On 18 June 2025, the Legislative Council passed the Employment (Amendment) Bill 2025, which redefines the requirement for a “continuous contract” under the Employment Ordinance. The new threshold will come into effect on 18 January 2026.
Details of the changes are set out in our earlier legal update. In essence, the current “418 rule” (which requires an employee to work 18 hours a week for four or more consecutive weeks) will be replaced by a lower threshold “417 rule” and an alternative test of a “468 rule”.
That is, an employee will be employed under a continuous contract if they work:
- not less than 17 hours per week for four or more consecutive weeks (the “417 rule”), or
- 68 hours or more in aggregate over a 4-week period (i.e. the “468 rule”).
As most of the benefits and protection under the Employment Ordinance are only afforded to those employed under a continuous contract of employment, employers should review their employment arrangement ahead of the new changes taking effect and ensure they comply with those changes once they do take effect.
See also the Press Release and the Bill for more information.
