Start by identifying the employee's category and first day of employment. For a covered regular monthly-paid employee, enrolment is due within the first 60 calendar days. The first payment is due on the next contribution day after the month containing day 60.
The usual contribution day is the 10th day of the following month. Exempt persons and casual construction and catering employees follow different rules.
First, identify the employee and the period
| Requirement | Published rule | Important qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Regular monthly contribution | On or before the 10th day of the following month | The date can move for a Saturday, public holiday, specified warning day or relevant eMPF suspension |
| Enrol a regular employee | Within the first 60 days of employment | Applies to covered full-time and part-time employees aged 18 to 64; day 1 is the first day of employment |
| First contribution for a new regular employee | Next contribution day after the calendar month containing day 60 | Employer and employee contribution periods are not identical |
| Employee contribution holiday | First 30 days plus the following incomplete wage period in the stated circumstances | Does not apply to the employer's contribution |
| Casual construction or catering employee | Different enrolment and contribution rules | The regular 60-day rule does not apply |
The 60-day enrolment count
Except for exempt persons, employers must enrol covered full-time and part-time employees aged 18 to 64 who have been employed continuously for at least 60 days. Submit the request within the first 60 days of employment.
The MPFA enrolment page says:
- the first day of employment is day 1;
- the count uses calendar days, including holidays; and
- if day 60 is a Saturday, public holiday, gale or black-rainstorm warning day, or a relevant eMPF suspension day, the deadline moves to the next eligible day.
Weekends and holidays remain in the 60-day count. They affect the deadline only if day 60 itself needs to roll forward.
If an employee does not provide the requested information, the employer should still submit the enrolment request by day 60.
Worked example: employee starts on 2 March 2026
Assume a covered regular employee who:
- starts employment on Monday 2 March 2026;
- is paid monthly using calendar-month wage periods; and
- is not an exempt person.
The first day counts, so day 60 is Thursday 30 April 2026.
| Step | Date or treatment |
|---|---|
| First day of employment | 2 March 2026 — day 1 |
| 30th day | 31 March 2026 |
| 60th day and enrolment deadline | 30 April 2026 |
| Calendar month containing day 60 | April 2026 |
| Next MPF contribution day | Monday 11 May 2026 |
The ordinary contribution date would be Sunday 10 May. The MPFA's official 2026 calendar moves it to Monday 11 May 2026.
The calendar-day calculator reproduces the 60th day when 2 March is included as day 1. It does not apply MPF-specific weather-warning or eMPF-suspension rules, so check the MPFA information before relying on a final date.
Open the 60-calendar-day count in the calculator.
Apply the contribution-day rollover
For a monthly-paid employee, contributions are generally due to the eMPF Platform on or before the 10th day of each month. For example, contributions for September are due on or before 10 October.
If the contribution day falls on a Saturday, public holiday, gale or black-rainstorm warning day, or a relevant eMPF Platform suspension day, it moves to the next eligible day. This is not an ordinary Monday-to-Friday rollover. Use the MPFA's Contribution Days Calendar for the final date.
Every Sunday is a General Holiday in Hong Kong. A contribution day on Sunday therefore moves under the public-holiday rule, even though the MPFA list does not name Sunday separately.
The employer and employee contribution periods differ
The first payment date does not mean that both contributions start on the same day.
The employer's contribution period generally begins on the employee's first day of employment.
The employee receives a contribution holiday. It covers the first 30 days of employment and, where the wage period is a month or shorter, the incomplete wage period immediately following those 30 days.
For a wage period longer than a month, the MPFA instead uses the calendar month in which day 30 falls. The contribution holiday does not apply to the employer.
In the example, the first 30 days run from 2 to 31 March. The next calendar-month wage period begins on 1 April, so there is no following incomplete monthly wage period. The employee contribution period starts in April; the employer's starts on 2 March.
eMPF is the administration channel
On 3 May 2026, the MPFA announced that all MPF schemes had completed onboarding to eMPF.
Employers use eMPF for enrolment, remittance statements and contributions. Full onboarding changed the administration channel, not the basic 10th-day rule. A payment received after the applicable contribution day is late even if the amount is correct.
The remittance statement must include every employee in the contribution period, including an employee with no relevant income. After remitting, an employer should provide each employee with a monthly pay-record within seven working days. Those are administration requirements, not additional contribution-day rollovers.
Missing the contribution day has consequences
A late contribution attracts a surcharge of 5% of the default amount, which is paid into the affected employee's account, and the MPFA may impose a further financial penalty. Persistent or deliberate default carries more serious consequences again. The MPFA's enforcement page sets out the current figures.
An employer that knows a payment is late should contact eMPF and settle it rather than wait for a payment notice.
Casual construction and catering employees use separate rules
The regular 60-day rule does not apply to a casual employee in the construction or catering industry. If the employee does not already have an account in the employer's Industry Scheme, the MPFA says the employer must enrol the employee within the first 10 days of employment.
Contribution timing and calculation then depend on whether the employee is enrolled in an Industry Scheme or a Master Trust Scheme. Casual employees do not receive the regular employee contribution holiday. Use the MPFA's industry-specific guidance rather than the worked example above.
For a casual employee in a Master Trust Scheme, the employer pays within 10 days after each contribution period ends, even where the period is shorter than a month. Industry Scheme contributions are calculated differently. The same Saturday, public-holiday, weather-warning and relevant eMPF-suspension rollover applies to the Master Trust contribution day.
Use the calculator for the calendar count
The calculator can count 60 calendar days with the employment date included and show scheduled weekends or General Holidays within the period. It can also show the next scheduled working day for payroll planning.
The employment and payment records must establish whether the employee is covered, exempt, regular or casual. The contribution amount and any weather-warning or eMPF-suspension extension must also be checked against the MPFA material.
Sources and verification
Sources checked on 3 August 2026:
- MPFA: Mandatory contributions for employees — rates, contribution day, first payment, contribution holiday and casual-employee distinctions.
- MPFA: Enrolment for employees — 60-day count, final-day extension, enrolment process and 10-day casual-employee rule.
- MPFA: Contribution Days Calendar — rollover rules and the 11 May 2026 contribution date.
- MPFA: Enforcement measures and penalties — surcharge, financial penalties and maximum criminal penalties.
- MPFA: eMPF achieves full onboarding — completion of scheme onboarding.
- MPFA: Relevant-income review — review status of the current minimum and maximum levels.
- GovHK: General Holidays for 2026 — confirmation that every Sunday is a General Holiday.
- Hong Kong e-Legislation: Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Ordinance (Cap. 485) — legislation underlying the MPFA guidance.
