Self-employed parents get no employer maternity leave, but sole traders and contractors can get up to 130 days of government Parental Leave Pay if they pass the work, income and residence tests. Hours count, not profit.
When you work for yourself there is nobody to grant you leave and nobody to keep paying you, so "maternity leave" means two things: the time off your business can carry, and the Australian Government's Parental Leave Pay. This guide covers the second in detail for sole traders, contractors and people working in a family business: how business hours pass the work test, the quiet-season gap that catches seasonal businesses, how fluctuating business income meets the income test, what you get at 2026-27 rates, and what you can and cannot do in the business on a paid day. The employee side, with unpaid leave and job protection, is in maternity leave in Australia.
Key takeaways
- No employer, no NES leave. Unpaid parental leave under the National Employment Standards is an employee entitlement. Your support is Parental Leave Pay.
- Hours, not profit. Self-employed hours count for the work test when the work is "for financial reward or gain", even if the business does not run at a profit.
- The test: 330 hours in 295 days inside the 392 days before the birth, with no gap of more than 84 days between work days. A long off-season can break it.
- Income: $186,487 individual or $386,525 family on 2025-26 income, measured on the financial year before the earlier of the birth and your claim date.
- Pay: $200.94 a day before tax in 2026-27, up to 130 days (110 if you have a partner), paid to you by Services Australia with 15% tax withheld unless you ask for another rate.
- Super: the ATO adds 12% plus interest on Parental Leave Pay for a child born or adopted from 1 July 2025.
Why there is no maternity leave when you are self-employed
The Fair Work Ombudsman describes unpaid parental leave as an entitlement that "applies to all employees in Australia", available after at least 12 months of continuous service with an employer. A sole trader or independent contractor has no employer, so there is no statutory leave to take, no employer to hold your job open, and no employer-paid parental leave policy. What you take off is your own decision, funded by the business and your savings.
Parental Leave Pay is different. It is a government payment, and the Services Australia eligibility list has no employment condition: you must be caring for a newborn or recently adopted child, meet the income test, meet the work test, meet the residence rules and have registered or applied to register the birth. Being a contractor, being self-employed and working in a family business are all listed as ways to meet the work test. If you have seen guides mention "Maternity Allowance", that is the name of a UK benefit; in Australia the government payment is Parental Leave Pay.
Fair Work Ombudsman, Parental leave and related entitlements (content last updated 11 May 2026): "All employees in Australia are eligible for unpaid parental leave if they have completed at least 12 months of continuous service with their employer." Services Australia, Parental Leave Pay (page last updated 10 September 2026): "To get this payment, all the following apply. You must: be caring for a newborn or recently adopted child; have met the income test; have met the work test; meet the residence rules ...; have registered or applied to register your child's birth". Services Australia, Activities that count as work (1 April 2026): the list includes "be a contractor or self-employed" and "work in a family business". Retrieved 6 and 7 October 2026.
The work test for sole traders: hours, not profit
Self-employed parental leave pay turns on the same work test as for employees, counted in hours. Services Australia's self-employed page is direct: "If you're working for financial reward or gain, you can count your hours of work in the work test. You can do this even if the business doesn't run at a profit." Its own worked example, Lisa, is self-employed, "doesn't make a profit" and "meets the work test".
Work that counts for a self-employed parent includes:
- providing goods and services for hire or reward;
- carrying on a business, including as a partnership or enterprise;
- working for a trust operating as a business;
- work in a family business, which counts "even if the business doesn't make an income", as long as you are working for financial gain or benefit;
- operating a business under Self-Employment Assistance.
Unpaid volunteer work does not count. Nor does leave that is paid out as a lump sum. A day counts when you do at least one hour of paid work on it.
The numbers
| Rule | What it means for a sole trader |
|---|---|
| Work test period | The 392 days (13 months) before the birth or adoption |
| Qualifying period | 295 days (10 months) inside that period |
| Hours | At least 330 hours in those 295 days, around one day a week |
| Gaps | No more than 84 consecutive days (12 weeks) between two work days |
| Mixed work | Employee hours and business hours can be combined |
So a contractor who also does a few shifts as an employee adds both sets of hours together. Check your own dates in the Paid Parental Leave work test calculator: enter your business work as ordinary work periods.
Services Australia, Self-employed parents work test (page last updated 1 April 2026; read 11 October 2026): "If you're working for financial reward or gain, you can count your hours of work in the work test. You can do this even if the business doesn't run at a profit." Listed: "providing goods and services for hire or reward; carrying on a business, including as a partnership or enterprise; working for a trust operating as a business."
Services Australia, Activities that count as work (1 April 2026): "Work is either: paid work on a day when you have worked for at least one hour; paid leave". "If you work for a family business, you can include your work hours even if the business doesn't make an income. You must be working for financial gain or benefit, even if you're not getting paid." Includes "operating a business under Self-Employment Assistance." Not work: "unpaid work, including volunteer work". Services Australia, Work requirements (1 April 2026): "10 of the 13 months before the birth or adoption of your child; a minimum of 330 hours, around one day a week, in those 10 months." "We count 10 months as 295 days and 13 months as 392 days." "You can include work for multiple employers, and combine approved activities to meet the work test." Services Australia, Examples to help you apply the work test (1 July 2025): Lisa. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
Seasonal and quiet periods: the 84-day rule
The rule that catches self-employed parents is the gap. A break between two work days is allowed only if there are no more than 84 consecutive days (12 weeks) between them. A run of 295 days can include allowed breaks, but a longer break ends the run, and the work after it has to fill 295 days on its own. A strong year can still fail if the quiet season runs past 12 weeks.
Kiri is a sole trader with a partner. Her baby is born on Monday 17 May 2027, so her work test period runs from Monday 20 April 2026 to Sunday 16 May 2027. In season she works about 15 paid hours a week.
| Event | Date | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Last paid job of the season | Thu 30 April 2026 | |
| Next paid job, with no work for the business at all in between | Mon 3 August 2026 | 94 days with no work in between: more than 84, so the run breaks |
| Works through to | Fri 30 April 2027 | The run from 3 August 2026 is 271 days, short of 295. Even working up to the day before the birth gives 287. Fails. |
Her back-by date was Friday 24 July 2026: the last work day plus 85 days. One paid day of at least an hour on or before then bridges the gap. Kiri takes a 2-hour paid editing job on Wednesday 22 July 2026. The gaps become 82 days and 11 days, both allowed, so her work forms one run. The 295 days from Friday 10 July 2026 to Friday 30 April 2027 hold about 2 + (38.7 weeks x 15) = 583 hours, well over 330. Passes.
If your business is seasonal, look at the calendar before the off-season starts. Book at least one paid hour of work into each stretch of 12 weeks, and keep track of the date of every paid job. The work test calculator shows the same back-by date for your own dates.
DSS, Paid Parental Leave Guide 1.1.P.130 Permissible break (last reviewed 20 March 2025): "A break between 2 days on which the person performed qualifying work ... is a permissible break if there were no more than 84 consecutive days (equivalent to 12 weeks) between those 2 days." DSS, 2.2.1 When a person satisfies the work test (last reviewed 1 July 2024): "330 hours of qualifying work ... over a period spanning at least 295 days (around 10 months) within the person's work test period", counting days that are qualifying work days or fall within a permissible break. Retrieved 6 October 2026. Kiri's dates and hours are our calculation and illustrative.
The income test with business income, and when to lodge
You meet the income test with individual income of $186,487 or less in 2025-26 ($180,007 in 2024-25), or family income of $386,525 or less in 2025-26 ($373,094 in 2024-25). If you do not have a partner, your own income is tested against the family limit.
Which year matters as much as the amount. Services Australia looks at your income for the financial year before the date of birth or the date you lodge your claim, whichever is earlier. You can lodge a claim up to 97 days before the expected date of birth. For a business whose income moves around, a claim lodged before 1 July can mean the earlier, lower year is tested.
Esme is a sole trader with a partner. Her baby is due on Monday 16 August 2027. Her business income was $172,000 in 2025-26 and she expects $205,000 in 2026-27. Her partner earns $195,000 in both years.
- Earliest claim: Tuesday 11 May 2027, 97 days before the due date.
- Lodged between 11 May and 30 June 2027: the claim date comes before the birth and falls in 2026-27, so 2025-26 income is tested. $172,000 is under $186,487. Passes.
- Lodged on or after 1 July 2027, or after the birth: 2026-27 income is tested, against limits not yet published. At the 2025-26 limits she would fail both: $205,000 is over $186,487, and $205,000 + $195,000 = $400,000 is over $386,525.
Same baby, same business: lodging seven weeks earlier is the difference between up to 110 days of pay and none.
Services Australia, Meeting the income test (1 July 2026): "We'll look at your income from the financial year before either: the date of birth or adoption; the date you lodge your claim. We'll use whichever date is earlier." Individual: "$186,487 or less in the 2025-26 financial year; $180,007 or less in the 2024-25 financial year." Family: "$386,525 or less in the 2025-26 financial year; $373,094 or less in the 2024-25 financial year." "If you don't have a partner, your income will apply to the family income test limit." DSS, Paid Parental Leave Guide 4.1.7 When to claim PLP (last reviewed 2 January 2026): "A claim for PLP must be made no earlier than 97 days before the expected DOB". Retrieved 6 and 7 October 2026. Esme's figures are illustrative.
What you get: days, rate and super
For a child born or adopted from 1 July 2026, Parental Leave Pay covers up to 130 days (26 weeks of 5 days), with 20 days reserved for the other parent. A parent with a partner can get at most 110. The rate is $200.94 a day before tax in 2026-27 ($1,004.70 for a 5-day week), and each day is paid at the rate for the financial year it falls in.
| Who claims | Days | Before tax at $200.94 |
|---|---|---|
| Single parent, all days | 130 | $26,122.20 |
| Parent with a partner | 110 | $22,103.40 |
| The other parent's reserved days | 20 | $4,018.80 |
Kiri claims her 110 days Monday to Friday from Monday 17 May to Friday 15 October 2027. 33 of them fall in 2026-27: 33 x $200.94 = $6,631.02 before tax. The other 77 are paid at the 2027-28 rate, which Services Australia has not yet published.
Super. The ATO pays a Paid Parental Leave Superannuation Contribution on Parental Leave Pay from Services Australia for a child born or adopted from 1 July 2025, based on the super guarantee rate (12% in 2026-27) plus an interest component, as a lump sum after the financial year ends. The ATO's condition is receiving Parental Leave Pay, not being an employee, so it applies to self-employed claimants. On Kiri's 2026-27 days that is 12% x $6,631.02 = $795.72 plus interest, paid after 30 June 2027. More on timing and catching up is in super on maternity leave.
Services Australia, How much Parental Leave Pay you can get (1 July 2026): "$200.94 a day before tax, or $1,004.70 per 5 day week." "You'll get the rate that applies for the financial year of the day or days you are claiming for." 130 days for a child born or adopted from 1 July 2026, 20 reserved for the other parent. ATO, Paid Parental Leave Superannuation Contribution (last updated 24 July 2026): "If you care for a child, born or adopted, from 1 July 2025 and you receive Parental Leave Pay from Services Australia in 2025-26 and onwards, we will pay a PPLSC." ATO, Super guarantee (last updated 17 April 2026): 12.00% for 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
The Paid Parental Leave work test calculator tests your work periods, gaps and income, then shows your days, pay and super. The maternity leave calculator lays out the payment weeks.
Your business on Parental Leave Pay days
You can't work on the days you get Parental Leave Pay, except for allowable reasons. Services Australia treats you as working on a day if you work for one hour or more. For a business owner, that means each paid day has to be a genuine day off from your own work in the business.
- If you do work on a paid day, you must either select a new day to get that day's payment, or return the day to your balance to use later.
- Allowable reasons are narrow: stillbirth or infant death; a court-ordered summons; a compulsory recall for defence force or law enforcement; and a health professional, emergency services or essential worker responding to a state, territory or national emergency.
- Birth mothers must not work within 14 days after the birth, even for an allowable reason.
The flexibility is in how you take the days. You can take Parental Leave Pay as a block, as single days or as a mix, before or after you go back to work, and you must use the days within 2 years of the birth or adoption. A sole trader who wants to keep the business ticking over can work on some days and claim Parental Leave Pay on others. Kiri, for example, could work 2 days a week and claim 3 days a week, which stretches her 110 days over about 36.7 weeks. How single days and blocks work is covered in flexible parental leave.
How you are paid. If you are self-employed, Services Australia pays you directly. When Services Australia pays, it withholds PAYG tax at 15% unless you ask for a different rate. On a $1,004.70 week, that is about $150.71 withheld.
Services Australia, Parental Leave Pay (10 September 2026): "You can't work on the days you get Parental Leave Pay, except for allowable reasons." Services Australia, If you work on a Parental Leave Pay day (page last updated 1 July 2025): "We consider you're working on the day if you work for one hour or more." "You must either: select a new day to get it; return the day to your balance to use later." "If you're the birth mother you must not work within 14 days after the birth of your child, even for an allowable reason."
Services Australia, Choose how to take your Parental Leave Pay: "You can take your Parental Leave Pay before or after you return to work." "You must use them within 2 years of your child's birth or adoption." Services Australia, Self-employed parents work test (1 April 2026): "If you get Parental Leave Pay and you're self-employed, we'll make the payments to you." Services Australia, Getting your Parental Leave Pay: "If we pay your Parental Leave Pay, we'll withhold PAYG tax at the rate of 15%, unless you ask for a different rate." All read 11 October 2026.
If your partner is self-employed
The 20 reserved days can go to the birth mother's partner, the biological father or the biological father's partner, and a self-employed partner qualifies the same way: business hours count for the work test. One extra condition applies: if you are partnered to the birth mother, both you and the birth mother must meet the work test. A self-employed partner who claims all 20 days gets $4,018.80 before tax at the 2026-27 rate, and the same rule applies on paid days: no work of an hour or more in the business. The rest of the partner's side is in paternity leave.
Services Australia, Work requirements (1 April 2026): "If you're partnered to the birth mother, both you and the birth mother must both meet the work test. For Parental Leave Pay, another parent can be one of the following: the birth mother's partner; the biological father; the biological father's partner." Retrieved 6 October 2026.
Self-employed maternity leave: questions
Can I get paid parental leave if I'm self-employed?
Yes. Parental Leave Pay has no employment condition. You need to care for the child and pass the work, income and residence tests, and self-employed hours count for the work test.
Do I need to make a profit to pass the work test?
No. Hours count when you work for financial reward or gain, even if the business does not run at a profit.
How many hours do I need?
At least 330 hours in 295 days within the 392 days before the birth, with no more than 84 days between work days. That is around one day a week.
Can I keep working in my business while on Parental Leave Pay?
Not on the days you are paid, except for allowable reasons. An hour or more of work makes it a working day. You can work on other days by taking your Parental Leave Pay as single days or shorter blocks.
What income counts for the income test?
Your income for the financial year before the earlier of the birth and your claim date. The limits are $186,487 individual or $386,525 family on 2025-26 income.
Is there a self-employed maternity leave calculator?
Use the Paid Parental Leave work test calculator with your business work entered as work periods. It checks the hours and gaps and shows the pay.
Do I get super on Parental Leave Pay if I'm self-employed?
Yes. The ATO pays 12% plus interest on Parental Leave Pay for a child born or adopted from 1 July 2025, after the financial year ends.
How is Parental Leave Pay taxed when I'm self-employed?
Services Australia pays you directly and withholds PAYG tax at 15% unless you ask for a different rate.
Do I get Maternity Allowance?
Maternity Allowance is a UK benefit. In Australia, the government payment is Parental Leave Pay.
My partner is self-employed. Can they get the reserved days?
Yes, if they pass the work test. When the claimant is partnered to the birth mother, the birth mother must pass the work test too.
Is self-employed maternity leave different in Victoria, NSW or Queensland?
No. Parental Leave Pay is an Australian Government payment, so the same rules apply in every state and territory.
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.