Reimbursement of Maternity Leave Pay Scheme in Hong Kong

From 11 December 2020, Hong Kong's statutory maternity leave entitlement increased from 10 weeks to 14 weeks. For details of the enhanced maternity leave entitlement (and other recent employment law changes in Hong Kong), please see our earlier post here.

Starting from 1 April 2021, employers can apply to the Reimbursement of Maternity Leave Pay Scheme (the RMLP Scheme) to seek reimbursement for the additional 4 weeks (i.e. the 11th to 14th weeks) of maternity leave pay. Employers are reminded that the additional 4 weeks' pay is subject to a cap of HK$80,000 per employee.  

To be eligible for the RMLP Scheme:- 

1. before the application is made, the employee must have taken her maternity leave and the employer must have paid 14 weeks of statutory maternity leave pay to the employee;
   
   
2. the employee must be entitled to maternity leave and maternity leave pay under the Employment Ordinance; 
   
   
3. the employee's confinement must have occurred on or after 11 December 2020; 
   
   
4. the statutory maternity leave pay in respect of the extended period must not be covered by other government funding; and
   
   
5. applications must be submitted either within three months of the start of the RMLP Scheme on 1 April 2021 or within three months of the last day of the employee's 14 weeks of statutory maternity leave (whichever is later).

Applications can be submitted online at www.rmlps.gov.hk. The RLMP Scheme website also contains useful information and FAQs on the Scheme itself and how to apply.

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.