Considering an ang bao or gift for your helper?

By APEX Maids Agency Pte. Ltd. · MOM EA Licence 25C3180 · UEN 202547196H. Based in Jurong West and serving households across Singapore. Our website is apexmaids.sg and our phone is 8405 6661.

A gift is not salary and salary is not a gift

Pay the salary declared to MOM, honour agreed contractual payments, and follow the applicable rest day rules. These obligations are separate from an extra voluntary gift. A gift sits outside those terms. Treating a gift as a substitute for an agreed payment, or making a payment conditional on receiving a gift, confuses both sides.

If your helper's contract includes a 13th-month payment, an annual bonus or any other agreed amount, that is a contractual commitment, not a gift. Source-country employment norms or the helper's own contract may provide for payments that do not exist in Singapore law but are still binding between you and her. Do not assume there is no obligation without checking the actual agreement. MOM's salary guidelines set out the payment and record-keeping rules.

Occasions you might choose to mark

Choose an occasion that matters to her and fits your household. Possibilities include:

• Chinese New Year. You might choose an ang bao (red packet with money) as an extra festive gesture. Keep any required contractual payment separate.
• Her home country's new year or religious festival. Indonesian, Filipino, Myanmar and Indian helpers may observe Hari Raya, Christmas, Thingyan, Diwali or other occasions. Ask what matters to her rather than assuming.
• Her birthday. Ask whether she would prefer cash, a personal item or an additional rest arrangement.
• Year-end or contract anniversary. Some employers mark the end of a working year or the contract renewal date.
• After a particularly demanding period. A new baby, a family illness or a house move may have increased her workload significantly.

This guide does not set a standard amount or a benchmark to match. The gesture is yours to decide.

How to choose a considerate gift

• Ask about her preference. Some helpers prefer cash they can send home; others appreciate a personal item, a meal out or a rest day arrangement. Ask rather than guess.
• Respect her religion and dietary requirements. A food hamper is considerate only if she can eat it. A gift card for a shop she visits is more useful than one she cannot use.
• Keep the budget private. The amount you give is between you and her. Comparing with other employers or discussing her gift with friends in her presence can put unnecessary pressure on her.
• Do not attach conditions. A gift conditional on staying longer, working on a rest day or meeting a standard is not a gift. It is a transaction that belongs in the employment terms instead.
• Distinguish a gift from financial support for her family. If she asks for help with a family emergency, discuss it as a separate matter with clear terms for both sides, not as part of a festive gesture.

Concrete gift ideas

These are options, not recommendations for specific brands or shops. Choose based on what you know about her.

• Cash in an ang bao or envelope. The most flexible option. She decides how to use it.
• A prepaid card or voucher she can use. Choose a store or platform she actually visits.
• A personal item she has mentioned wanting. A phone case, earphones, a bag or a piece of clothing she picked out.
• A meal out or a treat. Arrange for her to eat at a restaurant she likes, with or without the family.
• Extra rest time. An additional rest day or finishing early on a day she values. This is separate from her legal rest day entitlement.
• A care package to send home. Items for her family overseas, if she would welcome help with that.

Gift-planning worksheet

Use this worksheet privately to plan your gesture. Print it (Ctrl+P or Cmd+P) and fill in by hand. This is a household planning aid, not an Apex form or a record that needs to be shared.

This worksheet is for your own planning. Keep agreed payments and their required records separate from an extra voluntary gesture; check the applicable contract and salary guidance.

What a gift does not replace

• Her salary. Paid on time, in full, as declared to MOM. A gift given instead of salary is not a gift.
• Her rest days. She is entitled to at least one rest day per week, and at least one per month cannot be compensated away. An ang bao given in exchange for working a rest day is compensation, not a voluntary gift. See rest day rules.
• Adequate food and accommodation. These are employer responsibilities, not favours.
• Respectful treatment. A generous ang bao does not offset poor conditions at other times.

If you have just hired a new helper

If you are still settling into a new routine, use the first-week checklist to agree household expectations. You can decide separately whether to mark an occasion with a gift; ask about her preferences rather than assuming a welcome gift is expected.

If you are planning the overall hiring budget

Gifts are not part of the hiring cost, but they are part of your annual household budget. The hiring cost breakdown covers salary, levy, insurance, bond and agency fees. Budget for gifts separately rather than treating them as a surprise expense.