Annual leave — Updated for 2026–2027
Annual Leave Calculator — Accrual and Payout
Work out how much annual leave you've accrued from your hours worked, or what unused leave is worth — and taxed at — if you resign, are dismissed or made redundant.
Your leave details
What do you want to work out?
Before you start
Leave accrues progressively on hours worked
Ordinary hours in the work pattern drive the accrual — part-time is pro-rata automatically.
Annual Leave Accrued
Leave accrued
4 weeks
Worth $6,538 at your ordinary pay
4 weeks/year entitlement, pro-rata over 12 months worked
- Leave in hours
- 152 hrs
- Leave in days
- 20 days
- Hourly rate used
- $43
Your accrual rate
Leave builds at entitlement ÷ 52 of your ordinary hours
- Per week worked38 hrs × 4 ÷ 52
- 2.9 hrs
- Per month
- 12.7 hrs
- Per year (= 4 weeks)
- 152 hrs
Calculations run in your browser — your pay and leave details are never sent to a server.
Example: 4 weeks unused leave on $85,000 a year
The same unused leave is withheld very differently depending on why employment ends:
Resignation or dismissal — marginal rates
- Gross leave payment
- $6,538
- Withholding (Schedule 7, marginal)
- −$2,088
- Net payout
- $4,450
Genuine redundancy — flat 32%
- Gross leave payment
- $6,538
- Withholding (flat 32%)
- −$2,092
- Net payout
- $4,446
Examples use the ATO's Schedule 7 methods. Enter your own figures in the calculator above.
How annual leave works
Progressive accrual, pro-rata on hours
Annual leave builds up from your first day of employment, not after a qualifying period — full-time and part-time employees accrue 4 weeks a year under the National Employment Standards in the Fair Work Act (s 87), based on ordinary hours worked. That's your hours × 4 ÷ 52 — about 2.92 hours of leave for every 38-hour week worked — and because the entitlement is federal, it's the same in every state and territory. Part-time hours pro-rate automatically, and unused leave carries over indefinitely rather than expiring at year end. Eligible shift workers accrue 5 weeks instead. Casual employees don't accrue paid annual leave at all — their casual loading compensates for that and other permanent entitlements.
Leave loading — commonly 17.5% — is a separate, award or agreement-based top-up on leave you take. It isn't an NES entitlement, so whether you get it, and at what rate, depends on your award or agreement.
The payout and the tax
Unused annual leave paid out on termination is withheld under ATO Schedule 7, not through your normal pay tables. A genuine redundancy uses a flat 32% rate on the whole payment (including loading); any other reason for leaving uses a 7-step marginal-rates calculation instead. No superannuation applies to either — unlike long service leave you actually take, which is ordinary time earnings.
If you're working out a full redundancy payout, that calculator folds unused annual and long service leave in alongside severance and notice. Otherwise, weigh this payout against your tax on a bonus or regular take-home pay, and see how the year settles with the tax return calculator.
Annual Leave FAQs
How is annual leave calculated?
Annual leave accrues at 4/52 of your ordinary hours worked — multiply the hours you've worked by 4 and divide by 52 to get leave in hours. Over a full year that adds up to 4 weeks of paid leave for full-time and part-time employees under the National Employment Standards (NES), building up progressively from your first day rather than arriving in one block. Part-time hours are pro-rated automatically — a 20-hour week accrues half of what a 38-hour week does — and eligible shift workers accrue 5 weeks instead. Unused leave carries over year to year; it doesn't expire.
How much annual leave do you accrue per week?
On a 38-hour week you accrue about 2.92 hours of annual leave for every week worked (38 × 4 ÷ 52); on a 40-hour week it's about 3.08 hours. The formula is the same for any pattern — ordinary weekly hours × 4/52 — which lands on 152 hours of leave a year for a 38-hour week and 160 hours for a 40-hour week. Enter your own hours in the accrual mode above to see the exact figure.
Is 4 weeks of annual leave 20 days?
Yes — on a standard 5-day working week, 4 weeks of annual leave equals 20 working days (4 × 5 days). In hours, that's 152 hours on a 38-hour week or 160 hours on a 40-hour week. If you work fewer days a week, the same entitlement covers fewer calendar "days" but the same total hours — which is why awards and payroll systems track leave in hours. The accrual mode above converts your balance between hours, days and weeks automatically.
How do I calculate my annual leave pay?
Leave you take while still employed is paid at your ordinary base rate for the hours you're away — overtime and most allowances don't count — plus annual leave loading (commonly 17.5%) if your award or agreement pays it. Unused leave paid out when you leave a job starts from the same gross figure (unused hours × base rate, plus loading where it applies), but tax is withheld under ATO Schedule 7 instead of the normal pay tables, so the net amount differs. The payout mode above works out both the gross and the withholding for you.
What is annual leave loading?
Annual leave loading is an extra payment on top of your ordinary pay while you're on leave — commonly 17.5%, though the exact rate and whether you get it at all depends on your award, enterprise agreement or employment contract. It isn't a National Employment Standards entitlement, so check your award or agreement rather than assuming it applies.
How is unused annual leave taxed when I leave a job?
Unused annual leave is taxed differently to ordinary salary: it's withheld under ATO Schedule 7 rather than through your regular pay-as-you-go tables. Leaving for a genuine redundancy, invalidity or an approved early-retirement scheme, the whole payment — including any leave loading — is withheld at a flat rate. Leaving for any other reason (resignation, dismissal, retirement, end of contract), it's withheld using a 7-step marginal-rates calculation that approximates the tax you'd pay with the payment stacked on top of your normal pay for that period. Either way, the final amount settles at your tax return.
How is unused annual leave taxed on redundancy?
On a genuine redundancy, unused annual leave (including leave loading, if paid) is withheld at a flat 32% — regardless of your income or marginal tax rate. That's usually a lower rate than marginal withholding for higher earners, one of the reasons a redundancy payout can land higher after tax than the same amount paid out for resigning.
Is superannuation paid on annual leave?
Yes, when you actually take the leave — paid annual leave is ordinary time earnings, so the usual super guarantee applies. But an unused-leave lump sum paid out on termination is not ordinary time earnings, so no super is paid on it. That's a reason to use up leave before finishing up, where your employer allows it, rather than cashing it out at the end.
Is annual leave the same in NSW, Victoria and every other state?
Yes. Annual leave is a federal National Employment Standards entitlement under the Fair Work Act, so the 4-week minimum and the accrual rules are identical in NSW, Victoria, Queensland and every other state and territory. That's different to long service leave, which is set by separate state and territory laws with different qualifying periods and rates. State-specific leave calculators you find elsewhere are restating the same national rules.
Do casual or part-time employees get annual leave?
Part-time employees do — the NES accrues leave per ordinary hour worked, not per week of employment, so a part-timer on half a full-timer's hours accrues leave at half the rate, and this calculator handles that automatically from your weekly hours. Casual employees don't accrue paid annual leave — their casual loading on the hourly rate compensates for the lack of leave and other permanent entitlements.
Can I cash out annual leave without leaving my job?
Only if your award, enterprise agreement or registered agreement specifically allows it, and only above a minimum balance you must keep accrued — cashing out leave isn't a general NES right, and each cash-out has to be a separate written agreement rather than a standing arrangement. Award-free employees generally can't cash out leave at all while still employed.
This is an estimate, not a ruling
Awards, enterprise agreements and employment contracts can set leave loading rates and cash-out rules that this calculator doesn't know about. Confirm your entitlement with your award or the ATO's Schedule 7 guidance for unused leave payments.
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