Making the wrong hiring decision can be costly, with some experts putting this cost at 30% of an employee’s first-year salary or higher. Despite their best efforts, employers in Hong Kong can find themselves at risk of wasting money, time, and productivity if the people they interview and hire don’t work out. Employees can also lose time and career momentum when they take jobs that don’t match their skills or give them a sense of fulfillment.

While they’re not a magic bullet, probation periods can give both parties a final chance to reassess their choices. This guide will reveal the benefits and regulations of probation periods in Hong Kong to help you use this employment tool effectively.

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Definition of a Probation Period in Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, a probation period is considered a period of time that allows the employer to fairly assess an employee before accepting them as a permanent employee. This period must be stated in the employee’s contract, and it must start on the first day of the worker’s employment. During this time, the employer watches the employee closely to ensure that they are fit for the job they will hold. They’re assessed for their performance and also their ability to adapt to the team and company dynamics they encounter. If they don’t prove themselves valuable during probation, they may be terminated.

Employees, for their part, assess their employers and working conditions as well. They check that the terms and environments they were promised are accurate and that they’ll be able to perform well and prosper in their new positions. If they don’t feel this is the case, however, they may resign during the probation period.

When the period comes to an end and neither party has terminated the employment arrangement, the probation is considered successful. The employee continues in their contract as a permanent employee.

Lengths of Probationary Periods in Hong Kong

The length of a probationary period in Hong Kong can vary from one to six months. Probation isn’t mandatory, and there is no minimum length required. The length that a period can last depends on the type and duration of the employee’s contract and must be reasonable. There is no maximum mandated duration, so employers can choose how long probation periods will last.

Legal Considerations of Probation Periods in Hong Kong

While Hong Kong is a part of China, it is a special administrative region (SAR) with its own laws that can differ substantially from China’s. Labor in Hong Kong is generally governed by the Employment Ordinance which defines probationary periods.

Pay and Working Conditions 

In many countries, probationary employees must be paid as much as their permanent counterparts. However, this is not so in Hong Kong and employers can offer workers lower wages during probation.

Employers can offer lower pay but this cannot be less than the Hong Kong minimum wage of 40 HKD (Hong Kong dollars) per hour (roughly 5.15 USD).

The employer is not allowed to require probationary workers to work longer hours or more overtime than their permanent counterparts.

Termination and Notice

As in many countries, employers in Hong Kong can terminate workers during or at the end of their probationary periods. However, they must have good reasons to do so and be able to prove them. This means that employers are obligated to formally assess their new workers and help them to develop with the intent of continuing their employment. However, employees can be immediately terminated for gross misconduct while on probation.

Either party, the employer or the employee, can terminate their employment contract within the first month of probation without providing the other with notice. After this first month, however, either must give the other a minimum of seven days’ notice if they choose to terminate their contract.

Pregnant employees cannot be terminated during the first twelve weeks of their probationary periods because of their pregnancies, but can be dismissed for other reasons.

Vacation / Holidays

Hong Kong workers are entitled to annual leave, which starts at seven days per year for each of their first two years of employment and then increases by one day a year to a maximum of 14 days per year.

Probation periods count toward this leave accumulation, but workers can only use their vacation days after working for one full year. Therefore, probationary workers cannot take annual leave.

Hong Kong workers are also entitled to 14 public holidays each year. If these holidays fall within an employee’s probation period, they are entitled to leave with pay or a replacement holiday within 30 days of the public holiday.

Benefits of Probation Periods in Hong Kong

Hong Kong workers and employers can both gain advantages from using probation periods. Some of the benefits they receive include:

  • For Employees

The chance to try out a new position and working environment before committing fully to the employer

An opportunity to resign without having to give notice at the beginning of the period

  • For Employers

The chance to closely evaluate workers and help them develop their skills and aptitudes

Motivation for workers to prove themselves and come up to full productivity quickly

The option to pay new workers less while their productivity is sub-optimal

A chance to terminate workers quickly and without the need to give notice

Frequently Asked Questions

No, probation periods aren’t mandatory in Hong Kong and using them is at the discretion of employers. They are, however, very common and longer for positions that require expertise and technical know-how.

Yes, they do. There is no at-will employment in Hong Kong, and employers are instead obligated to fairly assess employees and provide good reasons why they fail during their probation periods. The only exception to this is gross misconduct, though the employer is still obligated to provide proof to support this kind of dismissal.

Since probation periods are not mandatory or restricted in length, they can be of any duration. However, most probation periods last between three and six months with longer periods being more common for managers and other high-level positions.