Introduction
Hiring full-time maids in Singapore is not difficult at all. They offer much-needed help in our busy life. However, the hiring process includes extra duties and legal requirements. The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has mandated the 6-monthly Medical Examination (6ME) as one of the requirements for the maids.
All the foreign maids must undergo the medical examination once in every six months to check for pregnancy or any contagious diseases. This article will help you to understand the various types of maid medical examination and how they may benefit you and your maid.
Various Types of Medical Examination for Foreign Maid in Singapore
Sending your maid for medical examinations is not only to fulfil the requirements of the government, but it’s also to make sure that your maid is healthy and fit for work. There are generally two types of required medical examination for your maid:
- Pre –employment Medical Examination
- Six-Monthly Medical Examination (6ME)
The purpose of the medical examinations is to ensure that your maid is not infected with these four types of contagious diseases: malaria, syphilis, tuberculosis and HIV, and is healthy enough to work.
Pre-employment Medical Examination
A foreign maid is subjected to pre-employment medical examination within two weeks after arriving in Singapore. A work permit will only be issued for her once she passes all the medical examinations. Or else, she will have to be repatriated if she fails any of the examinations.
Transfer maids must go for Six-Monthly Medical Examination (6ME) instead if they want to renew their work permits.
Six-Monthly Medical Examination (6ME)
When your maid’s 6ME is due, MOM will send a notification letter and 6ME form to you. However, you may also set the date as a reminder to your calendars, so that you won’t forget to bring your maid to go for the medical examination. You can also calculate the next due date of your maid’s 6ME by logging into MOM’s FDW eService to check for her previous 6ME date and print the 6ME form.
The types of medical examinations that need to be done by your maid and the deadline will be specified in the 6ME letter. You may also pay for extra check-ups such as mental health and dental if you have further concerns on your maid’s health.
If your maid does not complete the 6ME within the deadline instructed by MOM, her work permit could be cancelled. As a result, you will have to send her back to her origin place and restart the whole application again. This will lead you to unnecessary costs or even fines. However, your maid does not need to go for 6ME, if she fits under any of these categories:
- She is above 50 years old; she only needs to go for the medical examination if she wants to renew her work permit.
- Her employment terminates soon and she will return to her country within a month after the due date of her 6ME. However, if you need her to stay more than a month after her 6ME is due, you will need to request for a waiver.
The cost of a basic 6ME is between $60 to $80 per year. Below shows the average cost for different medical examinations.
| Medical Examinations | Frequency | Average Cost |
| Pre-employment Medical Examination | Once every hire | $80 |
| Immunizations Package (Tetanus, Pertussis) | Once every hire | $93 |
| Pregnancy | 6-monthly | $30 |
| Syphilis | 6-monthly | $30 |
| HIV | Every 2 years | $30 |
| Tuberculosis (TB) | Every 2 years | $40 |
| Dental Check-up (Optional) | 6-monthly to yearly | $60 |
Home-based 6ME Service
Even though 6ME is required, some families may face difficulties as they depend on their maids to take care of their children, the elderly or even disabled family members. A home-based 6ME service is certainly a lifesaver for families that are unable to seek for additional or substitute maids when their maids go for 6ME.
Your maid can get her pregnancy, HIV and syphilis tests done at home with this service. The result of these tests will be promptly forwarded to MOM and you. However, your maid will still need to go to authorised medical personnel for the other tests such as tuberculosis, mental or dental check-ups.
The procedures of home-based 6ME service are as below:
- Make an appointment with service provider which is qualified by MOM.
- Make sure your maid will be home on the appointment date.
- The blood sample of your maid and her 6ME form will be collected by the healthcare personnel who is visiting your home. Always require for the staff pass showing the company’s name/ logo and their name/ photo for identification as the purpose of security.
- An authorised doctor will certify your maid’s 6ME results after her blood sample is sent to a licensed laboratory by the service provider.
- You will receive the completed 6ME form after ten working days. The service provider will inform MOM if your maid is pregnant or infected with syphilis.
Conclusion
Although these tests may seem troublesome to you, they are essentially intended to protect you and your maid from infectious diseases such as HIV, malaria, syphilis and TB. It also helps to ensure that your maid is always physically and mentally healthy for work. Therefore, you must always make sure that your maid completes these tests on schedule and always request a copy of the results to keep informed of your maid’s health condition.