Ending a domestic helper's contract is straightforward — but only if both sides follow the rules. Get the paperwork wrong and the employer can be liable for back wages, the helper can overstay her permitted time in Hong Kong, and Immigration can refuse the next application entirely. This is the practical playbook either side should keep next to the contract.
The two ways a contract can end
A standard 2-year FDH (Foreign Domestic Helper) contract has only two routes to a clean ending:
- Mutual termination. Both parties sign a written agreement to end the contract on a specific date. Cleanest path — no notice required, no payment-in-lieu.
- One-month notice OR one month's wages in lieu.Either party can end the contract this way, no reason needed (this is where most people trip up — “reason” matters for the helper's next-employer record but NOT for legal validity).
There's a third theoretical route — summary dismissal for serious misconduct (theft, violence, gross neglect). It removes the notice requirement but the bar is high and it's easy to lose the case at the Labour Tribunal. If you're considering this, document everything and talk to a Labour Department officer (free) before you act.
Notice period: it's exactly one calendar month
Per the Standard Employment Contract clause 10, the notice period is one calendar month, served in writing. “Calendar month” means: if you give notice on March 15th, the last day of employment is April 14th. Not 30 days — a calendar month.
Either party can buy out the notice with one month's wages in lieu of notice. The minimum wage for FDHs (the Minimum Allowable Wage: HK$5,220 / month for contracts signed on or after 3 October 2026, reviewed annually) is the floor — if the helper's actual salary is higher, pay the higher figure.
Transition: a contract signed on or before 2 October 2026 at the previous HK$5,100 is still accepted if the visa application reaches the Immigration Department by 30 October 2026 (government announcement, 2 Oct 2026).
What a valid notice letter contains
- Date written
- Helper's full name and HKID / passport number
- Last working day (calculate the calendar month carefully)
- Statement of which side is terminating (employer / helper) — this drives the “reason for leaving” recorded with Immigration
- Both signatures (or signed receipt if posted)
A WhatsApp message saying “you can leave next week” is not a valid notice. Put it on paper, both sign, both keep a copy.
What employers must pay on the last day
These are statutory — the helper can take you to the Labour Tribunal for any of them, and tribunals award them quickly:
- Outstanding salary up to and including the last working day, prorated by calendar days if mid-month.
- Payment in lieu of notice if the employer is the one terminating and chose not to serve a full month's notice.
- Annual leave pay — accrued but unused. The standard contract gives 7 days for the first 12 months, increasing yearly. Pay out at the daily rate: (12 × monthly salary) ÷ 365 × number of days.
- Free passage to place of origin — air ticket back home OR cash equivalent (HK$3,000 is the typical proxy for ASEAN destinations). The helper picks the airline and flight date within reason; you can't force a ground-transport alternative.
- Food allowance for travel — currently HK$100/day (reviewed annually).
- Long Service Payment — if the helper has worked for you 5+ years AND the termination is by the employer (not summary dismissal). 2/3 × monthly salary × years served. Capped per Labour Ordinance s.31R.
- Severance Payment — replaces Long Service Payment when the termination is for redundancy. Same formula. The two are mutually exclusive — pay one or the other, never both.
Pay everything within 7 days of the last working day. Late payment is itself a Labour Ordinance offence (s.25), and tribunals routinely add interest.
Immigration paperwork — the part most people forget
The contract ending isn't the end of the process. Immigration has two parallel obligations:
1. Notify the Director of Immigration within 7 days
Use Form ID-407E (employer) or ID-407F (helper). The form says “Notification of Termination of Contract”. File online at the Immigration Department's e-services portal or post to the Foreign Domestic Helpers Section, 4th Floor, Administration Tower, Immigration Headquarters, 61 Po Yap Road, Tseung Kwan O, New Territories.
Both sides should file. If the employer doesn't, the helper can still process a release certificate independently.
2. The 14-day rule for the helper
After the contract ends early, the helper may normally stay in Hong Kong for 14 days OR until her limit of stay ends (whichever is earlier). The 14 days is a deadline to leave — it is not a window to find a new employer and stay on.
- After a premature termination, the Immigration Department normally does not approve a change of employer inside Hong Kong. The usual route is to return home and have the new employer apply afresh.
- Exceptions are considered only in exceptional circumstances — for example the original employer's transfer overseas, migration, death or financial difficulty, or evidence that the helper was abused or exploited.
The 14 days counts from the last day of employment, not the day the notice is given. Helpers often don't realise this and overstay — which can disqualify them from re-employment in Hong Kong for a long period.
Helpers in this situation should contact the Mission for Migrant Workers (free legal aid, +852 2522 8264) the moment a contract ends — they help with paperwork at no cost.
Common mistakes that cost both sides money
For employers
- Counting 30 days instead of one calendar month.Most contract disputes hinge on this. Use the calendar — March 15 + 1 month = April 14, last day of work.
- Skipping the air ticket payout. Even if the helper says they don't need it, a written waiver is mandatory. Without one, they can come back and claim it.
- Filing the ID-407 late. Past 7 days = a fine (up to HK$10,000 in practice).
- Withholding the passport. Always illegal. Hand it back the day notice is served.
- Asking the helper to sign a release before paying.Tribunals see this as duress and the release is unenforceable. Pay everything first, then ask for the receipt.
For helpers
- Verbal resignations. Always put it in writing, dated, signed, two copies. A WhatsApp screenshot is not enough.
- Leaving before the last paid day. Forfeits salary and notice pay for the days you didn't work.
- Ignoring the 14-day rule. Overstay = blacklisted for 12 months minimum and possibly permanently for next-employer applications.
- Signing a new contract before the old one is officially terminated with Immigration. Causes processing delays; new application gets returned for “overlapping contract”.
Edge cases worth flagging
Termination in the first month
There is no probation period unless the contract itself provides one — and the Standard Employment Contract (ID 407) does not. So even in the first weeks, either side ends the contract with one month's written notice or one month's wages in lieu (clause 10). The other rules are identical (air ticket, accrued leave, ID-407 notification).
Employer relocates / dies / household dissolves
Treated as redundancy → Severance Payment owed if the helper has 24+ months of service. The estate of a deceased employer is liable; an employer moving permanently overseas is treated the same as someone who fired the helper for redundancy. The helper's contract continues to bind the household, not just one person.
Pregnancy
An employer cannot terminate a domestic helper because she is pregnant — this is automatic dismissal under the Sex Discrimination Ordinance and Employment Ordinance s.15. Termination after the helper has given notice of confinement triggers maternity-leave-pay obligations on top of normal termination payments. Get legal advice if this is the scenario.
The helper wants to take a holiday before flying home
Allowed, within limits. The contract ending date and the flight date don't have to be the same. The 14-day rule starts from contract end, so the helper may normally stay up to 14 days (or until her limit of stay ends, if earlier) for packing and goodbyes — she must have left Hong Kong by then.
The 90-second checklist
If you're the employer, work through this in order:
- Decide: notice period OR pay in lieu?
- Write the termination letter (date, last working day, signed by both).
- Hand the helper their passport back same day.
- Calculate final-pay package: salary + notice + leave + air ticket + food allowance + (LSP/SP if applicable).
- Pay it within 7 days of the last working day.
- File ID-407E with Immigration within 7 days.
- Get a signed receipt for the final-pay package.
If you're the helper:
- Get the termination letter signed and keep your copy.
- Confirm in writing what the final-pay total will be and the date.
- File ID-407F yourself within 7 days — don't wait for the employer.
- Plan your departure now — the 14-day clock starts from your last working day, not the day you found out. A new employer will normally need to apply while you are back home.
- If anything is unpaid after 7 days, contact the Labour Department (FDH hotline 2157 9537).
Where to get free help
- Labour Department FDH hotline — 2157 9537 (24 hours, handled by 1823). Free advice for both sides on wages, notice and other employment rights.
- Immigration Department FDH e-services — immd.gov.hk/eng/services/visas/foreign_domestic_helpers.html for ID-407 forms and upload portal.
- Mission for Migrant Workers — +852 2522 8264. Free legal aid, shelter, and counselling for helpers in disputes. They take walk-ins at St. John's Cathedral, Garden Road.
- Helpers For Domestic Helpers (HDH) — +852 2523 4020. Similar role, with translators in 8 languages.
The Hong Kong system is unusually employee-protective compared to other jurisdictions in the region — the procedures look strict but they exist to keep both sides whole. The fastest way to get the process wrong is to skip the paperwork; the fastest way to get it right is to follow this list in order.