Returning to work after maternity leave, you are entitled to your pre-leave job, or to the nearest available job in status and pay if it no longer exists (Fair Work Act s 84). The same applies to any parent coming back from unpaid parental leave.
This guide is about the return itself: which job you come back to, what happens if it has gone, how to ask for part-time hours, how to move your return date, and what changes if you decide not to go back. The dates are worked through for one parent whose leave starts on 19 October 2026. For the leave before the return (eligibility, notice, Parental Leave Pay), see the maternity leave guide.
Key takeaways
- You go back to the job you held before the leave, even if a replacement is doing it. If you moved to a safe job or cut your hours because of the pregnancy, it is the job you held before that change.
- If the job no longer exists, you must be offered an available job you are qualified and suited for, nearest in status and pay. A role abolished because of your absence is treated as a dismissal for a prohibited reason (s 772(3)).
- You can ask in writing to come back part-time. Your employer must answer in writing within 21 days and can refuse only on reasonable business grounds. Since 6 June 2023 the Fair Work Commission can order the request be granted.
- Coming back early needs your employer's agreement, but no notice period. Extending needs written notice or a written request at least 4 weeks ahead, and all leave must end within 24 months of the birth.
- Not going back? You can resign during the leave and let your notice run during it. Unused annual leave is paid out, and the Parental Leave Pay rules contain no condition about returning.
Your return, dated
Every return date sits inside a set of legal deadlines. Here they are for Hannah, who starts 12 months of unpaid parental leave on Monday 19 October 2026 and gives birth on Monday 9 November 2026. She takes the leave in one continuous block, with no flexible days.
| Milestone | Rule | Hannah's date |
|---|---|---|
| Leave starts | Her notified start date | Mon 19 Oct 2026 |
| Baby born | Starts the 24-month clock | Mon 9 Nov 2026 |
| Last day to ask for more than 12 months | Written request at least 4 weeks before the 12 months ends (s 76(2)) | Mon 20 Sep 2027 |
| Employer's written answer to that request | Within 21 days of receiving it (s 76A(1)) | By Mon 11 Oct 2027, if received on 20 Sep |
| Send a part-time request (planning date) | 21 days before her first day back, so the answer is due before she returns | Tue 28 Sep 2027 |
| 12-month leave period ends | 12 months from the start of leave (s 75(2)) | Mon 18 Oct 2027 |
| First day back | Return to her pre-leave job (s 84) | Tue 19 Oct 2027 |
| Latest any leave can end | 24 months from the birth (s 71(3), s 76(7)) | Wed 8 Nov 2028 |
| Last day to use any Parental Leave Pay days | Within 2 years of the birth (Services Australia) | Wed 8 Nov 2028 |
The part-time date is advice, not a legal deadline: you can make a request at any time, but sending it 21 days before your return means the employer's written answer is due before your first day.
Model the leave period and how the government payment days fall with the maternity leave calculator or the Parental Leave Pay calculator.
The job you come back to
The return to work guarantee is section 84. It applies when a period of unpaid parental leave ends, and it is not limited to birth mothers.
"On ending a period of unpaid parental leave, an employee is entitled to return to: (a) the employee's pre-parental leave position; or (b) if that position no longer exists, an available position for which the employee is qualified and suited nearest in status and pay to the pre-parental leave position."
Source: Fair Work Act 2009, Compilation No. 73, 7 July 2026, retrieved 5 October 2026.
- Which job counts. The "pre-parental leave position" is the job you held before the leave. If, before the leave, you were transferred to a safe job or reduced your hours because of the pregnancy, it is the job you held before that transfer or reduction (s 12).
- Same hours, place and duties. Unless you ask for a change, you return to the same hours of work, location and duties.
- A replacement is not a reason to refuse you. You are entitled to the job even if another person is doing it. Before engaging a replacement, your employer must tell them the engagement is temporary and explain your right to return (s 84A).
- Fixed term contracts. If your fixed term contract ends while you are on unpaid parental leave, you have no right to return to the same job unless the contract says otherwise.
"They're entitled to this job even if another person is working in their role as a replacement." And: "If the employee is on a fixed term contract and it ends while they are on unpaid parental leave, they're not entitled to return to the same job unless an employment contract says otherwise." (updated 2 September 2026.) Same hours, location and duties: Flexible work after parental leave. Fair Work Act ss 12, 84A. Retrieved 5 October 2026.
If your job has changed or no longer exists
Changes do not wait for your return. If your employer makes a decision that will significantly affect the status, pay or location of your pre-leave job while you are away, it must take all reasonable steps to tell you and give you a chance to discuss it (s 83). That consultation happens when the decision is made, not when you come back. The duty does not apply during flexible unpaid parental leave days.
If the job has genuinely gone, the order of steps is fixed by the Act:
- Your employer must offer an available position you are qualified and suited for, nearest in status and pay to your old one (s 84(b)).
- If no such position exists, it may be a redundancy, with the correct notice and any redundancy pay owed. If the job still exists and a replacement is doing it, there is no redundancy.
- If the reason the job no longer exists is your absence on parental leave, the termination is treated as being for a prohibited reason (s 772(3)). Separately, adverse action because of pregnancy, breastfeeding or family or carer's responsibilities is unlawful (s 351).
If a redundancy is real, the leave changes the arithmetic, because unpaid parental leave counts differently for notice and for redundancy pay. Tom works for an employer with more than 15 employees from Friday 1 December 2023, takes 12 months of unpaid parental leave from 19 October 2026 to 18 October 2027, and is made redundant on Monday 31 January 2028.
| Service counted | Entitlement | Why | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time employed | 4 years 2 months | 1 Dec 2023 to 31 Jan 2028 | |
| Redundancy pay | 3 years 2 months | 7 weeks' pay | Unpaid leave does not count towards the length of service (s 22(2)(b), (3)); 3 to under 4 years is 7 weeks (s 119(2)) |
| Notice of termination | 4 years 2 months | 3 weeks, or 4 weeks if over 45 | Unpaid parental leave counts for notice (s 22(4)); more than 3 and up to 5 years is 3 weeks (s 117(3)) |
At a base rate of $1,600 a week, Tom's 7 weeks of redundancy pay is $11,200. Had the unpaid year counted, he would have reached 4 years and 8 weeks' pay. Small business employers (fewer than 15 employees) do not have to pay redundancy pay at all; see redundancy pay and small business. Work out your own figures with the redundancy calculator and the notice period calculator.
Fair Work Act 2009 s 83 (consultation), s 84(b), s 22(2) to (4) (service), s 117(3) (notice), s 119(2) (redundancy pay), s 121(1) (small business), s 351 and s 772(1)(g), (3): if the reason a position no longer exists "is the employee's absence, or proposed or probable absence, during parental leave", the termination is taken to be for that prohibited reason (Compilation No. 73, 7 July 2026). Fair Work Ombudsman, Returning to work from parental leave: "If the job still exists and a replacement employee is doing it then there's no redundancy." Ending employment during parental leave (updated 23 October 2025): consultation "has to occur as the decision is made, not when the employee comes back to work from parental leave." Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Coming back part-time or flexible
A parent returning to work after leave for the birth or adoption of a child can ask to work part-time to help care for the child (s 65(1B)). More broadly, any parent of a child who is school age or younger can request a change in working arrangements. The request has rules on both sides.
| Step | What the Act requires |
|---|---|
| Who can ask | 12 months of continuous service immediately before the request, and your unpaid parental leave counts towards it (s 65(2), s 22(4)). Casuals need 12 months as a regular casual with a reasonable expectation of continuing. |
| Your request | In writing, setting out the change you want and your reasons (s 65(3)) |
| The answer | In writing within 21 days (s 65A(1)) |
| Before refusing | The employer must have discussed the request, genuinely tried to reach agreement, and considered the consequences of refusal for you (s 65A(3)) |
| Grounds for refusing | Only reasonable business grounds, such as the change being too costly, no capacity to change other employees' arrangements, impracticality, a significant loss in efficiency or productivity, or a significant negative impact on customer service |
| A refusal letter | Must give the reasons, say what changes the employer would agree to (or that there are none), and explain your right to take it further |
| If refused or ignored | Try to resolve it at work first, then refer it to the Fair Work Commission (s 65B). The Commission usually conciliates or mediates first, and can arbitrate and order the request be granted if there is no reasonable prospect of resolving it otherwise (s 65C) |
The refusal tests and the Commission's power to arbitrate were added by the Secure Jobs, Better Pay Act 2022, and that part started on 6 June 2023. Guides written before then do not include them. A request can also be temporary: the Fair Work Ombudsman's own example is a parent who returns part-time for 3 months and then goes back to full-time.
Hannah needed 12 months of service to get unpaid parental leave in the first place, and her year on leave counts on top, so she clears the threshold easily. She sends a written request on 28 September 2027 for Monday to Wednesday hours, explaining the childcare days she has, so the answer is due by 19 October, her first day back.
s 65(1B): a parent "returning to work after taking leave in relation to the birth or adoption of the child; may request to work part-time to assist the employee to care for the child." s 65A(1): a "written response to the request within 21 days." s 65B(1): a dispute can be raised if the employer refused or "21 days have passed ... and the employer has not given the employee a written response". (Compilation No. 73, 7 July 2026.) Commencement: Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Secure Jobs, Better Pay) Act 2022, s 2, Schedule 1 Part 11 (flexible work), 6 June 2023. Fair Work Ombudsman, Flexible working arrangements. Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Changing your return date
| You want to | How | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Extend, while still inside your first 12 months | Written notice of the extension (s 75(3)). Only one extension by notice; any more need your employer's agreement (s 75(4) to (6)) | At least 4 weeks before your original end date |
| Extend beyond 12 months | Written request for up to 12 more months. The employer answers in writing within 21 days and can refuse only on the same tests as a flexible work request (s 76, s 76A) | At least 4 weeks before your 12 months ends |
| Come back early | Only if your employer agrees (s 77). If it does not agree, you return on the planned date | No notice period when you both agree the new date |
| Any change | Leave cannot run past 24 months from the birth or placement (s 71(3), (5), s 76(7)) | For Hannah, Wed 8 Nov 2028 |
Had Hannah booked only 6 months, to Sunday 18 April 2027, her one extension by notice would need to reach her employer by Sunday 21 March 2027, and it could take her up to the 12-month mark on 18 October 2027.
Two common beliefs are wrong. Coming back early does not need 4 weeks' written notice: the Fair Work Ombudsman says no notice period is required when you and your employer agree on the new return date. And your employer cannot call you back early just because it would suit the business. It can require an early return only if you stop having responsibility for the child, and then only on a day at least 4 weeks after giving you notice and, for a birth parent, not earlier than 6 weeks after the birth (s 78). After a stillbirth or the death of a child, you can cancel the leave, or give written notice to return on a day at least 4 weeks after your employer receives it (s 77A).
Fair Work Act 2009 ss 71, 75, 76, 76A, 77, 77A, 78 (Compilation No. 73, 7 July 2026). s 77: "If the employer agrees, an employee whose period of unpaid parental leave has started may reduce the period of unpaid parental leave the employee takes." Fair Work Ombudsman, Ending parental leave early: "No notice period is required when an employee and employer agree to the new return date." Extending parental leave. Both updated 2 September 2026, retrieved 5 October 2026.
Keeping in touch days before you return
Keeping in touch days let you work the odd day during unpaid parental leave to ease the return: up to 10 in your first 12 months and 10 more in an extension, never in the first 14 days after the birth (42 days if your employer suggests it), and not during flexible unpaid parental leave. They do not extend your leave, and a part day uses up a whole day. If you are also on Parental Leave Pay, a keeping in touch day of 1 hour or more counts as a working day, so it cannot also be a Parental Leave Pay day. The maternity leave guide covers how they are paid.
Fair Work Act 2009 ss 79A(2)(c), (d), (4), (5), 79B (Compilation No. 73, 7 July 2026). Fair Work Ombudsman, Keeping in touch days (updated 2 September 2026). Services Australia, If you work on a Parental Leave Pay day: "We consider you're working on the day if you work for one hour or more." Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Parental Leave Pay days after you go back
Parental Leave Pay does not have to be used up before you return. Services Australia lets you take your days before or after you go back to work, on any day you are caring for the child and not working, as long as you use them within 2 years of the birth or adoption. That makes unused days a top-up for a part-time return.
| Hannah's part-time return | |
|---|---|
| Working days from Tue 19 Oct 2027 | Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday |
| Parental Leave Pay days still unused | 25 |
| Days she can claim each week | 2 (Thursday and Friday) |
| Weeks to use them | About 12.5 weeks |
| Use-by date | Wed 8 Nov 2028 |
From 1 July 2026 the full entitlement is 130 days and the rate is $1,004.70 a week before tax ($200.94 a day). Days claimed in 2027-28 are paid at that year's rate, which has not been published yet. The scheme does not give you any new leave entitlement from your employer.
"You can take your Parental Leave Pay before or after you return to work. You can take it on any days you're both: caring for the child; not working, unless it's for an allowable reason." "You must use them within 2 years of your child's birth or adoption." (Choose how to take your payment, updated 1 July 2026.) "From 1 July 2026, the rate of Parental Leave Pay is $1,004.70 per week, before tax." "The scheme doesn't give your employees any new leave entitlements." (About Parental Leave Pay payments, updated 1 July 2026.) Retrieved 5 October 2026.
If you decide not to go back
You do not have to return to the job at the end of the leave. What changes is how you leave it.
- Resign during the leave. You can resign while you are on parental leave, and your parental leave can be used as the notice period.
- Give the right notice. How much notice you must give comes from your award, enterprise agreement or contract. For award notice, continuous service includes authorised unpaid leave such as unpaid parental leave. Our resignation notice period guide explains the rules.
- Your final pay. Unused annual leave is paid out when your employment ends. The final pay calculator adds it up.
- Parental Leave Pay. The eligibility rules (caring for the child, income test, work test, residence and birth registration) contain no condition that you return to your employer.
- Employer-funded paid parental leave. Some workplace policies attach conditions to their own paid leave. Check your policy or agreement before you resign.
Fair Work Ombudsman, Ending employment during parental leave: "An employee can resign from their job while they're on parental leave." Resignation (updated 28 August 2026); Final pay (updated 28 September 2026). Services Australia, Parental Leave Pay (updated 10 September 2026). Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Breastfeeding at work
You are allowed to breastfeed in the workplace, and your employer must not take adverse action against you because you are breastfeeding (s 351). The same section protects you from adverse action because of pregnancy or family or carer's responsibilities.
Fair Work Ombudsman, Returning to work from parental leave: "Employees are allowed to breastfeed in the workplace." Fair Work Act 2009 s 351(1) (Compilation No. 73, 7 July 2026). Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Returning to work: questions
Do I get my old job back after maternity leave?
Yes. Section 84 entitles you to your pre-parental leave position. If you moved to a safe job or reduced your hours because of the pregnancy, that means the job you held before the change.
What if my job no longer exists, or my replacement is still doing it?
If a replacement is doing your job, the job still exists and it is yours. If it has genuinely gone, you must be offered the available job nearest in status and pay that you are qualified and suited for. Only if none exists can it become a redundancy, and abolishing the role because you were on leave is unlawful.
Can I come back part-time after maternity leave?
You can ask, in writing, with your reasons, once you have 12 months of service, and your time on leave counts towards that. You have no automatic right to part-time hours, but your employer must answer within 21 days and can refuse only on reasonable business grounds.
Can my employer refuse part-time or flexible hours?
Only after discussing it with you, genuinely trying to agree and considering the consequences for you, and only on reasonable business grounds. If it refuses or does not answer within 21 days, you can take the dispute to the Fair Work Commission, which can order that the request be granted.
How much notice do I need to give to extend my maternity leave?
At least 4 weeks. Inside your first 12 months, that is written notice before your original end date. To go beyond 12 months, it is a written request before the 12 months ends, and your employer has 21 days to answer.
Can I go back to work earlier than planned?
Yes, if your employer agrees. No notice period is needed when you both agree the new date. If your employer does not agree, you return on the date you planned.
What happens if I do not go back after maternity leave?
You resign, giving the notice your award, agreement or contract requires, and the notice can run while you are still on leave. Your unused annual leave is paid out. The Parental Leave Pay rules do not require you to return, but check any employer-funded paid leave policy for its own conditions.
Can I still use Parental Leave Pay days after I return to work?
Yes, on days you are caring for the child and not working, within 2 years of the birth or adoption. A day on which you work 1 hour or more, including a keeping in touch day, cannot be a Parental Leave Pay day.
Does parental leave count for redundancy pay and notice?
Unpaid parental leave does not break your service, but it does not count towards the length of service for redundancy pay. It does count for notice of termination and for the 12 months needed to make a flexible work request.
Do keeping in touch days change my return date?
No. Section 79B says keeping in touch days do not extend your period of unpaid parental 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.