Domestic Helper Malaysia

Reference checking

How to Check Maid References

Use a reference to verify dates, duties, working relationship and factual examples while respecting consent and avoiding leading questions.

Prepare an enquiry

The short answer

A useful reference check confirms who the referee is, how they know the candidate, when the employment occurred and which duties they directly observed. Ask for specific examples and the factual reason the arrangement ended. Obtain appropriate consent before contacting a referee and record the date, channel and answers accurately.

At a glance

Identity
Confirm the relationshipKnow whether the person was an employer, agency representative or another contact.
Scope
Ask only observed factsA referee cannot verify duties they did not see.
Record
Date and channelKeep concise notes and distinguish quotations from your own interpretation.

Verify the reference before evaluating it

Confirm the referee’s name, role, contact channel and connection to the candidate. Check that the employment dates and household described match the biodata before asking about performance.

Use neutral questions: what duties did you personally observe, how often, what instructions were needed and why did the employment end? Avoid asking whether the candidate is “good,” which invites a broad opinion without evidence.

Use examples to resolve specific uncertainties

If childcare is central, ask for one observed routine and how the candidate responded to a problem. If cooking matters, ask which meals were regularly prepared and how independently.

A reference may confirm, complicate or leave a claim unresolved. Record that outcome honestly; absence of a reference is not proof of wrongdoing, and a positive reference does not replace your own interview.

Questions this page answers

Should I contact a referee without telling the candidate?

Use an appropriate consent process and explain which contact you intend to make.

What if the referee gives only praise?

Ask for concrete examples, dates and directly observed duties.

What if no reference is available?

Mark the claim as unverified and place more weight on other evidence rather than inventing a conclusion.

Useful next guides

Interview and matching

Maid Interview Questions Malaysia

Ask questions that reveal relevant experience, judgement, communication and learning instead of producing rehearsed yes-or-no answers.

Fair comparisons

Indonesian vs Filipino Maid

How the Indonesian and Filipino domestic-worker routes actually differ — the government frameworks, wage-floor rules and paperwork — set out side by side so you know what to ask an agency, not which nationality to prefer.

Planning tools

Family needs

Maid for Newborn

A newborn turns every routine upside down. Here is how to shape a helper’s role around feeds, sleep and safety — and what stays a parent’s job.

How to Check Maid References

Prepare a useful first enquiry

Add a few key facts about your household and the question you want answered, so the reply is useful.

  • General location
  • Who needs support
  • Three priority duties
  • Preferred timing
  • The first question to resolve

This opens a WhatsApp draft to the DomesticHelper enquiry team, who help connect you with a maid-hiring service. Nothing is sent until you press send, and you can edit it first.

Open WhatsApp draft

Review and edit the draft before sending. See privacy and enquiry handling.

DomesticHelper editorial teamReviewed 17 August 2026Sourced from Malaysian government registriesIndependent of the hiring agenciesEditorial standards
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