Tell your employer in writing, with the medical certificate
Maternity leave in Hong Kong is 14 weeks. Checked against labour.gov.hk on 22 September 2026.
- Who it applies to
- People who are employed
- On your timeline
- Paperbump schedules this usually between week 12 and week 14 of the pregnancy
- Official source
- labour.gov.hk
- Last checked
- 22 September 2026
What else to know
To be paid for it you need to have been on a continuous contract with your employer for 40 weeks before the leave starts — a continuous contract means working for the same employer for 4 weeks or more, at least 18 hours each week — and you have to give notice: tell your employer you are pregnant and intend to take maternity leave, and hand over a medical certificate confirming the pregnancy. Protection from dismissal does not start with that notice — the Labour Department says an employer is prohibited from dismissing a pregnant employee from the date on which she is confirmed pregnant by a medical certificate until the date she is due back from maternity leave, provided she is on a continuous contract and has served notice of pregnancy. If you are dismissed before you have served the notice, you can serve it immediately after being told, and your employer must withdraw the dismissal. The pay is four-fifths of your average daily wages over the preceding 12 months, for the 14 weeks. You can start the leave 2 to 4 weeks before the due date; if you say nothing, it starts 4 weeks before.
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