the Services involve personal data, the parties will
follow applicable data protection law and any additional terms the
Client provides.

8. WORK PRODUCT
All documents, templates, content, and other materials the Assistant
creates for the Client under this Agreement belong to the Client,
and the Assistant assigns any rights needed to give effect to this.
The Assistant keeps their general skills, know-how, and pre-existing
tools.

9. SUBCONTRACTING
The Assistant will not give work to another person without the
Client's written approval. The Assistant remains responsible for any
approved subcontractor.

10. TERM AND TERMINATION
This Agreement starts on [start date] with a trial period of
[number] days. Either party may end it by giving [number] days'
written notice, or immediately if the other party seriously breaches
it. When it ends, the Assistant will return or delete Client
materials and hand over work in progress, and the Client will pay
for work done through the end date.

11. NON-SOLICITATION (OPTIONAL)
For [number] months after this Agreement ends, the Assistant will
not solicit customers or contacts of the Client that the Assistant
learned about through the Services, for a competing business.

12. LIABILITY
[Insert a limitation of liability suited to the engagement and
jurisdiction. Have a qualified attorney review this clause.]

13. GENERAL
This Agreement and its schedules are the entire agreement. Changes
must be in writing and agreed by both parties. This Agreement is
governed by the laws of [jurisdiction].

SIGNATURES
Client: [name, signature, date]
Assistant: [name, signature, date]

SCHEDULE A - SERVICES, HOURS, AND RATES
Services included: [list, for example inbox management, calendar,
customer replies, data entry]
Not included: [list]
Hours: [number] per [week / month]
Rate: [amount and currency] per [hour / month]
Approved AI tools: [list, or "none"]

Section 11 is optional, and non-solicitation terms are treated differently from place to place, so keep it only if it suits your situation and your local law.

Filled Example (Fictional)

This example is for illustration only. Jordan runs an online shop and hires Amara, a VA in another time zone, to answer customer emails and track orders.

Field	Example entry
Services	Reply to customer emails, update the order tracker, flag refund requests
Not included	Refund approvals, bookkeeping, social media
Hours	20 hours per month
Rate	$22 per hour, billed as a $440 monthly retainer (20 x $22)
Extra hours	Need Jordan's approval; 5 extra hours would add $110 (5 x $22)
Unused hours	Roll over for one month
Invoice and payment	Invoice on the 1st, due within 7 days by bank transfer
Access	Shared inbox and order tracker through a password manager; no access to bank accounts
AI tools	None for customer data
Trial and notice	2-week trial, then 14 days' written notice

The "not included" row matters as much as the services list. When Amara is asked to approve a refund, the contract already says that is Jordan's decision.

Onboarding and Offboarding Checklists

Onboarding

• Send the signed agreement and Schedule A
• Invite the VA through your password manager or each tool's user seat
• Turn on two-factor authentication
• Share short written steps or screen recordings for recurring tasks
• Agree on a weekly check-in and where tasks are tracked
• Start with small, low-risk tasks during the trial period

Offboarding

• Remove access to every account and shared drive
• Change any shared passwords and review email forwarding rules and connected apps
• Collect work in progress, written procedures, and a list of accounts used
• Pay the final invoice
• Get written confirmation that Client materials have been returned or deleted

Common Mistakes

• Sharing passwords in chat or giving admin access by default. Start with the least access the tasks need.
• A vague scope. "Admin help" invites arguments about what counts.
• No rule for extra hours or unused hours. Both sides guess, and one is usually unhappy.
• Calling someone a contractor while directing them like an employee. Look at how the work is actually controlled.
• No offboarding steps. Logins that nobody removes stay active long after the engagement ends.
• Letting customer data into AI tools without a rule. Decide what is allowed before the first task.
• Relying on a marketplace's terms alone. They usually cover payment and disputes. Your confidentiality and ownership expectations may need their own paragraph.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a contract if I hire a VA through a marketplace?

Marketplace terms usually cover payment and dispute handling, and they may say little about confidentiality, system access, or who owns the work. A short contract fills those gaps. Check the platform's rules first, because some restrict taking work or payments outside the platform.

How many hours should a VA retainer include?

Start with the hours you can realistically hand over this month, run a short trial, and track the actual time. Size the retainer from those numbers rather than a guess, and review it every quarter. The contract should say what happens to unused hours.

Who owns the work a VA creates?

It depends on the law and on what you agree, so say it in the contract. The template assigns work product to the client in Section 8. For deliverables that are creative works, such as designs or written content, see the work for hire agreement template for how ownership terms work.

Does my VA need to sign an NDA?

Section 7 of the template covers confidentiality. If you need to share sensitive information before the agreement is signed, use a standalone NDA for freelancers and independent contractors first.

Can we sign electronically?

In many places, including the United States under the federal E-SIGN Act, a contract generally cannot be denied legal effect solely because it is signed electronically, though some document types have exceptions. Confirm the rules that apply to you. Our e-signature legal guide explains the basics.

Next Steps

List the tasks, hours, and tools first, then fill in the template and Schedule A, and have both sides sign before the VA touches any account. For related documents, see the freelance contract template, the statement of work template, and the freelance invoice template.

To draft an agreement fitted to your situation, the AI contract generator can start from a short description, and the freelancer contract toolkit brings contracts, invoices, and proposals together. The e-signature tool records who signed and when.

This sample is general information, not legal advice. Worker classification, tax, data protection, and non-solicitation rules vary by country and state; have a qualified attorney or accountant review the template for your situation before using it.