Statutory holidays in Hong Kong to increase to 17 days

All Hong Kong employees, under the Employment Ordinance, are entitled to 12 days of statutory holidays. Some are granted all 17 days of general holidays (which consist of all statutory holidays plus five days) by agreement, but most blue-collars are only given 12.

Following the passage of the Employment (Amendment) Bill 2021, starting from 2022, one statutory holiday will be added every two years, such that all employees will enjoy  17 days of statutory holidays by 2030. 

New statutory holidays will be phased in over an eight year period as follows:

• the Birthday of Buddha, being the eighth day of the fourth lunar month (from 1 January 2022)
• the first weekday after Christmas Day (from 1 January 2024)
• Easter Monday (from 1 January 2026)
• Good Friday (from 1 January 2028) and 
• the day following Good Friday (from 1 January 2030).

The change was introduced as part of the Hong Kong government’s initiatives to benefit grassroots and the underprivileged in the city. Around 1.2 million or close to 40% of all employees are currently granted statutory holidays only. Employers should review and update their employment contracts, employee handbook, payment systems and rosters accordingly to reflect the additional statutory holiday(s).

Please do not hesitate to contact Andrea Randall, a Partner and Head of the Employment Practice in Hong Kong for any employment law related queries you may have. 

All material contained in this article are provided for general information purposes only and should not be construed as legal, accounting, financial or tax advice or opinion on any specific facts or circumstances and should not be relied upon in that regard. RPC accepts no responsibility for any loss or damage arising directly or indirectly from action taken, or not taken, which may arise from reliance on information contained in this article. You are urged to seek legal advice concerning your own situation and any specific legal question that you may have.

Our team at RPC are widely recognized as leading employment lawyers in Hong Kong. We are of the few specialist employment law practices in Hong Kong and we act for both employers and employees on contentious and non-contentious matters.