Annual Leave in Hong Kong: 2026 Guide for Employees, Employers, and Domestic Helpers

Quick Answer: How Much Annual Leave Are You Entitled to in Hong Kong?

In Hong Kong, employees who have completed 12 months of continuous service under a continuous contract are entitled to paid annual leave starting at 7 days per year, increasing by 1 day for every additional year of service up to a maximum of 14 days after 9 or more years of service. This is the statutory minimum set by the Employment Ordinance (Cap. 57). Many employers, especially in finance, professional services, and tech, offer 15 to 25 days of annual leave as part of their standard contractual benefits.

Annual leave in Hong Kong is separate from the 15 statutory holidays and 17 general (public) holidays that all employees are entitled to in 2026. Annual leave is also separate from sick leave, maternity leave, paternity leave, and rest days.

For foreign domestic helpers, annual leave entitlement follows the same Employment Ordinance schedule, starting at 7 days after the first year and reaching 14 days after 9 years of continuous service with the same employer.

Annual Leave Entitlement in Hong Kong by Year of Service

The Employment Ordinance sets out a clear, fixed schedule of statutory annual leave entitlement based purely on years of continuous service. There is no negotiation: your employer must grant at least these days, although they are free to offer more.

The progression is simple to remember: 7 days for the first 2 years, then 1 extra day for each year of service from year 3 to year 9, capped at 14 days. After 9 years, annual leave does not increase further under statute, although many employers continue to add days as a contractual benefit.

Eligibility: What Is a "Continuous Contract" in Hong Kong?

To be entitled to statutory annual leave, you must be working under a "continuous contract", which is defined under the Employment Ordinance. The threshold changed on 1 January 2026 with the introduction of the new "468 rule":

• You must have worked at least 68 hours in any 4-week period under the same employer.

Before 1 January 2026, the rule was 18 hours per week for 4 consecutive weeks (the "418 rule"). The new rule is more flexible because it averages your hours across 4 weeks, which makes it easier for part-time, shift, and irregular-hour workers to qualify.

If you do not meet the continuous contract threshold, you are still entitled to certain core protections under the Employment Ordinance, including statutory holidays, but you are not entitled to statutory annual leave, sick leave, maternity leave, or severance pay.

Statutory vs Contractual Annual Leave

This is the most important concept in Hong Kong annual leave law and the one most often misunderstood. Most Hong Kong employers (especially in white-collar professional sectors) offer more annual leave than the statutory minimum. This extra leave is called contractual annual leave and it is governed by your employment contract, not by the Employment Ordinance.

Why It Matters

If your employment contract clearly distinguishes between statutory and contractual annual leave, the contractual portion can be governed by stricter rules: it can be capped, it can have a "use it or lose it" expiry, and it can be forfeited in certain circumstances. Statutory annual leave cannot be forfeited under any circumstances.

Worked Example

Suppose your contract gives you 20 days of annual leave in your first year of service. The Employment Ordinance requires 7 days at that point in service. If your contract is well-drafted, those 20 days will be split as:

• 7 days of statutory annual leave (cannot be forfeited, must be carried forward if untaken)
• 13 days of contractual annual leave (can be capped, forfeited, or paid out, depending on contract terms)

If your contract does not draw this distinction, the entire 20 days will likely be treated as statutory leave under the Employment Ordinance, which gives you stronger protection but reduces the employer's flexibility.

When you next review your contract, look specifically for a clause that says something like "Of the [X] days of annual leave granted, 7 days shall be statutory annual leave under the Employment Ordinance and the remainder shall be contractual annual leave subject to the company's leave policy." This distinction is to your benefit if you stay long-term and want flexibility, and to the employer's benefit if you leave early.

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How to Calculate Annual Leave Pay in Hong Kong

Annual leave is paid leave. The Employment Ordinance sets a specific formula for calculating the daily rate of annual leave pay.

The Formula

Annual leave pay for one day = your average daily wages earned in the 12-month period immediately preceding the date you take annual leave.

If you have been employed for less than 12 months, the average is calculated over your actual period of employment.

What "Wages" Includes and Excludes

Wages for the purpose of this calculation include:

• Basic salary
• Commissions
• Allowances paid for work done
• Tips, service charges, and any other money paid for work performed

Wages exclude:

• Periods during which the employee was not paid wages or paid less than full wages (rest days, statutory holidays, annual leave, sick leave, maternity leave, paternity leave, suspension, no-pay leave)
• Payments made during those excluded periods
• End-of-year bonuses, lump-sum payments, and discretionary payments not directly linked to work performed

A Worked Example: How to Compute Annual Leave Pay in Hong Kong

Suppose you earn HKD 35,000 per month in basic salary plus HKD 5,000 per month in commissions, and you have been employed for 14 months.

1. Take the most recent 12 months of pay (months 3 through 14).
2. Total wages earned in those 12 months: 12 x HKD 40,000 = HKD 480,000.
3. Total days in those 12 months: 365.
4. Subtract days during which you were not paid full wages. Suppose you took 12 days of statutory holidays, 7 days of annual leave, and 52 rest days (one per week). That is 71 unpaid-rate days. Working days in the 12-month period: 365 - 71 = 294.
5. Average daily wages: HKD 480,000 / 294 = approximately HKD 1,633 per day.
6. Annual leave pay for one day = HKD 1,633.
7. If you take 7 days of annual leave, your annual leave pay is approximately HKD 11,431, which should be paid no later than your normal payday following the period of leave.

The Hong Kong Labour Department offers a free 12-Month Average Wages Calculator on its website that does this calculation for you. We strongly recommend using it to avoid disputes.

Annual Leave Pay Must Be Paid on Time

Your employer must pay your annual leave pay no later than your normal payday following the period of annual leave you took. Failure to pay annual leave pay is an offence under the Employment Ordinance, punishable by a fine of up to HKD 50,000.

Who Decides When You Take Leave?

Your employer has the legal right to determine when annual leave is taken, but they must consult you and give you at least 14 days' written notice of the leave period. In practice, the vast majority of Hong Kong employers allow employees to choose when they take leave, subject to operational approval.

Annual Leave Must Be Granted Within 12 Months

The Employment Ordinance requires annual leave to be granted within 12 months of the end of the leave year in which it accrued. If you accrued 7 days of annual leave during your leave year ending 31 December 2025, your employer must allow you to take it by 31 December 2026.

Continuous vs Split Leave

Paid annual leave should generally be granted as one unbroken period, although the employee can request to split it. The rules are:

• For leave entitlement of 10 days or fewer: Up to 3 days can be taken separately at the employee's request. The remaining days must be granted consecutively.
• For leave entitlement of more than 10 days: At least 7 days must be granted consecutively. The remaining days can be split.

What Happens If a Statutory Holiday Falls During Your Annual Leave?

If a rest day or a statutory holiday falls within a period of annual leave, that day is not counted as annual leave. Your employer must grant you another rest day or holiday in lieu, or the day must be added to the end of your leave.

This is a useful rule to know when planning leave around long weekends, especially in 2026 with the new Easter Monday statutory holiday.

Carrying Forward and Payment in Lieu of Annual Leave

Carrying Forward Statutory Annual Leave

Statutory annual leave cannot be forfeited. If you do not take your statutory leave in the year following its accrual, it must be rolled over. A clause in your contract that purports to forfeit untaken statutory leave is void and unenforceable.

This means that if you have been with an employer for several years and have not taken your full statutory entitlement, you may have a substantial untaken balance that must be paid out on termination.

Payment in Lieu of Annual Leave

Payment in lieu of annual leave is allowed only in limited circumstances:

• During employment: If you have more than 10 days of accrued statutory annual leave in a leave year, you may, with your consent, accept payment in lieu of the days in excess of 10. You cannot be forced into this. The first 10 days must be taken as actual leave.
• On termination of employment: Your employer must pay you for any accrued but untaken statutory annual leave when your employment ends, regardless of how many days are owed. This is calculated using the same average-daily-wages formula.

Carrying Forward Contractual Annual Leave

Contractual annual leave (the portion above the statutory minimum) is governed by your contract. Common contract terms include:

• Cap on carry-forward (for example, "up to 5 days can be carried forward to the next leave year")
• Use it or lose it by 31 March of the following year
• Pro rata payment in lieu on termination

Always check your contract for the specific rules that apply to your contractual leave.

Annual Leave for Domestic Helpers in Hong Kong

Foreign domestic helpers are entitled to the same statutory annual leave schedule as any other employee under the Employment Ordinance. The schedule is identical:

How Many Days Annual Leave for a Domestic Helper for 4 Years of Service?

After 4 years of continuous service with the same employer, a foreign domestic helper is entitled to 9 days of paid annual leave per year. This rises to 10 days after 5 years, 11 days after 6 years, and so on, up to a maximum of 14 days after 9 years.

How to Compute Annual Leave Pay for a Domestic Helper

The formula is identical to the formula for any other employee: annual leave pay equals the helper's average daily wages over the 12-month period preceding the leave (or shorter period if employed for less than 12 months).

For a helper on a fixed monthly salary (which is the standard structure for foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong), the calculation is straightforward:

• Take the helper's monthly salary (for example, HKD 4,990, the minimum monthly wage for foreign domestic helpers from October 2025 onwards).
• Multiply by 12 to get annual wages: HKD 4,990 x 12 = HKD 59,880.
• Divide by the number of working days in the year. Helpers typically have 52 rest days per year (one per week) plus statutory holidays. So working days are roughly 365 - 52 - 15 = 298 days. (This figure varies slightly depending on which holidays fell on rest days that year.)
• Average daily wage: HKD 59,880 / 298 = approximately HKD 200.94 per day.

For each day of annual leave, the helper is entitled to roughly HKD 201 in annual leave pay, on top of their normal monthly salary.

Important Rules Specific to Domestic Helpers

• Statutory holiday during annual leave. If a statutory holiday falls during the helper's annual leave, the helper must be granted another day of paid leave to compensate.
• Travel home for annual leave. If your helper takes annual leave to return to their home country, you are obliged to provide a return air ticket and a food and travelling allowance, separately from the leave pay.
• Annual leave on termination. If your helper's contract ends with untaken annual leave, you must pay out the unused leave at the average daily wage rate.

Annual Leave vs Statutory Holidays vs Public Holidays

Hong Kong employees benefit from three separate categories of paid time off, and they are easy to confuse. Here is how they fit together in 2026:

A 2026 employee with 1 year of service who works for an employer that grants all general holidays plus contractual leave above the minimum (the norm for office jobs) might receive:

• 17 general holidays (paid days off, fixed dates)
• Plus 15 to 20 days of paid annual leave (timing chosen by employer, with consultation)
• Plus weekly rest days

The difference between the two scenarios is roughly 10 to 15 additional paid days off per year for the white-collar employee. This is why benchmarking your contract against your industry matters.

Annual Leave for Part-Time Employees

A part-time employee is entitled to statutory annual leave on the same schedule as a full-time employee, provided they meet the continuous contract threshold (the 468 rule from January 2026: 68 hours over any 4-week period under the same employer). The number of days of leave is the same (7 to 14 days), but the value of each day reflects the part-time employee's actual average daily wages, which will be lower than a full-timer's.

Part-timers who do not meet the continuous contract threshold are not entitled to statutory annual leave under the Employment Ordinance, although their contract may provide pro-rata leave as a benefit.

Common Mistakes Hong Kong Employers Make

In our experience supporting Hong Kong employers and reviewing employment contracts, the most frequent annual leave compliance failures are:

1. Not distinguishing statutory from contractual leave in the contract. This means generous employers accidentally lose flexibility on the contractual portion.
2. Forfeiting unused statutory leave. A "use it or lose it by year end" clause that applies to statutory leave is unenforceable.
3. Calculating annual leave pay on basic salary alone. Annual leave pay must include commissions and regular allowances, not just basic salary.
4. Failing to give 14 days' notice when directing leave. Employers can require an employee to take statutory leave, but only with at least 14 days' written notice.
5. Trying to pay out the first 10 days of annual leave. The first 10 days must be taken as actual time off; only days in excess of 10 can be paid out, and only with the employee's consent.
6. Not paying out accrued leave on termination. Untaken statutory leave must be paid out when employment ends.

FAQs About Annual Leave in HK

How many days annual leave am I entitled to in Hong Kong?

After 12 months of continuous service, you are entitled to a statutory minimum of 7 days of paid annual leave per year, rising by 1 day per year of additional service up to a maximum of 14 days after 9 years. Most professional employers offer 15 to 25 days as a contractual benefit.

How to compute annual leave pay in Hong Kong?

Annual leave pay per day equals your average daily wages over the 12-month period before the leave. Wages include basic salary, commissions, and allowances; they exclude unpaid periods and lump-sum payments. The Hong Kong Labour Department's free 12-Month Average Wages Calculator does this calculation for you.

How to compute annual leave pay for a domestic helper?

The same formula applies. Take the helper's total wages over the most recent 12 months (or shorter period if employed for less than 12 months), divide by the number of working days, and the result is the daily rate of annual leave pay. For a helper on the minimum monthly wage of HKD 4,990, this works out to roughly HKD 201 per day of annual leave.

How many days annual leave for a domestic helper after 4 years of service?

A foreign domestic helper with 4 years of continuous service with the same employer is entitled to 9 days of paid annual leave per year. This rises to 10 days at 5 years, 11 days at 6 years, 12 days at 7 years, 13 days at 8 years, and 14 days at 9 years and beyond.

How to compute annual leave?

Annual leave is computed based on your years of continuous service: 7 days for the first 2 years, then 1 additional day for each year of service from year 3 to year 9, capped at 14 days. Annual leave pay per day equals your average daily wages over the previous 12 months.

How is annual leave calculated in Hong Kong?

Two calculations matter: (1) the number of days of annual leave is fixed by the Employment Ordinance based on your years of service, and (2) the value of each day is calculated as your average daily wages over the previous 12 months, including basic salary, commissions, and allowances but excluding unpaid periods.

Is annual leave paid in Hong Kong?

Yes. After 12 months of continuous service, you are entitled to paid annual leave at your average daily wage rate. Your employer must pay your annual leave pay no later than your normal payday following the period of leave.

Can my employer force me to take annual leave?

Yes, with limits. Your employer can direct you to take statutory annual leave by giving at least 14 days' written notice (or shorter, if you agree). They cannot, however, force you to take annual leave to shorten a notice period unless your contract specifically allows it.

Can my employer pay me money instead of giving me annual leave?

Only in limited circumstances. The first 10 days of annual leave in any leave year must be taken as actual time off. Days in excess of 10 can be paid out in lieu, but only with your consent. On termination of employment, all accrued but untaken annual leave must be paid out.

What happens to my unused annual leave if I leave the company?

Your employer must pay you for any accrued but untaken statutory annual leave when your employment ends. This is calculated at your average daily wage. Untaken contractual leave (the portion above the statutory minimum) may be paid out, capped, or forfeited depending on the terms of your contract.

Can I carry over annual leave to the next year?

Yes, statutory annual leave can be carried over indefinitely; it cannot be forfeited under the Employment Ordinance. Contractual leave (above the statutory minimum) may be subject to a cap or expiry date set by your employment contract.

Does annual leave include public holidays?

No. Annual leave and public holidays are separate. If a statutory holiday or rest day falls within your annual leave, your employer must grant you an additional day off in lieu, so you do not "lose" a holiday by taking leave around it.

When can I start taking annual leave?

Statutory entitlement begins after 12 months of continuous service, but in practice, most Hong Kong employers allow new employees to take annual leave after 3 months of service, often on a pro-rata basis. Check your contract for the specific rules.

Is annual leave the same as sick leave in Hong Kong?

No. Annual leave and sick leave are separate entitlements with different rules. Sick leave (sickness allowance) accrues at 2 days per month for the first 12 months of employment, then 4 days per month, up to a maximum of 120 days. Sick leave is paid at 80% of average daily wages, and requires a medical certificate to claim.

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This article is general information and does not constitute legal advice. Always confirm specific entitlements against your employment contract and the Hong Kong Labour Department's official guidance at labour.gov.hk before making decisions.