MDW (Migrant domestic worker)

Explain Like I’m Five

MDW names the person doing domestic work, rather than the agency arranging the employment or the permit itself. MOM uses the abbreviation throughout its information for households employing helpers. The employment sits within a specific Work Permit system, with requirements for both the worker and employer.

Where You’ll Run Into It

On MOM’s helper-employment pages, permit applications and guidance about salary, rest days, safety and well-being. A household may encounter “MDW” while arranging a helper’s employment even if family members usually say “our helper” in conversation.

An NRIC identifies a citizen or permanent resident; an MDW’s Work Permit is a different document. Domestic workers are outside the Employment Act, so the general MC explanation does not establish their sick-leave entitlements. Use MOM’s domestic-worker guidance for the applicable employment rules.

Example

“This MOM guide says MDW. Does it mean our helper?”

The family is connecting the official abbreviation with the migrant domestic worker employed in their household.

The Part People Get Wrong

MDW describes the worker; it is not the name of a work pass. The Work Permit is the separate permission for the employment, and the relevant requirements apply to both sides of that arrangement.