1) Affirmation that your maid really runs away

When suspicion gets deeper, the very first thing to do is to check her room and see if her belongings are still there especially her personal belongings such as handphone, wallet and passport. If her personal belongings are still there, chances of her coming back is high. On the contrary, if her belongings are nowhere to be seen, you should try to reach her by calling her mobile phone.

PS: Don’t forget to check your valuables as well.

2) Start the search (maid runs away)

Contact Maid Agency

Always contact your maid agency if you engaged one, in case your maid has run back to the maid agency. Otherwise, the maid agency will be able to advise you and give you the necessary assistance.

Check around the surrounding

You should also check with your neighbours/neighbours’ maid if they have last seen your maid or if they have any clue on your maid’s whereabouts. If you know your helper’s friends, it may also help by calling them to check. You should also do a search around your estate to see if she is roaming around.

Check with FDW Shelters and Organisations

Your maid desperation will lead her to sought refuge with shelters and organisations in Singapore to check if she has sought refuge with them. They will also keep in close contact with you should your helper approach them over the next couple of days. Below are the information to check:

-Humanitarian Organization for Migration Economics (H.O.M.E)
Tel.: +65 6345 6441 | Website: home.org.sg | Email: contact@home.org.sg

-Centre for Domestic Employees (CDE)
Tel.: 1800 2255 233 | Website: cde.org.sg

-Foreign Domestic Worker Association for Social Support and Training (FAST)
Tel.: +65 6509 1535 | Website: fast.org.sg | Email: contact@fast.org.sg

-Embassy of The Philippines
Tel.: 6737 3977 | 20 Nassim Road Singapore 258395 | Website: http://www.philippine-embassy.org.sg/

-Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia
Tel.: 6737 7422 | 7 Chatsworth Road Singapore 249761 | Website: https://kemlu.go.id/singapore/en

-Embassy of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar
Tel.: 67350209, 67351672, 67355263, 67356576 | 15, ST. Martin’s Drive, Singapore 257996 | Website: http://www.myanmarembassy.sg/

-High Commission of India
Tel.: 6737 6777 | 31 Grange Road Singapore 239702 | Website: https://www.hcisingapore.gov.in/

3) Alert the Singapore Police Force (SPF)

If you fail to find your worker within 24 hours, you must call the police and file a report. By doing so, not only are you proving you fulfilled your search duties to the MOM, but you also get the police help in locating her. The police will be able to investigate and find out if your maid has left the country.

4) Proceed to cancel her work permit (maid runs away)

Lastly, you must contact the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) within 7 days of your maid being missing, which can be done by cancelling her work permit.

Now, you have one month to find your worker and repatriate her or you will forfeit half of your security bond (S$2,500). However,  If you have the waiver of counter indemnity add-on to your maid insurance, you will only be liable for whatever your agreement is with your insurer, usually S$250. If you cannot find her within 3 months, you will risk losing the entirety of the bond. However, if you do find her within 3 months, you can appeal to the MOM for a bond refund.

-Ministry of Manpower

Tel.: 6438 5122 | 1500 Bendemeer Road Singapore 339946 | www.mom.gov.sg

Prevention is always better then cure

There’s no 100% surefire to prevent your maid from running away but what you can do as an employer is to mitigate the risk if it really happens. You may start by upholding your responsibility by treating your maid with respect, paying her wages on time,  minimising any forms of miscommunication, giving her adequate food and proper accommodation. However, we can’t really pinpoint on what actually happen as it could be simply because the maid do not wish to work due to homesick or have exaggerated their skills while underestimating their workloads.

Whatever the reasons are, if you take precautions and know what to do in the event a runaway happens, you can minimise the stress and confusion that comes along with it.

Frequent Asked Question

Question: What will happen to my missing FDW when her Work Permit is cancelled?

Answer: If your foreign domestic worker (FDW) has run away, she will become an overstayer once her Work Permit is canceled. As an overstayer who is in breach of Singapore’s immigration regulations, she can be fined, jailed, or both, before she is sent home.

Follow us on Facebook for more updates and information.