Hong Kong to introduce 12-hour family care leave for civil servants from January
Hong Kong's government will introduce a new 'family care leave' for civil servants starting January 2027, allowing up to 12 hours annually for caring duties. The leave, which can be taken in hourly blocks, covers medical appointments, sick family care, school events and emergencies.
The Hong Kong government will introduce a new 'family care leave' for civil servants from January next year, according to a Legislative Council document submitted by the Civil Service Bureau. The measure, announced in this year's policy address, will become the fourth type of leave related to family care needs. The bureau is finalising details and implementation arrangements, and will consult staff unions before implementation.
The family care leave allows employees to temporarily leave their workplace to attend to family needs in specific situations. Permitted uses include accompanying family members to medical appointments, caring for sick relatives, attending children's school activities, and handling urgent household matters. Each civil servant will be entitled to a maximum of 12 hours of family care leave per year. Any unused leave at the end of the year cannot be carried over to the following year.
The leave will be taken in hourly units, with each application allowing between one and four hours of family care leave. Under normal circumstances, employees only need to submit a record form stating the reason for the leave, without providing supporting documents. In cases of emergencies where prior submission is not possible, employees may obtain verbal or other approval from authorised personnel before taking leave, and must submit the application form as soon as possible afterwards. If the approving officer has doubts or suspects abuse, they may request supporting documents from the applicant.
The bureau noted that since April 2024, the government has implemented marriage leave and compassionate leave to help employees balance work and family care needs. As of the end of June, approximately 7,500 marriage leave applications and 23,000 compassionate leave applications had been approved. Since the introduction of childcare leave in April last year, about 15,600 applications have been approved.