Hong Kong MPF: What Employers Are Required to Contribute, and By When

Who’s covered, and who isn’t

Almost every employee in Hong Kong aged 18 to 64, in continuous employment for 60 days or more, has to be enrolled in an MPF scheme — there’s no minimum-hours or full-time test the way there is in some other jurisdictions. Below HK$7,100 a month in relevant income, the employer still has to contribute 5% on the employee’s behalf, but the employee isn’t required to make a matching contribution, though they can choose to.

Casual employees in construction and catering sit under a different rule: rather than the standard 60-day enrolment window, they need to be enrolled within 10 days, usually through the employer’s Industry Scheme rather than a standard MPF scheme, reflecting how short-term and project-based that work tends to be.

The relevant-income band itself is capped at both ends. Below HK$7,100 the employee side is optional; above HK$30,000 a month, both employer and employee contributions are capped at HK$1,500 each, regardless of how much higher the employee’s actual salary runs.

The HK$30,000 cap and the 2022–2026 review: the position in October 2026

The HK$30,000 maximum relevant income level, and the HK$1,500 contribution cap that comes with it, have been unchanged since 1 June 2014. The Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (MPFA) is carrying out its statutory review of both levels for the 2022–2026 cycle and met more than 30 stakeholder groups in February 2026 — press reports put the proposals at a HK$40,000 maximum (a HK$2,000 cap per party) and a HK$10,500 minimum, figures the MPFA has not published.

The MPFA aimed to submit its report to the Government by mid-2026, and the Government has said it will consider the report thoroughly before deciding; as at October 2026 no decision or effective date has been announced. Employers with higher earners on payroll should watch for a formal announcement rather than assume either the current or the proposed figures will hold indefinitely — but for now, HK$30,000 and HK$1,500 remain the operative caps.

What employers need to get right each month

• Enrol every eligible new employee (18–64, 60 days or more of continuous employment) within 60 calendar days of their start date — 10 days for casual construction or catering staff
• Deduct 5% of relevant income from employees earning HK$7,100 or more a month, and contribute a matching 5% yourself, capped at HK$1,500 each once income reaches HK$30,000
• Still contribute your 5% for employees earning under HK$7,100 a month, even though their own contribution is optional
• Submit the remittance statement and pay both employer and employee contributions to the eMPF Platform by the 10th day of the following month, to avoid the 5% default surcharge and financial penalties

How much MPF does an employer pay? A worked example for three salaries

For three monthly-paid employees earning HK$6,500, HK$18,000 and HK$45,000, the employer pays HK$2,725 a month and deducts HK$2,400 from their pay, so HK$5,125 must reach the eMPF Platform by the contribution day. The employer’s own cost is HK$32,700 a year.

1. Employee A earns HK$6,500, below the HK$7,100 minimum: the employer pays HK$6,500 × 5% = HK$325 and deducts nothing.
2. Employee B earns HK$18,000: the employer pays HK$18,000 × 5% = HK$900 and deducts the same HK$900 from pay.
3. Employee C earns HK$45,000, above the HK$30,000 maximum: each side pays HK$30,000 × 5% = HK$1,500, not HK$2,250.
4. Totals: employer HK$325 + HK$900 + HK$1,500 = HK$2,725 (HK$32,700 a year); employees HK$900 + HK$1,500 = HK$2,400; to remit HK$5,125.
5. Deadline: September 2026 contributions are due by 12 October 2026, because 10 October 2026 is a Saturday and 11 October a Sunday.
6. One month missed: surcharge HK$5,125 × 5% = HK$256.25, paid to the employees. The MPFA may also impose a penalty of the greater of HK$5,000 and HK$5,125 × 10% = HK$512.50, so HK$5,000: HK$5,125 + HK$256.25 + HK$5,000 = HK$10,381.25 in all.
7. Under the proposed second tier, not yet law, arrears still unpaid 120 days after the contribution day would add HK$5,125 × 10% = HK$512.50.

Under the reported HK$40,000 proposal, Employee C’s contributions would rise to HK$2,000 each; A and B would be unaffected.

What changed for MPF employers in 2025–2026?

The 5% rates and the HK$7,100 and HK$30,000 levels did not change, but how employers pay, what MPF can offset and the cost of paying late have all moved, as the table shows as at October 2026.

Date	Change	What it means for employers
1 May 2025	MPF offsetting abolished (the transition date); 25-year Government subsidy scheme begins	Mandatory MPF benefits no longer reduce severance or long service payments for service from 1 May 2025
February 2026	MPFA meets more than 30 stakeholder groups on its 2022–2026 review of the income levels, aiming to report to the Government by mid-2026	No decision announced; HK$7,100 has applied since 1 November 2013 and HK$30,000 since 1 June 2014
29 March 2026	MPFA proposes a two-tier surcharge for late contributions	Paying late may cost more the longer arrears run
3 May 2026	MPFA announces full onboarding: the schemes of all 12 trustees are on the eMPF Platform	Enrolment, remittance statements and payments go through eMPF, not the trustee
6 July 2026	Government proposes a second-tier surcharge of 10% of arrears unpaid 120 days after the contribution day; bill planned for the fourth quarter of 2026	Not law yet; the 5% surcharge still applies

MPF for a new hire: a step-by-step checklist to the first contribution

Contribute from day 1, enrol by day 60 and pay by the 10th of the month after the month in which day 60 falls. For a 5 June 2026 start, day 60 is 3 August 2026, so the first payment, covering June to August, is due by 10 September 2026.

1. Day 1: confirm cover: aged 18 to 64, employed 60 days or more or a casual construction or catering worker, and not exempt, for example under the 13-month or overseas-scheme exemption.
2. By day 60: enrol the employee through the eMPF Platform; a casual worker with no account in the employer’s Industry Scheme must be enrolled within the first 10 days.
3. From day 1: calculate the employer’s 5% on all relevant income, including commissions, bonuses and cash allowances.
4. Contribution holiday: deduct nothing from the employee for the first 30 days and any incomplete wage period that follows; on a calendar-month payroll, a 5 June starter’s first deduction is for August.
5. First payment: pay the backdated employer contributions and first employee contributions, with a remittance statement listing every employee.
6. Every month after: file and pay by the 10th, or the next day that is not a Saturday, public holiday or gale or black rainstorm warning day.
7. On leaving: report the cessation in the remittance statement for the month employment ends.

Can employers still use MPF to offset severance or long service payments?

Only for service before 1 May 2025. Since that transition date, benefits from the employer’s mandatory MPF contributions cannot reduce the part of a severance payment (SP) or long service payment (LSP) earned from 1 May 2025.

• Post-transition portion: paid by the employer in full, with no offset from mandatory MPF benefits.
• Pre-transition portion: can still be offset with mandatory or voluntary MPF benefits, and is calculated on the monthly wages immediately before 1 May 2025 and the years of service before that date.
• Still usable against SP or LSP: benefits from the employer’s voluntary MPF contributions and gratuities based on length of service.
• Caps: monthly wages for SP or LSP are capped at HK$22,500 and the maximum payment is HK$390,000.
• Support: a 25-year Government subsidy scheme shares part of the post-transition cost; keep pre-May 2025 wage records, which fix the pre-transition amount.

Common MPF mistakes that lead to surcharges

The most common are paying or filing after the 10th, leaving employees off the remittance statement and enrolling late, according to the MPFA’s April 2026 guidance to employers on eMPF.

• Treating the postmark as the payment date: a cheque posted on the contribution day is late.
• Setting up autopay after the 10th, or without delivering a completed remittance statement by the 10th.
• Leaving out employees with no relevant income that month: list them with 0.
• Paying through an MPF intermediary instead of directly to eMPF, or missing a bank’s cut-off time for a direct credit.
• Enrolling a missed employee late and paying only the arrears: the surcharge applies too, and the MPFA will not withdraw it on objection.
• Calculating on basic salary only: relevant income includes commissions, bonuses and cash allowances, but not severance or long service payments.

MPF terms employers should know

These are the terms used by the MPFA and on the eMPF Platform.

• Relevant income: all money paid or payable by the employer, including wages, leave pay, commissions, bonuses and allowances, but not severance or long service payments.
• Relevant income levels: HK$7,100 minimum and HK$30,000 maximum a month, or HK$280 and HK$1,000 a day, as at October 2026.
• Contribution day: the deadline for paying and filing, generally the 10th of the month after the contribution period.
• Contribution holiday: the employee’s first 30 days plus any incomplete wage period that follows.
• Default contribution: a mandatory contribution not paid by the contribution day.
• Remittance statement: the monthly return listing each employee’s relevant income and contributions.
• Industry Scheme: the MPF scheme for casual employees in construction and catering.