A new helper’s first month is easier than you think

A new helper steps out of the arrivals hall knowing nobody and recognising nothing, and six weeks later she is running the household. That gap is smaller than it looks. Most of what she needs to learn fits into one weekend of walking around and one month of small setups, and none of it requires her to have been to Hong Kong before.

The first weekend: show her your Hong Kong

Block out a few hours and walk your neighbourhood together. Show her the supermarket and the wet market, the bus stop and the MTR station, where to top up an Octopus, which exit comes out nearest home. The MTR looks intimidating on a map and turns out to be one of the easiest systems in the world: colour-coded lines, announcements in English, and a station every few minutes. This is why hiring someone who already knows Hong Kong matters less than people think. Familiarity with the city is teachable in an afternoon; the judgement and temperament you chose her for are not. Use the same weekend to set her weekly schedule, so the routine starts before habits form.

Her HKID: book early, expect it later

Anyone permitted to stay in Hong Kong for more than 180 days must register for an identity card within 30 days of arrival, and the first card is free. Book her appointment in her first few days, because registration runs on a booking system and slots can sit weeks out; around a month between booking and appointment is common. Until the card arrives, keep a note of the appointment date somewhere you will both see it. The card is worth the wait. It lets her open a bank account, enrol for the e-Channel at the border so immigration queues shrink to seconds, and it unlocks the small fun stuff: Ocean Park has offered Hong Kong ID holders free entry on their birthday, so check the current offer when hers comes around.

The bank account that pays her

Once she has her HKID she can open a bank account, and this is where household admin gets much easier. Helpers we work with have had a good experience with Mox, which she can set up from her phone; HSBC also opens accounts for helpers. Wages can be paid directly into her bank account with her consent, which is what most families do once the account exists. Set the mechanics now: calculate her first payment (it is usually a partial month), fix which day of the month pay day falls on, and put it on autopay. You can always adjust the arrangement later.

The SIM card that keeps her reachable

Get her a local SIM in the first week. SoSim has worked well for families we know, at around $33 a month, and it is sold in convenience stores; prices and plans change, so check what is current. The point is not the plan. It is that when she is out, at the market or on her day off, she can reach you and you can reach her, whether it is an emergency or just which brand of soy sauce to buy.

Two Octopus cards and one home for receipts

Give her two cards with two jobs. One is hers, for her day off: she tops it up herself and spends it how she likes. The other is the household card for groceries and errands, linked to your own phone through the Octopus app, so you can see every transaction without asking. Then give receipts one home: a tray or an envelope where she drops them at the end of each day, and a fixed moment each week to go through them together. Households that skip this step end up having awkward money conversations; households that do it almost never have them.

The month that sets the tone

The first month is when the working relationship is built: the schedule, the pay day, the way money and errands are handled. Get these small systems in place and the rest of the year runs itself. GMA stays involved after the placement, not just before it, so if a settling-in question comes up or a conversation would be easier with a third party, talk to us. And if you are still choosing an agency, here is how we work with families.

Last updated: 30 October 2026.