Hire in Hong Kong

Salary Currency
Hong Kong Dollar (HKD)

Capital
Hong Kong

Contract Language
English

Payroll Cycle
Monthly

Our quickstart guide to hiring in
Hong Kong

Learn everything you need to know about hiring an employee in Hong Kong

Wage & Tax Obligations

Minimum Wage Requirements

The minimum wage is HKD 6,300 per month

Individual Income Tax

Hong Kong uses a progressive tax system for individual income tax, ranging from 0% to 17%. Multiple additional factors may impact overall rates such as the household status and the number of children.

  • Up to HKD 50,000: 2%

  • HKD 50,001 to HKD 100,000: 6%

  • HKD 100,001 to HKD 150,000: 10%

  • HKD 150,001 to HKD 200,000: 14%

  • Above HKD 200,000: 17%

Payroll Cost

Employer typically pays:

  • Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) - 5%

Overtime Pay & Maximum Hours

The standard working hours in Hong Kong are 40 hours per week (generally 8 hours per day for 5-day workweeks).

Overtime payment is not mandatory. Overtime can be agreed upon between an employer and employee in an employment agreement. 

Leave Management

Maternity Leave

Hong Kong female employees can enjoy 14 weeks of paid maternity leave if they have worked for the company for more than 40 weeks before the due date. Otherwise, they may take up to 10 weeks of unpaid maternity leave.

The payment standard for maternity wages is 80% of the employee’s average daily wages in the previous 12 months.

Paternity Leave

Fathers are entitled to five days of paid paternity leave, and able to take them from 4 weeks before the due date to 14 weeks after birth.

Vacation can be taken all at once or spread over several days.

Parental Leave

In Vietnam, no law covers parental leave. However, employees may be entitled to maternity and paternity leave.

Employees are entitled to paid sick leave for up to 120 days if accrued. The first 4 days are unpaid and considered as a qualifying period.

Paid sick leave generally accrues at the rate of two days per month for the first year. This is then calculated at the rate of four days per month for each subsequent year.

Sick pay is allocated equal to 80% of the employee's average daily wage over the preceding 12 months. If the employee has been with the company for less than a year, the rate is calculated based on average daily earnings since joining.

Sick Leave

Termination Policy

Termination Requirements

There is no at-will termination in Hong Kong. Termination must be done for justificable reasons.

  • Valid reasons for dismissal include misconduct, redundancy, or poor performance.

Notice Period

The notice period varies based on the length of employment:

  • During probation period, and more than 1 month: 7 day notice.

  • Past Probation period: 30 days notice.

Severance for Employees

In Hong Kong, all employees who worked more than 2 years, and terminated due to redundancy are entitled to severance pay.

Severance pay is calculated as two-thirds of the employee's monthly wage or two-thirds of HK $22,500, whichever is less, for each year of service. The total statutory severance payment is capped at HK $390,000.

Statutory Time Off

Paid Time Off

In Hong Kong, employees are entitled to 7 days of leave after completing the initial 12 months of employment. Employers may not impose a cap on the number of days carried forward. Furthermore, there are no legal limits.

Public Holidays

Employees in Hong Kong are entitled to the following 16 public holidays:

  • Lunar New Year’s Day

  • The second day of Lunar New Year

  • The third day of Lunar New Year

  • The fourth day of Lunar New Year

  • Qing Ming Festival

  • Good Friday

  • Day following Good Friday

  • Easter Monday

  • Labour Day

  • Dragon Boat Festival

  • Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day

  • Mid-Autumn Festival

  • National Day

  • Chung Yeung Festival

  • Christmas

  • The first weekday after Christmas Day

If a public holiday falls on a rest day, the following day is a public holiday.

Disclaimer

The information contained in this Country Guide is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter. The contents of this Country Guide contain general information and may not reflect current legal developments or address your situation. You should not act or refrain from acting on the basis of any content included in this Country Guide without seeking the advice or representation of a licensed attorney. Anemone HR disclaims all liability for actions you take or fail to take based on any content included in this Country Guide.

Information provided in this Country Guide is provided “as is” without warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including without limitation warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement. Anemone HR periodically adds, changes, improves, updates, or removes information without notice, and assumes no liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions in the contents of this Country Guide. This Country Guide may contain links to other websites. Anemone HR disclaims all liability for the privacy practices or the content of such websites.

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