Salary of foreign domestic helper in Hong Kong: Your Guide

Hiring a Foreign Domestic Helper (FDH) has become a popular and practical choice for many families in Hong Kong. Whether you’re an employer or a domestic helper, understanding your rights and responsibilities is key. Employers need to be aware of the legal regulations surrounding wages, food allowances, and accommodation, while helpers should be informed about their entitlements.

In general, domestic helpers in Hong Kong are protected by minimum allowable wage legislation, and have the right to free accommodation at the employer’s address, food - or a food allowance - and medical care. The set levels for minimum wage and food allowance are reviewed annually by the Government. This article will give you the salary of a domestic helper in Hong Kong for 2024. And you will also understand the minimum allowable salary for domestic helpers from 2024 after reading this guide.

If you also want to help your domestic helper to save money when remitting money home to their loved ones, you'll also know how to do so with Wise international payments. More on that later!

How much is the salary of a domestic helper in Hong Kong?

Foreign Domestic Helpers (FDH) in Hong Kong are entitled by minimum allowable wage legislation, namely the Minimum Allowable Wage (MAW). But of course, as an employer, you still can choose to offer salary to your domestic helper above the minimum required level.

In some areas with more local families, the domestic helper salary is just somewhat around the minimum wage. There are other areas with higher-income families who are paying their helpers from HKD 5,000 to HKD 8,000¹. Some helpers with special skills like driving can be compensated up to HKD 15,000¹.

So it will totally depend on you to set the salary for your domestic helper as long as it is above the minimum wage. In general, the average domestic helper salary in 2024 is around HKD 5,310¹.

What is the minimum wage for domestic helpers?

At this point of this article, you are likely already aware that FDHs in Hong Kong are entitled to a MAW. Effective from September 28, 2004, the government increased the MAW by 2.5%, raising it to HKD 4,990 per month. ²

Please note that the Government frequently reviews the Minimum Allowable Wage (MAW) for FDHs in response to Hong Kong's ever-changing economic and labor market conditions. Therefore, it is always advisable to check the Hong Kong Government's website for the full review announcement. You can also find detailed information about your employment rights as a Foreign Domestic Helper on the Labour Department website, which is available in multiple languages.

Food allowance for domestic helper

In addition to their salary, domestic helpers in Hong Kong are also entitled to either free meals or a food allowance. This means you will either need to provide your domestic helper with free food or pay them a food allowance every month.

In the recent review of minimum FDH salaries, the food allowance remained at HKD 1,236 per month, in addition to the regular salary.²

Domestic helpers in Hong Kong are also entitled to at least 1 rest day in every period of 7 days, statutory holidays and paid annual leave. As an employer, you also need to provide your helper with free accommodation in your home (with some privacy), free medical treatment, and airfare to travel to Hong Kong. When the contract ends, you’ll need to cover their return trip to their home country.⁷

How should you decide the salary of your helper?

Domestic helpers in Hong Kong often leave their home countries in search of a better life for themselves and their families. They provide vital services for you—caring for children, assisting the elderly, cooking meals, and cleaning homes—while also sending a portion of their earnings back home to support their loved ones. Given the indispensable nature of their work, it is essential to acknowledge their contributions by compensating them with a fair wage.

Although MAW gives you a legal baseline to set domestic helper salaries, it should not be the only factor in determining their compensation. To ensure fair pay, consider additional factors such as the employment location, specific job responsibilities, and the helper's skills and experience. For example, many families are willing to offer a much higher rate for helpers with specialised skills—such as driving, nursing, or holding first-aid certifications.

In general, it is always wise to take these factors, along with your own needs, into account when making an offer. Domestic helper’s salaries need to be paid in full, according to the amount specified in the contract. And voluntarily increasing the wage when a helper performs well is an effective way to ensure fair employment and maintain their retention rate.

When should you pay the domestic helper salary?

Employers are required to pay their domestic helpers monthly, with payment made no later than 7 days after the end of the salary period.³ Additionally, the gap between salary payments must not exceed one month. This means you cannot withhold domestic helper salary and pay in bulk later.

Let’s take look at an example to illustrate this laws:

If your domestic helper’s salary period runs from the 1st to the last day of each month:

• For January’s salary, payment must be made by February 7th at the latest.
• For February’s salary, payment must be made by March 7th at the latest.

As an employer, you must meet these deadlines. Paying after this timeline would be a violation of the law.

Do domestic helpers pay tax in Hong Kong?

Yes and no, depending on how much the salary of the domestic helper is!

The basic tax allowance for Hong Kong is currently set at 132,000 HKD a year, or 11,000 HKD a month.⁴ In addition there are various deductions which can be made from income to reflect costs like self-education, insurance and charitable deductions. This means that only workers earning in excess of 11,000 HKD a month - after deductions - will need to have their income reported to the tax authorities and then assessed for income tax.⁵

If your domestic helper’s salary is above 11,000 HKD per month after deductions, tax is payable based on a sliding scale, meaning the more your domestic helper earns, the higher the overall tax will be.

If you have any concerns about tax in Hong Kong, seek professional advice and check out the guidance on the Inland Revenue Department website.

Many domestic helpers in Hong Kong send a portion of their monthly salary home to support their families. Using traditional banks or virtual banks for international remittances can be confusing or costly. Whether you're an employer assisting with remittances, or you’re a helper looking for options,, Wise can be a cost-effective solution.

With Wise international payments, you can transfer money online or via a smartphone, sending funds directly from a bank account or card to the recipient’s bank account or mobile wallet like GCash or DANA. Wise supports the real mid-market exchange rate with a low, transparent fee! You can save significantly compared to traditional banks or other money transfer services and keep the long lines at money changers.

And there’s more good news - Wise has recently launched in the Philippines! If you or your domestic helper are from the Philippines, both of you can now save more when sending, receiving, and spending money with Wise.

Sources last checked on 10-Mar-2025.