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Employing a foreign domestic worker legally

Reviewed September 2026 · For employers

Yes, you can employ someone from another country, as long as they have the right to work here: a valid work visa, permit, or an asylum or refugee document that allows employment. With that in place, you set up the same proper contract and payslips as for any worker. AskMandla helps you check what applies and set it up correctly.

The document that matters

The worker needs a document that allows them to work in South Africa. Keep a copy on file. Employing someone without the right to work puts you at risk as the employer, so this is the first thing to confirm.

Contract and payslips, the same as anyone

Once the right to work is confirmed, the job is set up the same way as for any domestic worker: a proper written contract, a fair wage, and a monthly payslip.

UIF

Whether UIF registration applies depends on the worker's documents. We check what is allowed for their permit or status and set up what applies, rather than guessing.

How AskMandla helps

We help you confirm the documents, draw up the contract, set up the payslip, and handle the UIF admin that their status allows, all on WhatsApp.