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Work out your 17.5% annual leave loading and what your leave payout is actually worth. Calculate pro-rata accrual, leave loading, and the tax on lump-sum payouts using FY2026-27 Australian rates.
Annual leave loading is an extra 17.5% of your base weekly pay, paid on top of the ordinary rate for each week of annual leave taken or paid out. This annual leave loading calculator applies the same formula an employer uses: 4 weeks × weekly pay × 17.5% for a full year of accrued leave.
The 17.5% rate originated in the 1970s to compensate workers who regularly earned overtime, penalty rates, or shift allowances. Without leave loading, these workers would receive less take-home pay during holidays than during normal working weeks. Today, leave loading applies only where an Award, enterprise agreement, or employment contract explicitly provides for it.
An employee earning $80,000 per year has a weekly base pay of $1,538. The leave loading calculation follows 3 steps:
Leave loading is not a universal NES entitlement. It applies to employees covered by Awards including the Clerks Award, Manufacturing Award, and Building Award. Employees on Award-free contracts, common in professional services, banking, and technology, typically do not receive leave loading unless their contract specifies it. Check your specific Award on the Fair Work Commission website to confirm your entitlement.
Yes. Leave loading is ordinary income — your employer applies PAYG withholding to it the same way as salary, and it is taxed at your marginal rate. There is no concessional tax treatment for leave loading, whether it is paid while you take leave or paid out on termination. Estimate the tax with the Income Tax Calculator.
Leave in Australia is calculated by accruing 4 weeks (152 hours) of paid annual leave per year of continuous service for full-time employees under the National Employment Standards (NES).
Leave accrues progressively from the first day of employment, not as a lump sum at year-end. A full-time employee working a standard 38-hour week earns 2.923 hours of leave per week, or approximately 0.833 days per fortnight. The Australian tax calculator applies the same ordinary hours figure when converting between annual salary and weekly pay for leave calculations.
Part-time employees accrue leave on a pro-rata basis. An employee working 20 ordinary hours per week accrues 80 hours (2.1 weeks) of annual leave per year instead of the full 152 hours. Casual employees do not accrue annual leave and instead receive a 25% casual loading on their base hourly rate.
Use the Take-Home Pay Calculator to convert your gross salary to after-tax income, then return here to calculate the value of your accrued leave entitlements for FY2026-27.
Australian employees are entitled to 7 distinct types of leave under the National Employment Standards, enterprise agreements, and state legislation.
The table below summarises the 3 leave types with cash value on termination: annual leave, personal/carer's leave, and long service leave. Entitlements vary between full-time, part-time, and shift workers. Superannuation at the employer SG rate of 12% is not payable on annual leave loading or leave payouts in most cases.
| Leave Type | Annual Entitlement (Full-Time) | Accrual Basis | Paid Out on Termination? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual Leave | 4 weeks (152 hours) | Progressive, from day 1 | Yes — all accrued untaken leave |
| Annual Leave (Shift Workers) | 5 weeks (190 hours) | Progressive, from day 1 | Yes — all accrued untaken leave |
| Personal/Carer's Leave | 10 days (76 hours) | Progressive, cumulative carry-over | No — no cash value |
| Long Service Leave | 8.67 weeks after 10 years | Continuous service (state laws) | Yes — pro-rata after 7+ years in most states |
| Compassionate Leave | 2 days per occasion | Per qualifying event | No |
| Parental Leave | 12 months unpaid | Per qualifying birth/adoption | No |
| Community Service Leave | Unpaid (except jury duty) | As required | No |
Income tax brackets apply to leave payouts the same way they apply to regular salary. Use the Income Tax Calculator to determine the tax payable on your leave payout amount.
The gross value of 4 weeks of accrued annual leave ranges from approximately $3,846 at a $50,000 salary to $9,231 at a $120,000 salary, before leave loading or tax. The table below shows the base payout, the 17.5% leave loading where applicable, and the total gross payout (pre-tax) at 6 common salary levels.
| Annual Salary | Weekly Base Pay | Base Payout (4 wks) | Leave Loading (17.5%) | Total Gross Payout |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $962 | $3,846 | +$673 | $4,519 |
| $60,000 | $1,154 | $4,615 | +$808 | $5,423 |
| $75,000 | $1,442 | $5,769 | +$1,010 | $6,779 |
| $90,000 | $1,731 | $6,923 | +$1,212 | $8,135 |
| $100,000 | $1,923 | $7,692 | +$1,346 | $9,038 |
| $120,000 | $2,308 | $9,231 | +$1,615 | $10,846 |
Figures show gross payout before income tax. Tax is applied at the employee's marginal rate in the financial year the payout is received. Leave loading is shown for reference — apply only if your Award or contract provides for it.
This leave calculator serves 3 primary user groups: employees planning resignation, HR professionals processing terminations, and workers budgeting for leave.
Unused annual leave is paid out at the employee's base pay rate (plus leave loading if applicable) as a lump sum in the final pay, regardless of whether the employee resigns, is made redundant, or is dismissed.
The NES makes leave payout mandatory. Employers cannot forfeit accrued annual leave under any circumstances. The payout amount equals the number of accrued weeks multiplied by the weekly base rate. Leave loading is included in the payout only where the employee's Award or agreement provides for it during employment.
Annual leave payouts are taxed as ordinary income at the employee's marginal tax rate. The ATO does not apply any concessional treatment to annual leave payouts. Long service leave payouts receive different treatment: the pre-16 August 1978 component is taxed at 5%, and the post-1978 component is taxed at the marginal rate. Use the Australian Tax Brackets page to find the applicable rate for your income level in FY2026-27.
Long service leave is governed by state and territory legislation, not the federal NES. The qualifying period and entitlement differ across jurisdictions.
| State / Territory | Full Entitlement | Pro-Rata Payout After |
|---|---|---|
| NSW | 8.67 weeks after 10 years | 5 years |
| VIC* | 8.67 weeks (accrues continuously, weeks ÷ 60) | 7 years (full entitlement, not just pro-rata) |
| QLD | 8.67 weeks after 10 years | 7 years |
| SA | 13 weeks after 10 years | 7 years |
| WA | 8.67 weeks after 10 years | 7 years |
| TAS | 8.67 weeks after 10 years | 7 years |
| NT | 13 weeks after 10 years | 7 years |
| ACT | 6.07 weeks after 7 years | 5 years |
*Victoria is the outlier: under the Long Service Leave Act 2018 (Vic), leave accrues continuously from day one (weeks of service ÷ 60), and the entitlement to take it — or be paid out on termination — arises at 7 years, not 10. The other states above vest the full 8.67-week (or equivalent) entitlement specifically at their stated milestone.
The most common leave calculation mistake is using calendar days instead of business days, which overstates leave entitlements by 40%.
Leave entitlements interact directly with 5 other payroll calculations including tax, superannuation, and redundancy pay.
Leave calculations are based on:
Annual leave payout is calculated by multiplying your weekly base pay by the number of accrued unused weeks of leave, plus 17.5% leave loading if your award or contract provides for it. On an $80,000 salary with 4 weeks accrued leave, the gross payout is $6,154 base ($80,000 ÷ 52 × 4) plus $1,077 leave loading where applicable, totalling $7,231 before tax.
Annual leave loading is an extra 17.5% paid on top of your base pay while you are on annual leave, or on the leave paid out when you leave a job. It is not a universal entitlement — it applies only where an award, enterprise agreement, or employment contract provides for it. The formula is 4 weeks × weekly base pay × 17.5% for a full year of leave.
Leave loading applies to employees covered by an award or enterprise agreement that includes a 17.5% leave loading clause. Common awards with leave loading include the Clerks Award, Manufacturing Award, and Building Award. Award-free employees on individual contracts — common in professional services, banking, and technology — typically do not receive leave loading unless their contract specifies it. Check your payslip or employment contract to confirm your entitlement.
Yes. Leave loading is ordinary income, taxed at your marginal rate with PAYG withholding applied by your employer the same way as salary. The historical concessional tax treatment for leave loading was removed decades ago. Loading paid out on termination is added to your taxable income for the financial year it is received.
Full-time employees get 4 weeks (20 days or 152 hours) of paid annual leave per year under the National Employment Standards. Part-time employees accrue leave on a pro-rata basis proportional to their ordinary hours. Shift workers who work a rotating roster including weekends and nights receive 5 weeks (190 hours) under their award.
Leave accrues progressively throughout the year based on ordinary hours worked. A part-time employee working 20 hours per week accrues 80 hours (2.1 weeks) of leave per year, calculated as 20/38 × 152 hours. The accrual rate is 1.538 hours per week for that employee, compared to 2.923 hours per week for a full-time worker.
Annual leave payouts are taxed as ordinary income at your marginal tax rate. The ATO treats the payout as assessable income in the financial year it is received. A large payout can push part of your income into a higher bracket — in FY2026-27, income between $45,001 and $135,000 is taxed at 30%, so a $12,000 payout on top of a $128,000 salary lifts assessable income to $140,000 and the portion above $135,000 is taxed at 37% instead of 30%.
Possibly. Annual leave payouts are taxed as lump-sum income at your marginal rate, which can over-withhold tax if the payout temporarily pushes you into a higher bracket for that pay period. When you lodge your annual tax return, any over-withheld tax is refunded based on actual annual income.
Yes. When your employment ends, your employer must pay out all accrued but untaken annual leave, plus leave loading where your award or agreement provides for it. This is a legal requirement under the National Employment Standards and applies whether you resign, are made redundant, or are dismissed.
No. The employer SG rate of 12% is not payable on annual leave payouts made on termination. Superannuation is payable on annual leave taken during employment (as it forms part of ordinary time earnings), but termination payouts for unused leave are excluded from the superannuation guarantee calculation.
No. Personal/carer's leave (sick leave) cannot be cashed out and has no payout value on termination. Employees accrue 10 days (76 hours) per year, and unused days carry over indefinitely, but the balance has zero cash value. Only annual leave and long service leave are paid out when employment ends.
Long service leave qualification depends on state legislation. In NSW, QLD, WA, and TAS, the full entitlement of 8.67 weeks vests after 10 years of continuous service, with pro-rata payouts on termination available after 5 years in NSW and after 7 years in QLD, WA and TAS. Victoria works differently: under the Long Service Leave Act 2018 (Vic), leave accrues continuously from day one — worked weeks ÷ 60 — and the entitlement becomes available to take, or to be paid out on termination, after just 7 years (about 6.1 weeks), reaching the same 8.67 weeks by the 10-year mark. SA and NT provide 13 weeks after 10 years, with pro-rata payouts after 7 years. The ACT provides 6.07 weeks after 7 years, with pro-rata payouts after 5 years.
No. Casual employees do not accrue annual leave, personal leave, or long service leave under the NES. Instead, casuals receive a 25% casual loading on top of their base hourly rate to compensate for the absence of paid leave, notice of termination, and redundancy pay entitlements.
For small businesses managing leave entitlements, solutions like PTODesk can simplify tracking employee time off and ensure compliance with leave policies.
Last verified: 28 July 2026. Our content is based on the latest information from official Australian government sources.