The second line on the test shows, and two feelings arrive at once. One is joy. The other is a question you have not dared to ask your employer yet: can they end my contract because I am pregnant?
The answer to that question is in Hong Kong's Employment Ordinance. According to the Labour Department, a domestic helper is protected as any employee is: 14 weeks of maternity leave, paid once you have worked 40 weeks under a continuous contract and given notice, and protection from dismissal once you have told your employer, with two exceptions.
Does the Employment Ordinance cover a domestic helper?
A helper is an employee, with the same protection as local employees under the Ordinance (Cap. 57), the Labour Department says. Clause 16 of your contract keeps all of those entitlements. Most of these rights need a continuous contract: four weeks or more with the same employer, working at least 17 hours each week, the test since 18 January 2026. A full-time live-in helper meets it.
Maternity leave in Hong Kong: how long, and when it starts
Statutory maternity leave in Hong Kong is 14 continuous weeks. It belongs to a female employee on a continuous contract who has told her employer she is pregnant and intends to take the leave. The old 10-week rule applied only to births before 11 December 2020.
When it starts (the first two cases are what the Ordinance calls your scheduled maternity leave):
- By agreement with your employer, anywhere from two to four weeks before the expected date of confinement.
- If you do not choose a date, or you and your employer do not agree, four weeks before it.
- If the baby comes earlier, it starts on the date of confinement; give notice within seven days.
A later-than-expected birth adds the days past the expected date. A medical certificate can also add up to four more weeks for illness or disability caused by the pregnancy or confinement.
Maternity leave pay: the 40-week rule and how it is calculated
Maternity leave pay has three conditions, and an employee is eligible only when all three are met:
- You have been employed under a continuous contract for at least 40 weeks immediately before your scheduled maternity leave begins.
- You gave notice of your pregnancy and your intention to take the leave once it was confirmed, for example by showing your employer the medical certificate.
- You produce a medical certificate with the expected date of confinement, if your employer asks for one.
If you have worked less than 40 weeks under a continuous contract, you still get the 14 weeks, unpaid, provided you gave notice.
The daily rate is four-fifths of your average daily wages in the 12-month period before the first day of the leave (or your whole service, if shorter), due on your normal pay day. The 11th to 14th weeks are subject to a cap of HK$80,000. After paying, your employer may claim those weeks back from the Government under an administrative scheme.
Can your employer dismiss you because you are pregnant?
A pregnant employee is protected from dismissal from the day a medical certificate confirms she is pregnant to the day she is due to return to work upon the expiry of her maternity leave. The rule holds provided she is employed under a continuous contract and has served a notice of pregnancy. Serve that notice, and that employee is you.
If you are told you are dismissed before you have given notice, you can serve it immediately, and your employer must withdraw the dismissal.
The law allows two exceptions:
- summary dismissal for serious misconduct;
- where a probation period of no more than 12 weeks was expressly agreed, dismissal during it for reasons other than pregnancy.
Outside those, dismissing you is an offence: upon conviction, a fine of HK$100,000. Within seven days your employer also owes you payment in lieu of notice, one month's wages as compensation, and the 14 weeks' maternity leave pay you would have been eligible for, and you may claim employment protection remedies too. If it comes to a claim, read the Labour Tribunal claim, step by step.
Watch for quieter pressure. Being asked to "resign", to sign a mutual termination, to accept short wages or to fly home early can end your job, and your protection with it. The Labour Department's advice: never acknowledge receipt of wages you have not received, do not sign any document you do not understand or agree with, and keep your passport and HKID yourself.
Check-ups, heavy work and your medical certificates
A day off for a pregnancy check-up, for medical treatment following the birth or for a miscarriage counts as a sickness day when it is backed by a medical certificate, or a certificate of attendance for a check-up. Sickness allowance is four-fifths of your average daily wages if you have enough paid sickness days saved: two for each completed month in your first year, four a month after that. The usual four-day minimum does not apply.
If a doctor certifies that you are unfit for heavy, hazardous or harmful work, your employer may not give you that work, and must move you off it within 14 days of your request. Under clause 9 of your contract, if you are ill or injured during the contract your employer must provide free medical treatment, except while you have left Hong Kong for your own purposes.
What the Standard Employment Contract adds
The contract lets either side end it with one month's notice, and without notice only where the Ordinance permits. Notice does not override the dismissal rules above. Our guide explains how the domestic helper route and its contract work.
If the contract is terminated, the Immigration Department's rule is that you normally depart within two weeks of the termination date, or by the contract's original end date if that is earlier.
This protection exists to keep your job, and the record that comes with it. Hong Kong law counts your continuous service with the same employer: paid annual leave rises from 7 to 14 days with it, and a long service payment needs five years of it. A working mother who plans her time off openly, on paper, keeps building those years.
Where to get free help
The Labour Department runs a 24-hour enquiry hotline, 2157 9537, and its Labour Relations Division offers free conciliation. If that does not settle it, the case can go to the Minor Employment Claims Adjudication Board or the Labour Tribunal, depending on the size of the claim. For the Philippine side, read what the Embassy and the Migrant Workers Office can do.
Before you tell your employer: a checklist
- Get a certificate confirming you are pregnant and your expected date of confinement.
- Give written notice that you are pregnant and intend to take the 14 weeks, and keep a signed copy.
- Check the 40-week rule against your contract's start date.
- Agree your start date in writing.
- Keep every certificate and wage record.
- Save 2157 9537 in your phone.
The Questions Filipinos Ask Us Most
How is maternity leave pay calculated in Hong Kong?
The daily rate is four-fifths of your average daily wages in the 12-month period before the 14 weeks begin, or over your whole service if shorter. Weeks 11 to 14 are subject to a cap of HK$80,000.
What if I have worked for my employer for less than 40 weeks?
The 14 weeks are still yours, unpaid, if you are on a continuous contract and gave notice after the pregnancy was confirmed. Protection from dismissal does not depend on 40 weeks: it depends on a continuous contract and your notice of pregnancy.
Can I go home to the Philippines to give birth?
A helper may request it, the Labour Department says, so you and your employer can agree the arrangements; it is not automatic. Your employer's duty to provide free medical treatment does not cover time you spend outside Hong Kong for your own purposes.
Sources
- Concise Guide, Chapter 6: https://www.labour.gov.hk/eng/public/wcp/ConciseGuide/06.pdf
- Concise Guide, full edition (continuous contract, sickness allowance): https://www.labour.gov.hk/eng/public/wcp/ConciseGuide/EO_guide_full.pdf
- Official questions and answers: https://www.labour.gov.hk/eng/faq/cap57h_whole.htm
- Helpers' portal, frequently asked questions: https://www.fdh.labour.gov.hk/en/faq.html
- Practical guide for helpers and employers, 2026: https://www.fdh.labour.gov.hk/res/pdf/FDHguideEnglish.pdf
- Standard Employment Contract, ID 407: https://www.fdh.labour.gov.hk/res/pdf/SEC_Eng.pdf
- Immigration Department, foreign domestic helpers: https://www.immd.gov.hk/eng/services/visas/foreign_domestic_helpers.html