Employment notice in Hong Kong runs on calendar days. Weekends count. General Holidays count. Typhoon Signal 8 days count. The clock does not pause for anything.
If you have worked in the UK, Australia, or Singapore — where notice periods often use working days — Hong Kong's approach will feel aggressive. It is the single most common source of notice-period miscalculations for people new to the jurisdiction.
Three things that catch people out
1. The first month of probation: walk away clean
During the first month of probation, either party can terminate without notice and without payment in lieu. No reason needed, no paperwork beyond the termination itself.
After the first month, the notice period specified in the contract applies — but it must be at least 7 days.
2. The default notice period changes depending on where you are in the employment
The statutory default under Cap. 57 depends on the employment stage:
- During probation, after the first month, if the contract does not specify a notice period: the statutory minimum is not less than 7 days.
- After probation (or where there is no probation clause), if the contract does not specify a notice period: the statutory default is one month.
Any contractual notice period must be at least 7 days. There is no maximum — some contracts specify 3 months or longer.
3. "One month" does not mean 30 days
The Employment Ordinance defines a "month" precisely:
- Starting on the day notice is given (that day is included)
- Ending at the end of the day before the corresponding date in the following month
Worked examples:
| Notice given | Notice expires |
|---|---|
| 13 February | End of 12 March |
| 30 January | End of last day of February |
| Last day of February | End of 31 March |
This is not "approximately 30 days" — it is a precise anniversary-based calculation. The difference matters most in short months: notice given on 30 January expires at the end of the last day of February, which could be 28 or 29 days later.
Payment in lieu of notice
Under Section 7 of the Employment Ordinance, either party may terminate by making a payment in lieu of notice instead of serving the notice period.
The payment equals the wages that would have accrued during the notice period.
Key facts:
- Payment in lieu is taxable income (since April 2012)
- Either party — employer or employee — can choose this option
- The parties can agree to a shorter notice period supported by payment in lieu for the balance
Summary dismissal (Section 9): the nuclear option
An employer may dismiss an employee immediately without notice under Section 9, but only for serious misconduct:
- Wilful disobedience of a lawful and reasonable order
- Misconduct inconsistent with faithful discharge of duties
- An act justifying dismissal under common law
The threshold is high. Courts require cogent evidence, and the burden of proof lies with the employer. In practice, this is reserved for cases like habitual neglect, serious negligence, persistent unauthorised absence, or wilful disobedience — not poor performance or personality clashes.
Every day counts — literally
Employment notice under Cap. 57 uses calendar days:
| Day type | Included in notice count? |
|---|---|
| Weekdays | Yes |
| Saturdays | Yes |
| Sundays | Yes |
| General Holidays | Yes |
| Typhoon Signal 8 days | Yes |
| CNY period | Yes |
The notice period does not pause for any reason. Give one month's notice on 16 February 2026 — the day before Lunar New Year — and the three CNY General Holidays (17–19 February) all count toward the notice period. The clock does not care that nobody is in the office.
Notice requirements by employment stage
| Stage | Notice requirement |
|---|---|
| First month of probation | No notice required |
| After first month of probation (contract specifies) | As specified in contract (minimum 7 days) |
| After first month of probation (contract silent) | Not less than 7 days (statutory minimum) |
| After probation (contract specifies) | As specified in contract (minimum 7 days) |
| After probation (contract silent) | One month (statutory default) |
For a broader comparison of how Hong Kong deadlines use calendar days vs working days, see working days vs calendar days explained.
Unlike the UK or Australia, Hong Kong does not have escalating notice periods based on length of service. One year or twenty years — the statutory notice is the same, unless the contract says otherwise.
Continuous vs non-continuous contracts
The one-month default notice period (where the contract is silent) applies specifically to continuous employment contracts — defined as employees who have worked for the same employer for at least 4 consecutive weeks with at least 18 hours per week.
Employees on non-continuous contracts are still entitled to the basic notice protections (including the first-month-of-probation exemption and the minimum 7-day contractual notice requirement), but the one-month statutory default does not apply in the same way. The notice requirements for non-continuous contracts depend on the terms of the individual contract.
The other rules described above — the probation exemptions, summary dismissal, and calendar-day counting method — apply to employment contracts generally under Cap. 57, not only to continuous contracts.
Where the calculator helps
Employment notice periods use calendar days, but the calculator's Calendar Months mode uses true calendar-month arithmetic — so you can set "1 calendar month" from the notice date and get the correct expiry date, including for short months where no corresponding date exists. The calculator is useful for:
- Computing when a one-month notice period expires using the anniversary rule
- Checking whether the notice expiry date falls on a working day or holiday
- Counting the working days within the notice period for handover planning
- Identifying holiday clusters (CNY, Easter) that reduce usable handover time
For calculator details, see the Info Guide.
