Domestic Helper Contract Renewal in Hong Kong: Steps and Timeline

Direct answer: To renew a foreign domestic helper's contract with the same employer, sign a new ID 407 Standard Employment Contract and apply to the Hong Kong Immigration Department within the eight weeks before the current contract expires. Send the helper's form ID 988A, your form ID 988B, and the original ID 407, online through GovHK or by post, drop-in, or appointment. The new contract must pay at least the Minimum Allowable Wage of HK$5,220 a month if it is signed on or after 3 October 2026, and the helper goes home for a vacation of at least 7 days before the new contract starts.

This guide is for Hong Kong families whose helper is coming to the end of a two-year contract. It covers the order of steps, the forms, the money rules, home leave, and what your Filipino helper does on the Philippine side. Rules and amounts change, so each section points to the official page that backs it. Check those pages again on the day you apply.

The renewal window

Renewal is not automatic. When the two-year ID 407 contract has run its course, you and your helper make a fresh application to the Immigration Department. The department says it will normally accept the application within eight weeks before the existing contract expires. It will not accept an application after both the contract and the helper's limit of stay have expired. See the Immigration Department's renewal rules.

Eight weeks is 56 days. If the contract ends on 31 March 2027, the window opens around 3 February 2027. Count from the contract's expiry date and confirm the first day on the Immigration Department page, because the department decides what "normally" means for your case.

The contract end date is not the same as the date your helper must leave. The department points out that the real end of stay is the limit of stay on the landing slip or the e-Visa from the last approval. A helper who stays past the permitted period can be prosecuted and fined up to HK$50,000, and can be jailed for up to two years. Anyone who helps a helper overstay is also liable. Write both dates on your calendar.

Renewals sent by post, drop-in, or online are normally finalised within 10 working days after the department receives every document, so apply early in the window.

The steps in order

Documents to prepare

The Immigration Department lists these for a same-employer renewal:

1. Form ID 988A, the Visa/Extension of Stay Application Form, completed and signed by the helper.
2. Form ID 988B, the Application for Employment of Domestic Helper from Abroad, completed and signed by you.
3. The original new Standard Employment Contract, ID 407.
4. The helper's travel document. For an in-person application you bring the original. For post, drop-in, or online, you send a copy that shows the personal particulars, photo, and passport validity, plus the latest landing endorsement, landing slip, visa label, or e-Visa.
5. A copy of proof of your financial position and a copy of proof of your residential address.

Item 5 can be skipped in one case. The department says proof of financial position and address is not required if your household income is still at least HK$15,000 per helper and your address has not changed. If either has changed, include the proof. The HK$15,000 figure may be adjusted by the government, so check the current number on the same page.

If you want your helper to drive for the household, the GovHK online service also asks for Form ID934A, the vehicle registration, and the helper's Hong Kong driving licence. ID 407 excludes driving unless special permission is given, so do not add it casually. See the official contract terms.

You can get a blank ID 407 by email or post request to the Immigration Department, or at its offices. The department's page gives the contact details. Read the Labour Department FAQ.

How to apply: online, Smart Renewal, or in person

You have three routes.

Online through GovHK. The GovHK service is for helpers renewing with the same employer. Scan your documents as JPEG, PDF, GIF, PNG, or TIF files, each 5 MB or smaller. The service is not open to you if any of these apply:

• the helper is not physically in Hong Kong when you submit, or will not be in Hong Kong when the e-Visa is collected;
• the helper is on visitor status;
• the helper's remaining limit of stay is more than 8 weeks;
• the limit of stay has expired;
• the helper's travel document expires in 3 months;
• the helper needs to leave Hong Kong and will not return before the limit of stay ends;
• circumstances changed since entry or the last extension, such as a change of employer;
• the helper has been told the next extension will be reviewed; or
• you are extending the current contract by one month under mutual agreement.

If you fall into one of those cases, use post, drop-in, or an appointment instead. Check the GovHK online service page.

Smart Renewal. This is the Immigration Department's name for the faster payment and e-Visa path. It covers two cases: contract renewal with the same employer, and completing the remaining period of the current contract. It does not cover applications that need in-person submission or an interview because of special circumstances. When the application is approved, the notice includes a payment link. After payment, the helper can download or print the e-Visa. The department says the helper must be physically in Hong Kong to pay and to collect the e-Visa. Read the Smart Renewal page.

By post, drop-in, or in person. Post and drop-in go to the Foreign Domestic Helpers Section at the Immigration Headquarters in Tseung Kwan O. In-person submission, at that section or at listed branch offices, needs an appointment, which you book at www.gov.hk/esbooking or on the 24-hour hotline, (852) 2598 0888. The department asks for sufficient postage on mail, and it does not accept underpaid items.

The visa fee

The Immigration Department's fee table lists HK$330 for a change of condition of stay, including an extension of limit of stay, in the "others" category. The fee table does not name foreign domestic helpers, so ask the department to confirm that this category and amount apply to your application. The department revised its fees from 8 September 2025, and the table can change again. Check the current fee table.

You pay after approval, not when you apply. For Smart Renewal cases you pay through the link in the approval notice, GovHK, or the ImmD mobile app, by card, Payment by Phone Service, FPS, or a mainland e-wallet. For approvals on or after 1 September 2025, the department no longer encloses a General Demand Note. Applicants who were issued one earlier can still use it before the due date. Cases handled in person pay at collection by cash, EPS, Octopus, FPS, e-wallet, or crossed cheque.

Clause 8 of ID 407 makes the employer responsible for visa fees and similar costs when the helper comes from abroad to start work. Whether you or the helper pays the renewal fee is something to settle in writing now, and the receipt should be kept either way. If you are unsure, ask the Labour Department before you pay.

The wage and food allowance on the new contract

The Minimum Allowable Wage depends on the date you sign the contract. For contracts signed on or after 3 October 2026, the Minimum Allowable Wage is HK$5,220 a month. That is a 2.35 per cent rise from HK$5,100. The Labour Department says you cannot reach a private agreement with your helper on a lower wage, and underpaying can lead to prosecution. Read the 2 October 2026 government announcement.

The food allowance did not change. If you do not provide free food, the allowance is no less than HK$1,236 a month. The amount sits in the contract, so write it on the new ID 407.

There was one transition rule. Contracts signed on or before 2 October 2026 at HK$5,100 were still processed if the application reached the Immigration Department by 30 October 2026, which is the date this guide goes live. After that date, a new contract needs the HK$5,220 rate.

For the full picture of pay, deductions, and rights, see our guide to Hong Kong domestic helper salary, contract, and rights.

Home leave on renewal

Clause 13 of ID 407 governs this. If you and your helper agree to renew, the helper returns to the place of origin before the new contract starts, at your expense, for a paid or unpaid vacation of not less than 7 days. The Labour Department's FAQ states this, with one exception: the helper does not need to go home first if the Director of Immigration has approved an extension of stay in Hong Kong. The Immigration Department adds that you pay the return fare. Read the Immigration Department's home leave arrangement.

Three points families often mix up:

• The Standard Employment Contract says the vacation leave is in addition to the statutory annual leave. Do not count the home leave against the helper's annual leave balance. See our guide to annual leave for domestic helpers in Hong Kong.
• The contract allows the vacation to be paid or unpaid. Agree which one before the helper books the trip, and write it down.
• The standard route is that the helper goes home after the old contract and applies for a visa to come back for the new one. The Immigration Department's FAQ says the helper does not need an extension of stay if you can release the helper for home leave.

If the family cannot spare the helper, both sides can agree to defer the leave. The helper applies for an extension of stay, which the department says is normally for not more than one year, and a fee is payable. Both of you complete the relevant parts of ID 988A and ID 988B. The helper must then take the home vacation within that period, and the department says it will not allow a further extension within the contract period. The contract's Clause 2(B) is the version used when the same employer renews with home leave deferred.

Smart Renewal needs the helper in Hong Kong to pay and collect the e-Visa. So before you book a flight, confirm with the Immigration Department hotline how the home trip fits around payment and e-Visa collection for your case. The hotline is (852) 2824 6111.

What changes and what stays the same

Mistakes that delay the visa

Most delays come from a short list of avoidable errors.

1. Applying too early. The department normally accepts applications only within eight weeks before expiry. Do not file before the window opens.
2. Applying too late. An application after both the contract and the limit of stay have expired is not accepted.
3. Signing the contract at an old wage. A contract signed on or after 3 October 2026 must meet HK$5,220. Check the date on the page you sign.
4. Missing a signature or page. Both of you sign ID 988A and ID 988B. The helper signs ID 407 in the right place too.
5. A bad travel document copy. The copy needs the photo page, passport validity, and the latest landing slip, visa label, or e-Visa.
6. Leaving out proof when circumstances changed. If income or address changed, attach the proof.
7. Choosing the online route when you do not qualify. If the helper is out of Hong Kong or has under three months of passport validity, the online route is closed.
8. Booking home leave before the visa timing is clear. Confirm how Smart Renewal payment and e-Visa collection fit your helper's travel dates.

One more point for the written offer. If you offered in writing to renew at least 7 days before the contract ended and the helper unreasonably refused, the helper is not entitled to severance or long service payment, according to the Labour Department FAQ. A written offer gives you a record, but do not use it to pressure a helper who has a good reason to leave. Pay everything due at the end of the contract.

Philippine-side steps for your helper

Your Filipino helper has tasks of their own with the Migrant Workers Office Hong Kong, or MWO. The MWO is at United Centre, 95 Queensway, Admiralty, so agree with your helper when they can go.

Contract verification. The MWO's contract verification page lists requirements for a renewal: 2 sets of the original Standard Employment Contract, copies of the employer's and helper's Hong Kong ID with a contact number written on the same page, the helper's passport (original and photocopy), a printed copy of the new employment e-Visa, and a completed OWWA OFW information sheet. The helper submits these at the MWO windows, pays the verification fee, and pays the OWWA membership fee if the membership is expired or about to expire. The page says verified contracts are ready for pick-up the same day. See the MWO verification page.

The MWO's 27 February 2026 advisory says new verification fee rates started on 1 March 2026 for new employment contracts, and that renewals and transfers of employer are not affected. It also says returning workers (Balik Manggagawa) remain at HKD 80. Confirm the current fee at the counter. Read the MWO fee advisory.

Exit clearance for the trip home. The MWO's OEC page explains that a returning worker who already acquired an OEC and has not changed employer is notified of an exemption and does not need an appointment at the MWO or the Department of Migrant Workers. The Philippine government has also rolled out the digital OFW Pass, which the Department of Migrant Workers describes as an exit clearance for Balik-Manggagawa workers with the same employer, the same job, and the same country. The helper gets it through the eGovPH app, under the national government agency tab, then DMW, then Balik Manggagawa. Read the DMW's OFW Pass notice.

The official pages do not state the OFW Pass validity period or confirm that it replaces the OEC in every case. Ask the MWO at (+852) 5529 1880 before the helper travels. For a refresher on the OEC itself, see the MWO's OEC page and our OEC requirements guide.

Renewal checklist

Print this and tick it off.

1. Check the contract expiry date and the limit of stay on the landing slip or e-Visa. Note both.
2. Count 8 weeks back from the contract expiry and mark the first day you can apply.
3. Talk to your helper about wage, duties, rest day, and home leave dates.
4. Give a written renewal offer, at least 7 days before expiry and preferably much earlier.
5. Check the current Minimum Allowable Wage and food allowance on the Labour Department page.
6. Fill in a new original ID 407 and update the Schedule of Accommodation and Domestic Duties.
7. Complete ID 988A with your helper and ID 988B yourself. Check every signature.
8. Copy the helper's passport pages and latest landing slip or e-Visa.
9. Gather proof of income and address if either has changed.
10. Submit online, by post, drop-in, or appointment. Note the date and reference number.
11. Pay the fee after approval and download the e-Visa.
12. Book the helper's home leave and return fare once the visa timing is confirmed.
13. Give the helper time for the MWO contract verification and exit clearance.
14. Keep copies of every form, receipt, and the signed contract.

Frequently Asked Questions

When can I apply to renew my domestic helper contract in Hong Kong?

The Immigration Department says applications to renew with the same employer are normally accepted within eight weeks before the existing contract expires. Applications made after the contract and the helper's limit of stay have expired are not accepted.

What wage must a renewed contract pay?

The Minimum Allowable Wage is HK$5,220 a month for contracts signed on or after 3 October 2026. The food allowance stays at no less than HK$1,236 a month. A contract signed at HK$5,100 on or before 2 October 2026 was only processed if the application reached the Immigration Department by 30 October 2026.

Does my helper have to go home when the contract is renewed?

Yes, in the normal case. Clause 13 of the Standard Employment Contract says the helper returns to the place of origin for a paid or unpaid vacation of not less than 7 days before the new contract starts, at the employer's expense. Both sides can agree to defer the leave by applying for an extension of stay of normally not more than one year.

What is Smart Renewal for domestic helpers?

Smart Renewal is an Immigration Department service for contract renewals with the same employer. The approval notice carries a payment link. After paying, the helper downloads or prints the e-Visa. The helper must be physically in Hong Kong to pay and collect the e-Visa.

Does a Filipino helper need an OEC to return after renewal?

A returning worker who already holds an OEC and has not changed employer is notified of an OEC exemption, according to the Migrant Workers Office Hong Kong. The Philippine government has also rolled out a digital OFW Pass for returning workers with the same employer, job, and country. Check the current process with the Migrant Workers Office Hong Kong before booking a flight.

A practical next step for families

Put the contract expiry date and the first day of the eight-week window in your calendar today, then work back through the checklist above. Use Helpers' family guides for other household decisions, read the Hong Kong statutory holidays for 2027 to plan next year's calendar, and see the Hong Kong market page for local options. If you need to hire a new helper instead of renewing, create a family account and start with a clear household brief.