Parental Leave Pay Calculator Australia.

Government Paid Parental Leave is paid at the national minimum wage rate for 130 days (26 weeks) for a child born or adopted from 1 July 2026, up from 120 days (24 weeks) for a child born from 1 July 2025. The rate for 2026-27 is $200.94 a day, or $1,004.70 for a 5-day week before tax. To qualify you must meet a work test (worked 10 of the 13 months before the birth or placement, for at least 330 hours) and an income test. PPL can be shared between parents and taken flexibly within 2 years of the birth or adoption, with 20 days reserved for each parent on a use-it-or-lose-it basis. Superannuation is now paid on PPL for children born or adopted from 1 July 2025, an ATO payment covered in super on Parental Leave Pay. The rise to 130 days is recorded in Paid Parental Leave hits 26 weeks. See our maternity leave guide and paternity leave guide for the full detail.

Separate from paid PPL, the National Employment Standards give eligible employees up to 12 months of unpaid parental leave, with the right to request a further 12 months. You qualify after 12 months of continuous service before the expected birth or placement. Casuals can be eligible if they were employed on a regular and systematic basis and had a reasonable expectation of continuing work.

Australian federal law does not use separate maternity, paternity or adoption categories: they all fall under the single NES parental leave entitlement, which is gender-neutral and covers birth and adoption alike. Both parents can take leave, and a portion can be taken at the same time (concurrent leave). Your award or enterprise agreement may add employer-funded paid parental leave on top of the government scheme. For the birth-parent rules specifically, including the six-week pre-birth start, special maternity leave for pregnancy-related illness and safe-job transfer, use the maternity leave calculator.