Parental Leave Pay (Australia)
A government-funded payment under Australia's Paid Parental Leave scheme that provides eligible working parents with up to 22 weeks of pay at the national minimum wage rate, increasing to 26 weeks by July 2026, administered by Services Australia and governed by the Paid Parental Leave Act 2010.
- What Is Parental Leave Pay in Australia?
- Eligibility for Parental Leave Pay
- How Parental Leave Pay Works
- Payment Rates and Tax Treatment
- Employer's Role in Parental Leave Pay
- Unpaid Parental Leave Under the Fair Work Act
- Parental Leave Pay Statistics in Australia [2026]
- Frequently Asked Questions About Parental Leave Pay in Australia
What Is Parental Leave Pay in Australia?
Key Takeaways
- ✓Parental Leave Pay (PLP) is a government-funded payment for eligible working parents, paid at the national minimum wage rate (currently $882.75 per week before tax).
- ✓The scheme covers up to 22 weeks as of July 2024, increasing by 2 weeks each year until it reaches 26 weeks in July 2026.
- ✓Parents can share the entitlement between them. Each parent can take their portion at any time within 24 months of the child's birth or adoption.
- ✓There's an individual income test: the claimant's adjusted taxable income must be $168,865 or less in the relevant financial year.
- ✓PLP replaced the old two-part system (18 weeks for the primary carer plus 2 weeks Dad and Partner Pay) with a single, flexible, shareable pool.
Australia's Parental Leave Pay scheme has gone through a major overhaul. Before July 2023, the system was split: the birth mother got 18 weeks of pay and the father got a separate 2-week Dad and Partner Pay. These were rigid, gendered, and couldn't be shared. The reformed scheme, rolled out from July 2023, combines everything into one pool. As of July 2024, that pool is 22 weeks. It grows to 24 weeks in July 2025 and 26 weeks in July 2026. Parents can divide the weeks however they want. The payment rate is the national minimum wage, not the parent's actual salary. That's an important distinction. Regardless of whether you earn $60,000 or $160,000, you'll receive $882.75 per week before tax. Many employers top up this government payment to full salary as part of their own parental leave policies. The scheme is administered by Services Australia (previously Centrelink). The employer's role is primarily administrative: they may be required to pass through the government payment to the employee via their normal payroll, depending on the arrangement. The employer doesn't fund the PLP payment itself.
Eligibility for Parental Leave Pay
Several criteria must be met. The rules changed significantly in July 2023, so older information online may be outdated.
Work test
You must have worked for at least 10 of the 13 months before the child's birth or adoption. In those 10 months, you must have worked at least 330 hours (roughly one day per week). The hours can be with multiple employers, and self-employed work counts. If you don't meet the standard work test, there's an alternative test for mothers who had pregnancy-related complications or premature births that prevented them from working.
Income test
Your individual adjusted taxable income must be $168,865 or less in the financial year before the child's birth or the date of claim (whichever gives the higher threshold). This is an individual test, not a family income test. Your partner's income doesn't affect your eligibility. The threshold is indexed each year.
Residency requirement
You must be an Australian resident and be in Australia on the day the child is born or enters your care. Temporary visa holders generally don't qualify unless they hold specific eligible visa types. New Zealand citizens living in Australia under a Special Category Visa may qualify depending on when they arrived.
How Parental Leave Pay Works
The reformed scheme is more flexible than its predecessor. Here's how families can use it.
Sharing between parents
The total weeks can be divided between parents in any combination. One parent could take 20 weeks and the other 2 weeks. They could split it 11 and 11. Or one parent could take all 22 weeks. Each parent must individually meet the eligibility criteria for the weeks they want to claim. There's a "use-it-or-lose-it" incentive: if both parents each take at least 2 weeks, the family gets 2 extra bonus weeks (included in the 22-week total).
Flexible timing
Parents don't have to take their weeks in one block or immediately after the birth. PLP can be taken any time within 24 months of the child's birth or adoption date. Parents can take it in one continuous block, multiple blocks, or even as single days (with their employer's agreement). This flexibility lets families stagger their leave: the mother might take 16 weeks immediately, then the father takes 4 weeks three months later.
Concurrent leave
Both parents can receive PLP at the same time for up to 12 weeks. This is a newer feature of the reformed scheme. It allows both parents to be home during the early weeks without one waiting for the other to finish. The concurrent weeks still come from the same shared pool, so they don't extend the total.
Payment Rates and Tax Treatment
PLP is paid at a flat rate regardless of your salary. Here are the key financial details.
| Component | Details | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly rate | $882.75 before tax (2024-25) | Equal to the national minimum wage, indexed annually |
| Tax | PLP is taxable income | Tax is withheld at your nominated rate or the default rate |
| Superannuation | Government doesn't pay super on PLP | Employers aren't required to pay super on PLP either |
| Payment method | Via employer payroll or directly from Services Australia | Employer-delivered is more common for employees |
| Duration (2024-25) | 22 weeks | Increasing to 24 weeks (Jul 2025) and 26 weeks (Jul 2026) |
| Claim deadline | Within 12 months of birth/adoption | Late claims can be accepted in special circumstances |
Employer's Role in Parental Leave Pay
Employers don't fund PLP, but they play an important administrative role in the process.
Passing through the payment
If the employee has been with the employer for at least 12 months and is expected to return to work, the employer is generally required to pass through the PLP payment via normal payroll. This means the government deposits the funds with the employer, who then pays the employee as part of their regular pay cycle. The benefit for the employee is that it appears on their regular payslip with correct tax withholding.
Employer-funded parental leave
Many Australian employers provide their own paid parental leave on top of the government scheme. This employer-funded leave is separate and additional. Companies like the Big Four accounting firms, major banks, and tech companies typically offer 12 to 20 weeks of full-salary parental leave. The government PLP and employer leave can be taken consecutively or concurrently. There's no offset: the employer can't reduce their own parental leave because the employee receives government PLP.
Superannuation during leave
Here's a gap that often gets missed: the government doesn't pay superannuation on PLP. If the employer also doesn't pay super during the leave period, the employee misses out on retirement contributions. Some employers voluntarily continue super contributions during parental leave. If yours doesn't, the employee should consider making voluntary contributions to avoid a retirement savings gap.
Unpaid Parental Leave Under the Fair Work Act
The government PLP payment is separate from the unpaid parental leave entitlement under the National Employment Standards.
12 months unpaid leave
All employees (including casual employees who meet the criteria) are entitled to up to 12 months of unpaid parental leave under the Fair Work Act. They can request an additional 12 months, which the employer can only refuse on reasonable business grounds. This leave is job-protected: the employee must be able to return to their pre-leave position or, if that position doesn't exist, to the nearest equivalent role.
Combining paid and unpaid leave
The 22 weeks of government PLP and any employer-provided paid leave run concurrently with (not in addition to) the 12-month unpaid leave entitlement. So an employee might take 22 weeks of PLP plus 10 weeks of employer-paid leave, with the remaining weeks of the 12-month period being unpaid. The total job-protected period is 12 months (extendable to 24 months by request).
Parental Leave Pay Statistics in Australia [2026]
Key numbers on PLP usage and the evolving scheme.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I receive PLP if I'm self-employed?
Does PLP affect my other Centrelink payments?
Can I work while receiving PLP?
What about stillbirth or infant death?
Is PLP available for adopted children?
Can my employer force me to take PLP at a specific time?
Written by Adithyan RK