No. Annual leave does not usually build up during unpaid parental leave, including the days you get government Parental Leave Pay while on unpaid leave from your employer. It keeps building on paid leave you take, such as annual leave, and on keeping in touch days, and the balance you already have stays yours.
Maternity leave is rarely one kind of leave. A typical year off mixes some weeks paid by your employer, some annual leave, Parental Leave Pay from the government and a long stretch with no pay at all, and each of those is treated differently for accrual. This guide takes them one at a time, then works out what one employee comes back to. The general rule for every type of leave is in do you accrue leave while on leave.
Key takeaways
- Unpaid parental leave builds no annual leave: unpaid leave is not service under s 22 of the Fair Work Act.
- Parental Leave Pay does not change that. If you are on unpaid leave from your employer while you get it, nothing accrues.
- Annual leave you take during parental leave accrues as normal, and so does the time you work on a keeping in touch day.
- Employer-paid parental leave may build leave, depending on your contract or workplace policy. Check it rather than assume.
- Your existing balance stays: it rolls over and is paid out if you leave.
- Long service leave is state law: Victoria counts up to 52 weeks of unpaid leave, the NT and WA do not count unpaid leave.
Do you accrue annual leave on maternity leave?
Annual leave under the National Employment Standards is 4 weeks for each year of service, building up progressively according to your ordinary hours. Service is the key word. Section 22(2) of the Fair Work Act says any period of unpaid leave does not count as service, apart from a short list of exceptions (community service leave, stand downs and kinds prescribed by regulation). Unpaid parental leave is not on that list, so a week of it adds nothing to your annual leave.
Unpaid parental leave still counts for some things. It does not break your continuous service, and it counts towards your right to request flexible working, parental leave entitlements and notice of termination. It just does not build paid leave.
Fair Work Act 2009 s 87 (read 7 October 2026): s 87(1) "For each year of service with an employer ... an employee is entitled to: (a) 4 weeks of paid annual leave"; s 87(2) the entitlement "accrues progressively during a year of service ... according to the employee's ordinary hours of work, and accumulates from year to year." s 22(2) (Compilation No. 73, read 14 September 2026): "The following periods do not count as service: (a) any period of unauthorised absence; (b) any period of unpaid leave or unpaid authorised absence, other than" community service leave, stand downs and prescribed kinds.
Fair Work Ombudsman, Accruing and taking other leave during parental leave (content last updated 23 October 2025, read 11 October 2026): "Employees don't usually build up (or accrue) paid leave while they're on unpaid parental leave." Fair Work Ombudsman, Unpaid leave (23 October 2025): approved NES unpaid leave counts towards continuous service for "an employee's right to request flexible working arrangements; unpaid parental leave and related entitlements; notice of termination or payment in lieu of notice."
What builds leave and what does not
| Time around the birth | Annual leave builds? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Unpaid parental leave | No | Unpaid leave is not service (s 22(2)) |
| Parental Leave Pay days while on unpaid leave from your employer | No | FWO: no build-up while receiving PLP if on unpaid leave |
| Flexible unpaid parental leave days | No | They are unpaid parental leave |
| Annual leave or long service leave taken during the parental leave | Yes | FWO: accrual continues during paid leave taken |
| Keeping in touch days | Yes, for the time worked | FWO: accrual continues on a keeping in touch day |
| Employer-paid parental leave, full pay | May build | FWO: depends on your contract or workplace policy |
| Employer-paid parental leave, half pay | May build; if it does, as if at full pay | FWO library: half pay accrues as full pay |
| A public holiday inside annual leave taken during unpaid parental leave | Not paid | FWO public holidays guidance |
The same table answers the question for personal (sick and carer's) leave. The Fair Work Ombudsman says the types of leave that keep accruing on keeping in touch days and paid leave taken "include annual leave and personal and carer's leave."
Fair Work Ombudsman, Accruing and taking other leave during parental leave (read 11 October 2026): "employees will continue to accrue some types of paid leave during: a keeping in touch day; a period of paid leave (such as annual leave) that they take during their period of unpaid parental leave." "Types of leave that accrue in these circumstances include annual leave and personal and carer's leave."
Paid maternity leave from your employer
Many employers pay some weeks of parental leave under an enterprise agreement, contract or workplace policy. Whether you accrue annual leave during those weeks is not settled by the National Employment Standards. The Fair Work Ombudsman says employees "may" build up paid leave on employer-funded paid parental leave, and that it depends on the specific arrangement. So the answer is in your documents:
- Enterprise agreement: read the parental leave clause and any clause on what counts as service.
- Contract or workplace policy: look for words like "counts as service", "leave continues to accrue" or the opposite.
- Nothing in writing: ask payroll in writing before the leave starts, and keep the answer.
Half-pay leave. Some policies let you take paid weeks at half pay over twice as long. The Fair Work Ombudsman's library says an employee on leave at half pay accumulates leave as if on leave at full pay. So if your paid weeks count at all, half-pay weeks count as full weeks. Juno works 22.8 hours a week (3 days) and takes 16 weeks of employer-paid leave at half pay. If her policy counts the weeks, she accrues 16 x 22.8 x 4/52 = 28.06 hours of annual leave, the same as at full pay, not half that.
Fair Work Ombudsman, Accruing and taking other leave during parental leave (read 11 October 2026): "Employees may build up paid leave while on employer-funded paid parental leave, however this will depend on the specific circumstances of the employee's arrangement. Check your employment contract or workplace policy for more information." Fair Work Ombudsman, Payment during parental leave (content last updated 1 July 2026): "Employers can provide parental leave payments in agreements, employment contracts, or workplace policies." Fair Work Ombudsman Library, K600635 (read 11 October 2026): "an employee on leave at half pay accumulates leave as if they were on leave at full pay." Juno's hours are illustrative; the 4/52 weekly rate is our calculation from 4 weeks a year.
Parental Leave Pay days
Government Parental Leave Pay (PLP) is not leave from your employer. It is a payment from Services Australia, and most parents receive it while on unpaid parental leave. The Fair Work Ombudsman is direct about it: you do not build up paid leave while receiving PLP if you are on unpaid leave from your employer. Our reading: the same applies when your employer passes PLP on through payroll, because it is government money paid while you are on unpaid leave.
One thing that does help: a PLP day is a day you are not working, so it can sit next to annual leave you take, as below. You cannot get PLP and work on the same day, except for allowable reasons, which is why keeping in touch days and PLP days need separate dates (see keeping in touch days on parental leave).
Fair Work Ombudsman, Accruing and taking other leave during parental leave (read 11 October 2026): "Employees don't build up paid leave while receiving the Australian Government Parental Leave Pay (Parental Leave Pay) if they are on unpaid leave from their employer." Services Australia, Parental Leave Pay (page last updated 10 September 2026, read 7 October 2026): "You can't work on the days you get Parental Leave Pay, except for allowable reasons."
Taking annual leave during parental leave
You can take paid annual leave at the same time as unpaid parental leave, and while you are on it you keep accruing. Two weeks of annual leave in the middle of a year off is therefore worth slightly more than two weeks: it pays you, and it earns about 5.85 hours of new leave for a 38-hour week.
The public holiday catch. If a public holiday falls while you are taking annual leave at the same time as unpaid parental leave, you are not paid for it. In the Fair Work Ombudsman's example, Maggie's fix is to extend her period of annual leave by 1 day. If you plan annual leave over Christmas or Easter, count the holidays first.
While on unpaid parental leave you also cannot take paid sick or carer's leave or community service leave, and compassionate leave is available only in limited cases.
Fair Work Ombudsman, Parental leave and related entitlements (11 May 2026, read 6 October 2026): "Employees can take paid leave such as annual leave at the same time as unpaid parental leave." Fair Work Ombudsman, Not working on public holidays (content last updated 10 August 2026, read 11 October 2026): "If an employee is taking annual leave at the same time as unpaid parental leave, they won't be paid for the public holiday." Maggie example. Fair Work Ombudsman, Accruing and taking other leave during parental leave: during unpaid parental leave employees "can't take: paid sick or carer's leave; community service leave" and, with limits, compassionate leave.
Your annual leave balance when you go back
Saskia works full-time, 38 hours a week, in Melbourne. Her last day at work is Friday 26 February 2027, with 120 hours of annual leave banked. Four weeks a year on 38 hours is 152 hours, so she accrues 152 / 52 = 2.923 hours for each week that counts as service. Her employer's policy is silent on accrual during its paid parental leave, so the table shows both answers.
| Period | Dates | Accrued if paid weeks count | Accrued if they do not | Used |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employer-paid parental leave, full pay, 12 weeks | Mon 1 Mar to Fri 21 May 2027 | 12 x 2.923 = 35.08 h | 0 | |
| Unpaid parental leave with PLP, then unpaid, 38 weeks | Mon 24 May 2027 to Sun 27 Feb 2028, less 2 weeks below | 0 | 0 | |
| Annual leave inside the unpaid stretch, 2 weeks | Mon 6 to Fri 17 Dec 2027 | 2 x 2.923 = 5.85 h | 5.85 h | 76 h |
| 3 keeping in touch days, 7.6 h each | Inside the unpaid weeks | 22.8 x 4/52 = 1.75 h | 1.75 h | |
| Balance on return, Mon 28 Feb 2028 | 120 + 42.68 - 76 = 86.68 h | 120 + 7.60 - 76 = 51.60 h |
Had she worked all 52 weeks she would have accrued 152 hours. Instead she accrued 42.68 hours if the paid weeks count, or 7.60 if they do not. The 38 unpaid weeks alone cost 38 x 2.923 = 111.08 hours, close to 3 weeks of leave. The 35.08 hours riding on her policy are worth a question to payroll before she goes.
Quick table: what each week is worth. Every paid week that counts as service adds 4/52 of your ordinary weekly hours, and every unpaid week adds nothing.
| Ordinary hours a week | Accrued per week of service | Not accrued over 12 months unpaid |
|---|---|---|
| 38 (full-time) | 2.92 h | 152 h (4 weeks) |
| 30.4 (4 days) | 2.34 h | 121.6 h |
| 22.8 (3 days) | 1.75 h | 91.2 h |
| 20 | 1.54 h | 80 h |
Your banked leave is never lost by taking parental leave: unused annual leave rolls over from year to year and is paid out if your employment ends.
Fair Work Ombudsman, Annual leave (25 September 2026, read 7 October 2026): "Full-time and part-time employees get 4 weeks of annual leave, based on their ordinary hours of work." Jane, 20 hours a week, "will accumulate 80 hours of annual leave". "The leave accumulates gradually during the year and any unused annual leave will roll over from year to year." Fair Work Ombudsman, Final pay (28 September 2026): "An employee's unused annual leave gets paid out when their employment ends." Saskia's dates, hours and the weekly rate are our calculations.
The annual leave calculator works out a year's accrual from your hours, and the leave accrual calculator projects a balance forward. Leave out the unpaid weeks when you enter your service.
Long service leave on maternity leave, by state
Long service leave is set by state and territory law, not the National Employment Standards, and the states disagree about unpaid parental leave. The Fair Work Ombudsman says only that long service leave may build up during unpaid parental leave depending on the state or territory rules.
| State or territory | Unpaid parental leave | Paid leave | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Victoria | Counts, up to 52 weeks of unpaid leave | Counts | Long Service Leave Act 2018 s 13(1) |
| Northern Territory | Does not count | Not stated on the NT page | NT Government guidance |
| Western Australia | Does not count (continuity is kept) | Counts | Long Service Leave Act 1958 ss 6(1)(d), 6A(2)(a) |
| NSW, Queensland, SA, Tasmania, ACT | Not covered here. Check your state's Act or regulator before relying on a figure. | ||
For Saskia in Melbourne, all of her year off counts towards long service leave: the paid weeks under s 13(1)(a), and her unpaid weeks because they are under 52. In Darwin the unpaid weeks would not count. Thresholds and payouts are in our long service leave calculator.
Fair Work Ombudsman, Accruing and taking other leave during parental leave (read 11 October 2026): "Long service leave entitlements may build up while on unpaid parental leave depending on the rules set by the state or territory." Long Service Leave Act 2018 (Vic) s 13(1) (authorised version 006, read 14 September 2026) counts "(a) a period of paid leave; (b) if a period of unpaid leave is less than or is 52 weeks, that period; (c) if a period of unpaid leave is more than 52 weeks, the initial 52 weeks"; vic.gov.au: "Any period of up to 52 weeks' unpaid leave (including unpaid parental leave) counts towards an employee's period of continuous employment". NT Government, Long service leave (modified 26 February 2025): "You don't accumulate long service leave for: part years of completed service; absences taken for workers compensation; taking unpaid leave." Long Service Leave Act 1958 (WA) (read 11 October 2026): s 6(1) lists "(d) parental leave"; s 6A(2)(a) "a period is not counted if it is any of the following - (a) leave referred to in section 6(1) for which the employee has not received payment".
Sick and carer's leave
Personal (sick and carer's) leave follows the same pattern. It does not accumulate during unpaid parental leave, and it does accumulate on keeping in touch days and paid leave you take. Full-time employees accrue 10 days a year, worked out as 1/26 of ordinary hours, so the 38 unpaid weeks in Saskia's year cost her 38 x 38 / 26 = 55.54 hours of personal leave.
Fair Work Ombudsman, Paid sick and carer's leave (10 August 2026, read 6 October 2026): leave does not accumulate during "unpaid parental leave"; "This can be calculated as 1/26 of an employee's ordinary hours of work in a year." Fair Work Ombudsman, Accruing and taking other leave during parental leave (read 11 October 2026). The 55.54 hours is our calculation.
Common questions
Do you accrue annual leave during maternity leave?
Not during unpaid parental leave, including Parental Leave Pay days while you are on unpaid leave. You do accrue during annual leave you take and for time worked on keeping in touch days. Employer-paid parental leave may count, depending on your contract or policy.
How much annual leave do you accrue during maternity leave?
None for unpaid weeks. For each week that counts as service, 4/52 of your ordinary weekly hours: 2.92 hours on a 38-hour week. Twelve months fully unpaid costs a full-time employee 152 hours.
Do you accrue annual leave on paid maternity leave in Australia?
It depends on your employer's arrangement. The Fair Work Ombudsman says you may build up paid leave on employer-funded paid parental leave, and to check your contract or workplace policy. If it counts, half-pay weeks count as full weeks.
Is Paid Parental Leave paid by my employer or Centrelink, and does it change accrual?
Parental Leave Pay is a government payment from Services Australia, sometimes passed on by your employer. Either way, if you are on unpaid leave from your employer while you get it, no annual leave accrues.
Do you accrue sick leave while on maternity leave?
Not on unpaid parental leave. Like annual leave, it accrues on keeping in touch days and paid leave you take, and may accrue on employer-paid parental leave.
Do you accrue long service leave while on maternity leave?
It depends on your state. In Victoria up to 52 weeks of unpaid leave counts. In the NT unpaid leave does not count, and in WA unpaid parental leave is not counted though it does not break continuity.
Can I take annual leave during maternity leave?
Yes, at the same time as unpaid parental leave, and it keeps accruing while you are on it. A public holiday that falls during it is not paid.
Will I lose my annual leave balance on maternity leave?
No. Your banked leave rolls over and is paid out if your employment ends. See does annual leave roll over.
Do you accrue super on maternity leave?
That has its own rules: the ATO pays a contribution on Parental Leave Pay, and employer super depends on what you are paid. See super on maternity leave.
Author & reviewer
Sarah has spent over a decade advising Australian SMBs on Fair Work, NES compliance, and payroll. Based in Sydney, she has worked across hospitality, retail and professional services.