Leave Laws
Last updated on August 27, 2026.
Paid Time Off (PTO) in Australia
Annual Leave Quota (Vacation)
20 days of paid leave (4 weeks).
Annual leave, or vacation, is also called holiday pay in Australia.
Regular employees are entitled to up to 4 weeks of paid annual leave (20 days).
Shift workers who regularly work on Sundays and public holidays are entitled to 5 weeks of paid annual leave per year.
Part-time employees receive annual leave on a pro-rata basis, calculated according to the ordinary hours they work.
Casual employees are not entitled to paid annual leave.
Besides holiday pay, employees are also entitled to public holidays.
Accrual
Employees start accruing annual leave entitlements from their first day of work, and they can take their accumulated leave as soon as they have accrued it. Annual leave accumulates when employees are on any kind of paid leave, paid annual leave, paid sick and carer’s leave, doing community service, or on jury duty. It doesn’t accumulate on any sort of unpaid leave (sick leave, parental leave, etc.)
Roll over
Employees are allowed to roll over unused leave from one year to the next.
Payment of Accrued, Unused Vacation on Termination
When an employee’s employment is terminated, the employer is required to compensate the employee for any annual leave entitlements that they have accrued but not taken.
Payout
Annual leave in Australia is paid by the employer.
Long Service Leave is a type of paid leave entitlement (typically around 8.67 weeks) that is available to employees who have worked for the same employer for a specified period of time. The entitlement is unique to Australia and is usually granted after 10 years of continuous service with the same employer, although this may vary depending on the state legislation.
Sick Leave in Australia
Sick and Carer’s Leave
10 days of paid and 2 days of unpaid leave.
Full-time employees are entitled to 10 days of paid sick and carer’s leave. Part-time employees are also entitled, and their leave is prorated (calculated as 1/26 of their regular working hours). Casual employees or contractors are excluded from this entitlement but can ask for 2 days of unpaid carer’s leave.
This leave is also called personal and carer’s leave.
Sick (personal) leave is for an employee’s own illness or injury.
Carer’s (caregiver) leave is when an employee takes time off to care for a close family member who is ill or injured, or to deal with a family emergency.
Employees start to accrue sick and carer’s leave from the first day of work. Employees continue to accrue leave when they are on any sort of paid leave, but don’t accrue when they are on unpaid leave.
An employee is allowed to roll over unused sick/carer’s leave from one year to the following.
An employer may ask for proof to provide evidence of their illness or injury or the need to provide care or support, such as a medical certificate.
If an employee exhausts their sick and carer’s leave, they can take 2 days of unpaid carer’s leave.
Paid sick and carer’s leave is not cashed out at the end of employment.
Payout
Sick and carer’s leave in Australia is paid by an employer.
Maternity, Paternity, Adoption, and Parental Leave in Australia
Mothers and fathers in Australia are entitled to both unpaid and paid parental leave.
Unpaid Parental Leave
Up to 24 months of unpaid parental leave.
Parents are entitled to unpaid parental leave if:
- an employee gives birth (aka maternity leave)
- an employee’s spouse or de facto partner* gives birth (aka paternity leave)
- an employee adopts a child under 16 (aka adoption leave)
All employees who have worked for the employer for at least 1 year are eligible for parental leave. This includes full-time, part-time, and casual employees.
Eligible employees can take the:
- 12 months of unpaid parental leave
- an additional 12 months of unpaid leave
Parental leave can be split between both parents, for example, both parents can take 12 months each, or a mother can take 20 months and the father can take 4 months.
Employees who are adopting a child are also allowed to take 2 days of unpaid pre-adoption leave, in order to attend relevant interviews or examinations. However, the employer can direct the employee to use a different type of leave instead of pre-adoption leave, such as paid annual leave.
Paid Parental Leave
26 paid weeks (from 1 July 2026)
Eligible employees can have part of their parental leave covered with Parental Leave Pay (PLP) which is paid by the Australian Government.
Parental Leave Pay
Parental Leave Pay is intended for the primary carer of a newborn or adopted child.
An eligible employee can receive up to 26 weeks of PLP, for a child born or adopted on or after 1 July 2026.
Four weeks (20 days) are strictly reserved for the non-primary caregiver on a non-transferable “use it or lose it” basis.
For the 2026–27 financial year, the current daily rate for Parental Leave Pay is $200.94 before tax, or a weekly rate (for a five day week) of $1,004.70 before tax. Plus superannuation contributions. Generally, the rate of Parental Leave Pay is adjusted annually in July.
To be qualified for Parental Leave Pay, an employee must meet these requirements:
-
an income test (earn under a certain limit – an adjusted taxable income)
-
a work test (you need to have worked for both 10 of the 13 months before the birth or adoption of your child and a minimum of 330 hours, around one day a week, in those 10 months)
-
residency rules (you must be living in Australia and have one of the following: Australian citizenship, a permanent visa, a Special Category visa, or a certain temporary visa)
Payout
Maternity/paternity leave in Australia is paid by the Australian Government. However, many employers choose to offer payment as a top-up to the government scheme.
Bereavement Leave in Australia (Compassionate Leave)
2 days of paid compassionate leave.
Bereavement leave in Australia is known as compassionate leave.
An employee is entitled to 2 paid days of compassionate leave if a close family member or someone in their household experiences a life-threatening illness or injury, or dies. This also applies if a stillbirth or miscarriage occurs within their close family or household, or if their spouse or de facto partner has a miscarriage. There’s no annual cap because it applies per event.
This leave doesn’t accrue, carryover, and can’t be cashed out.
Full-time and part-time employees are entitled to paid leave. Casual employees can only obtain unpaid compassionate leave.
Jury Duty Leave in Australia
10 days
Employers must pay their employees during the first 10 days of their jury duty leave. This requirement doesn’t include casual employees.
Employers must allow leave for any employee summoned for jury service. However, this leave may be paid or unpaid depending on the employee’s status. This means that full-time employees must be guaranteed paid leave, and casual employees only have unpaid leave.
Employees must inform their employers of their jury service and provide proof of attendance for jury duty.
Payout
During the first 10 days of jury duty, both full-time and part-time employees are entitled to receive their regular wages. This means that the employer must pay the employee the difference between the payment they initially received from the court for jury duty and their normal pay rate for the time they would have worked if they had not been on jury duty. This payment that employers are required to make is called “make-up pay.”
For instance, if the court pays an employee $70 per day while their regular daily pay is $160, an employer must top up this payment with $90.
Military Leave in Australia
Unpaid leave
Employees, members of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) Reserves are entitled to take unpaid leave. Employers are required to release reservist employees for all types of defense service (training, annual exercises / camps, and deployments). They may not force employees to use annual or any other paid or unpaid leave for it. Leave is job-protected, and employers can’t dismiss, disadvantage, discriminate against them over their service, and reinstate them to their position afterward. The duration of leave a reservist needs for reserve service varies.
There’s no conscription.
Payout
Employers are not required to pay employees while they are on reservist leave. However, the ADF pays the reservist, and many employers offer top-up pay because the reservist’s pay is less than their regular salary. On the other hand, employers can claim compensation via the Employer Support Payment Scheme if their employees participate in longer service.
Voting Leave in Australia
Employers must provide employees with sufficient time to vote.
Employers are required to provide employees with paid leave on election day, reasonable paid time off to do so (usually up to 2 hours or enough time to travel and vote). However, if an employee’s shift starts 3 hours after the polls open or finishes 3 hours before they close, they are not eligible for leave.
Voting leave is rarely needed: voting is compulsory in Australia, federal elections are always on Saturdays, and early postal voting is available.
Payout
Voting leave in Australia is paid by the employer.
Public Holidays in Australia
Each state has different set of public holidays.
Public holidays in Australia are different and depend on the state or territory. There are 8 states and territories in Australia: Australian Capital Territories, New South Wales, Northern Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, and Western Australia.
However, there are 7 legal national holidays that are observed in every state:
| Date | Holiday |
|---|---|
| January 1 | New Year’s Day |
| January 26 | Australia Day |
| Movable: In spring - Two days before Easter Sunday (*) | Good Friday |
| Movable: In spring - The day after Easter Sunday (*) | Easter Monday |
| April 25 | Anzac Day |
| December 25 | Christmas Day |
| December 26 | Boxing Day |
(*) - The dates of Good Friday, Easter and Easter Monday vary according to the Christian liturgical calendar.
In addition to these holidays each state has its own public holidays that are observed.
Definite lists for each state
For a complete list of official holidays recognized and celebrated by each state in Australia for 2026, please visit the official site of the Australian Government, or the general rules declared on a state and territory basis presented on Wikipedia.
Sources
- Local Laws & Regulations in Australia, https://www.atlashxm.com/en/countries/australia
- Payroll and Benefits Guide Australia, https://www.papayaglobal.com/countrypedia/country/australia/
- Definitive Guide to Hiring in Australia, https://www.globalexpansion.com/countrypedia/australia
- All about Annual Leave, https://employsure.com.au/guides/annual-leave-and-other-leave/
Check out our Leave Laws page to learn more about laws in various countries.
This material is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For current and accurate guidance, please consult legal counsel in your jurisdiction.
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