Can my foreign domestic helper (maid) go home for a holiday on annual leave?
Published on 12 Dec 2023, last updated on 2 Feb 2024
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As an employer of a foreign domestic helper or maid in Malaysia, your helper may request to take a short vacation to her home country and visit her loved ones, especially if she has been employed by your family for an extended period of time.
Requirements for your helper to legally exit and re-enter Malaysia
If your foreign domestic helper or maid has a valid domestic helper visa/ work permit (Pas Lawatan Kerja Sementara/PLKS), she can travel back to her home country and re-enter Malaysia at the end of her vacation so long as their work permit is not expired and passport is valid for at least 6 months upon re-entry.
If your worker is Filipino, the following additional requirements must be met:
- Ensure that your helper has a valid Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) Employment Contract with you, and get her to present a printed copy to the Philippine airport authorities upon her date of exit from the Philippines/ return date to Malaysia.
- Apply for her Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC) and present a printed copy of the OEC to the Philippine airport authorities upon her date of exit from the Philippines/ return date to Malaysia.
- e-Travel Registration. Your worker must register as early as 72 HOURS before her flight back to the Philippines through https://etravel.gov.ph.
Steps to check off before your helper leaves for her vacation leave
- Check the expiry date of her domestic helper work permit (validity of more than 3 months is advisable and recommended).
- Check the expiry date of her employment contract. For Filipino helpers, this refers to the POEA contract (validity of more than 6 months is advisable and recommended).
- Check the expiry of her passport. Validity of the passport of at least 6 months upon her return date to Malaysia is required.
- Ensure that all of the expiry dates do not fall within the period of your helper’s exit and re-entry into Malaysia.
- If any of these documents are expiring soon, it may be worth renewing them before her travel. You may refer to our post on renewing your helper’s POEA contract and on renewing her domestic helper work permit for further information.
- Check for any embassy-specific requirements, guidelines and/or travel advisories based on your helper’s nationality.
The requirements are the same if you intend to bring your domestic helper on holiday with your family overseas. However, in addition to ensuring that her employment and travel documents are complete, you must additionally check whether there are any additional requirements, guidelines or restrictions for your worker based on her nationality and the country of destination. For example, Filipinos are not permitted to travel to Japan without a tourist visa. If you intend to bring your Filipino worker to Japan, you will need to additionally apply for her tourist visa.
Arrange for your helper to visit Pinkcollar’s office in-person (Pinkcollar placements)
Pinkcollar Employers are recommended to inform our Post-Placement team if/when your helper is attending to return for holiday. Our Post-Placement team typically conducts an in-office pre-annual leave procedure to run helpers through documentation requirements and other responsibilities before their departure.
Require our Employment Renewal services?
If your worker's employment documents are incomplete and you wish to get them up to date for the purpose of travel, Pinkcollar is happy to help.