Contracts For Virtual Assistant Agencies

Running a virtual assistant agency can be a brilliant way to scale your skills beyond your own calendar. You might be handling inboxes, booking travel, chasing invoices, updating CRMs and coordinating projects for several clients at once.

But once you bring in subcontractors, access client systems and promise turnaround times, your contracts need to do more than say what you charge. A good virtual assistant agency contract in NZ should make the working relationship clear before anyone shares a password or sends a task at 9pm.

This doesn't have to be complicated. The goal is to set up client and subcontractor agreements that help you deliver great work, get paid on time and avoid awkward misunderstandings later.

Do You Need A Written Contract For Your VA Agency?

Yes, you should have a written contract for every client and every subcontractor you work with. Verbal arrangements can be legally binding, but they're much harder to prove when something goes wrong.

For a virtual assistant agency, your work is often fast-moving and remote. Tasks can be sent by email, Slack, WhatsApp, Trello, Asana or a shared inbox. Without clear written terms, it can be hard to answer basic questions like:

• What exactly was included in the monthly package?
• How quickly did you promise to respond?
• Can the client ask for urgent work outside business hours?
• Who is responsible if the client gives you the wrong information?
• Can you allocate the work to another VA in your team?
• What happens if the client cancels halfway through the month?

Your client agreement sets the rules between your agency and the client. Your subcontractor agreement sets the rules between your agency and each VA, bookkeeper, social media assistant or admin specialist you engage.

Both documents work together. If your client agreement promises tight confidentiality, secure data handling and a specific turnaround time, your subcontractor agreement needs to help you deliver those promises.

What Should Your VA Client Agreement Cover?

Your VA client service agreement should cover the services, fees, timing, client responsibilities, confidentiality, data handling, liability and termination. It should also be practical enough for the way remote admin work actually happens.

Most agencies need more than a basic set of terms and conditions. A strong VA client agreement usually includes:

• Services: What you'll do, such as inbox management, calendar support, data entry, document formatting, travel booking, CRM updates or customer service support.
• Exclusions: What you won't do, such as giving tax advice, legal advice, financial advice, HR decisions, regulated services or work requiring a specific licence.
• Packages And Hours: Whether the client is buying a fixed number of hours, a retainer, a project package or ad hoc support.
• Fees And Payment: Your rates, payment dates, GST treatment if applicable, late payment consequences and whether unused hours roll over.
• Turnaround Times: When work will be completed and what counts as urgent.
• Client Inputs: What the client must provide, such as clear instructions, approvals, access, templates and accurate information.
• Subcontracting: Whether you can use other VAs or contractors to deliver the services.
• Confidentiality: How business information, customer details, logins and internal documents must be handled.
• Privacy And Data: How personal information will be collected, used, stored, disclosed and deleted.
• Liability: Reasonable limits on what your agency is responsible for, especially where the client controls the final decision.
• Ending The Agreement: Notice periods, outstanding invoices, handover and return of access.

Say Priya runs a Wellington VA agency supporting coaches and consultants. One client asks her to manage their inbox, book calls and update a client database. Two months later, the client starts asking her to draft sales emails, chase overdue invoices and coordinate a product launch. If Priya's agreement clearly defines the package and extra work process, she can point to the contract and price the extra tasks properly instead of absorbing the work for free.

How Do You Stop Scope Creep In Remote Admin Work?

You stop scope creep by defining the scope clearly and making it easy to approve extra work before it starts. This is especially important for remote admin services because small tasks can quietly turn into a much bigger role.

A client might think a request will take 10 minutes. You might know it needs two hours, three logins and a round of approvals. Your contract should remove the guesswork.

Be Clear About What Is Included

Your agreement should describe the work in plain English. For example, inbox management could mean:

• checking a shared inbox once each business day;
• flagging urgent emails to the client;
• responding using approved templates; and
• filing emails into agreed folders.

That's very different from providing customer support, negotiating with suppliers or making decisions on behalf of the client. If those aren't included, say so.

Set A Change Request Process

Your contract can say that work outside the agreed scope needs written approval before you start. Approval might happen by email, project management tool or signed statement of work.

For example, your agreement could say extra work will be charged at your hourly rate, or quoted separately if it's a larger project. This helps you stay helpful without training clients to expect unpaid extras.

Use Monthly Caps And Expiry Rules Carefully

If you sell monthly retainers, be clear about whether hours expire, roll over or can be used for different types of work. If unused hours roll over forever, you may end up carrying a large liability on your books.

A common approach is to say hours must be used within the month, or that only a limited number can roll over for one further month. The right structure depends on your pricing and client relationships.

How Should You Deal With Client Systems And Passwords?

You should deal with client systems and passwords through strict access rules, not casual sharing. Your agreement should explain how access is granted, used, recorded and removed when the relationship ends.

VA agencies often access highly sensitive systems, including:

• email inboxes and calendars;
• CRMs and customer databases;
• accounting platforms;
• ecommerce dashboards;
• social media accounts;
• cloud storage folders; and
• internal messaging tools.

Your client agreement should make it clear that the client is responsible for giving appropriate access and permissions. Where possible, each VA should have their own user account rather than using a shared login.

Your contract and internal processes should also cover:

• using multi-factor authentication where available;
• not saving passwords in personal notes, spreadsheets or browsers without approval;
• using an approved password manager;
• not downloading client files to personal devices unless necessary and authorised;
• removing access promptly when a VA leaves your agency or the client relationship ends;
• reporting suspected unauthorised access straight away; and
• keeping a list of systems your team can access for each client.

It's also worth limiting your authority. If you aren't authorised to spend money, approve refunds, sign contracts, hire staff or send sensitive communications on the client's behalf, your agreement should say so.

This protects both sides. The client knows what your team can do, and you reduce the risk of being blamed for decisions you were never meant to make.

Can You Use Subcontractors In Your VA Agency?

Yes, you can use subcontractors if your client agreement allows it and your subcontractor arrangements are set up properly. You shouldn't assume a client will be comfortable with unknown third parties accessing their systems or confidential information.

Your client agreement should say whether you may use subcontractors, offshore contractors or specialist support providers. It should also say that you remain responsible to the client for the services you provide through your team.

Your subcontractor agreement should then back this up with clear obligations.

What Should A Subcontractor Agreement For A VA Include?

A subcontractor service agreement for a virtual assistant should cover:

• the services the subcontractor will provide;
• whether work is offered project by project or on an ongoing basis;
• fees, invoicing and payment timing;
• confidentiality and non-disclosure obligations;
• privacy and data handling requirements;
• rules for client systems, passwords and devices;
• ownership of work product, templates and documents;
• whether the subcontractor can contact your clients directly;
• whether the subcontractor can delegate work to someone else;
• availability, response times and deadlines;
• insurance requirements if relevant;
• termination and handover obligations; and
• post-engagement restrictions, such as not poaching clients where reasonable.

If your subcontractor creates documents, processes, templates, automations or written content, you also need to deal with intellectual property. In New Zealand, copyright usually belongs to the person who creates the work unless there's an agreement that says otherwise. If your agency needs to own or freely use work created by a subcontractor, put that in writing.

Are Your VAs Contractors Or Employees?

It depends on how the relationship works in practice, not just what the contract says. Calling someone a contractor won't be enough if the day-to-day arrangement looks like employment.

Under the Employment Relations Act 2000, the real nature of the relationship matters. From the 2026 Employment Relations Act changes, New Zealand also has a contractor gateway test designed to give more certainty for genuine contracting arrangements. In broad terms, you'll be in a stronger position if you have a written contractor agreement and the VA has real independence, including control over how they work, the ability to work for others and freedom to accept or decline work.

If the gateway isn't met, the usual employee versus contractor factors can still be considered. That can include control, integration into your business, whether they're in business on their own account and how the relationship operates in reality.

This matters because employees have minimum entitlements under employment laws, including rights under the Holidays Act 2003 and Employment Relations Act 2000. If you treat someone as a contractor when they're really an employee, you may face back-pay claims for holiday pay and other entitlements.

If you're building a regular VA team with set hours, required availability, close supervision and ongoing work, it's worth getting tailored advice on the right structure and any employment contracts.

What Privacy And Data Handling Terms Do You Need?

You need a privacy policy and data handling terms that match the type of information your agency handles. VA agencies often touch personal information every day, even if the work feels purely administrative.

Personal information can include names, email addresses, phone numbers, customer notes, booking details, payment information, health information, HR records and messages in an inbox.

The Privacy Act 2020 applies to New Zealand agencies handling personal information. Your contracts and internal processes should support the Information Privacy Principles, including collecting information for a proper purpose, keeping it secure, limiting use and disclosure, and allowing access and correction where required.

Your client agreement should cover:

• what personal information you may handle for the client;
• the purposes you can use it for;
• whether you can disclose it to subcontractors;
• whether information may be accessed from outside New Zealand;
• security measures you'll use;
• what happens if there's a suspected privacy breach;
• return or deletion of information when the engagement ends; and
• who handles privacy requests from individuals.

Under the Privacy Act 2020, a notifiable privacy breach is one that has caused serious harm or is likely to do so. If that happens, the Privacy Commissioner and affected individuals generally need to be notified as soon as practicable.

Your subcontractor agreement should mirror these obligations. If your client expects you to keep information secure, your subcontractors need to be bound to the same standard.

You should also think about the Fair Trading Act 1986. If you tell clients that their data will be kept in New Zealand, encrypted or handled only by local team members, those claims need to be accurate. Misleading claims about your services, security or team can create legal and reputational problems.

If your client is acquiring your services for business purposes, you may be able to contract out of some Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 guarantees if the agreement is in writing and it's fair and reasonable to do so. You should handle this carefully, especially if you work with very small businesses that may rely heavily on your services.

Common Mistakes To Avoid

The most common mistake is using a generic template that doesn't reflect how your agency actually works. Templates can be a useful starting point, but VA agencies have specific risks around access, confidentiality, subcontracting and fast-changing scope.

Watch out for these issues:

• Letting Clients Share Passwords Casually: Shared logins make it harder to track who did what and harder to remove access cleanly.
• Promising Unlimited Support: Unlimited support can sound attractive, but it needs fair use limits, turnaround times and exclusions.
• Forgetting To Mention Subcontractors: If the client thinks you personally do all the work, using another VA can damage trust and may breach confidentiality expectations.
• No Approval Process For Extra Work: Without one, you may struggle to charge for tasks outside the package.
• No Data Breach Process: If a laptop is lost or a wrong attachment is sent, your team needs to know what to do immediately.
• Weak Payment Terms: Without clear payment dates and suspension rights, you may keep working while invoices remain unpaid.
• No Exit Process: You need a plan for final invoices, handover, returning files and removing system access.

Also keep an eye on standard form contracts. The Fair Trading Act 1986 includes rules against unfair contract terms in standard form small trade contracts with an annual value of up to $250,000. Terms that let you change key parts of the deal one-sidedly, avoid almost all responsibility or penalise the client unfairly may need a closer look.

A fair contract is usually better for your business anyway. Clear, balanced terms are easier to explain, easier to enforce and better for long-term client relationships.

Key Takeaways

• A virtual assistant agency should have both a client agreement and a subcontractor agreement, because each document manages a different relationship.
• Your client agreement should clearly cover services, scope, fees, turnaround times, client responsibilities, subcontracting, confidentiality, privacy and termination.
• Scope creep is best managed with clear inclusions, exclusions, monthly caps and a written approval process for extra work.
• Access to client systems should be controlled through user accounts, password rules, multi-factor authentication and a clear exit process.
• If you use subcontractors, make sure your client terms allow it and your subcontractor terms protect confidentiality, data, intellectual property and client relationships.
• Privacy Act 2020 obligations matter for VA agencies because remote admin work often involves personal information, inboxes and customer databases.

If you'd like help with your VA client agreements, subcontractor contracts, confidentiality terms or privacy and data handling processes, you can reach us at 0800 002 184 or team@sprintlaw.co.nz for a free, no-obligations chat.