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Annual Leave Calculator: Payout, Tax and Accrual

Work out what unused annual leave pays out when a job ends: the hours at your base rate, leave loading where your award or agreement provides it, and the tax withheld under the ATO's Schedule 7 for 2026-27. Four weeks of unused leave on a 38-hour week at $35 an hour, with 17.5% loading, pays out $6,251.00, and after a resignation $4,223.00 of it reaches your account once $2,028 is withheld. Switch the calculator to accrual to see the leave built up over the weeks you have worked. Full-time and part-time employees accrue four weeks of their ordinary hours a year under the National Employment Standards, and unused leave must be paid out when employment ends.

Your details

The hours on your last payslip, after any leave taken or cashed out.

Not every award or agreement pays it. 17.5% is the common rate. Leave it at 0 if yours has none.

The ATO withholds a flat rate from leave paid out on a genuine redundancy, and at marginal rates otherwise.

Payout after tax withheld

$3,604.00

Leave paid out
152.00 hours, 4.00 weeks
At your base rate
$5,320.00
Payout before tax
$5,320.00
Tax withheld, Schedule 7
$1,716
Withholding rate on the payout
32.3%
Payout after tax withheld
$3,604.00
Withheld on a genuine redundancy instead
$1,702
Normal pay a fortnight
$2,660.00
Withheld from normal pay a fortnight
$488

Schedule 7 spreads the payout over 26 pays, finds the extra the tax table withholds on one pay's share and multiplies it back up, so the payout is withheld at close to your marginal rate. Loading is taxed the same way as the leave, and no study loan amount is withheld from it. This is the withholding, not the final tax, which is settled when you lodge.

Worked examples, with the arithmetic.

The same sums the tool runs, on real figures. Every number below is computed by the tested engine from the published rates, so the prose and the tool can never disagree.

How much leave does a 38-hour week accrue in a year?

38 hours x 4 weeks            = 152 hours a year
152 / 52 weeks                = 2.923 hours for each week worked

A full-time employee on a 38-hour week accrues 152 hours of paid annual leave a year, which is exactly four weeks of their own ordinary hours. It builds up at about 2.923 hours for every week worked, from the first day including probation.

What does a 20-hour part-time week accrue?

20 hours x 4 weeks            = 80 hours a year
80 / 20                       = 4 weeks off, the same entitlement

80 hours, which is still four weeks for that person. The entitlement is four weeks of your ordinary hours, so part-time employees get the same number of weeks off as full-time employees, just fewer hours in each one.

How do you calculate annual leave pay for a week off?

38 hours x $35            = $1,330.00 at the base rate
$1,330.00 x 17.5%         = $232.75 loading, if the award pays it
week of leave with loading    = $1,562.75

Annual leave is paid at your base rate for every hour of leave taken, so a week off on a 38-hour week at $35 an hour pays $1,330.00. Overtime, penalty rates, allowances and bonuses are left out, which is why a week of leave can pay less than a week of weekend shifts. Where your award or agreement provides 17.5% leave loading, it adds $232.75, taking the week to $1,562.75.

What is six months of unused leave worth when you leave?

38 x 4 weeks x 26 / 52      = 76 hours accrued
76 hours x $35            = $2,660.00 at the base rate
plus 17.5% loading, if payable  = $3,125.50

Six months on a 38-hour week accrues 76 hours, which is $2,660.00 at $35 an hour. Unused leave must be paid out when employment ends, and the Fair Work Ombudsman says the payout must include any loading you would have received on taking the leave, which lifts it to $3,125.50 where 17.5% applies. The tax withheld from a payout follows the ATO's Schedule 7, worked through in the next example.

How much tax comes out of a four-week annual leave payout?

152 hours x $35               = $5,320.00
plus 17.5% loading            = $6,251.00
normal pay $2,660 a fortnight = $488 withheld
$6,251 / 26, cents dropped    = $240
withheld on $2,900            = $566
($566 - $488) x 26            = $2,028
payout after tax withheld     = $4,223.00

A four-week balance of 152 hours at $35 an hour, with 17.5% loading, pays out $6,251.00 before tax. On a resignation, Schedule 7 spreads it over 26 fortnights, adds one fortnight's share to a normal pay and multiplies the extra withholding back up, so $2,028 is withheld and $4,223.00 is paid. On a genuine redundancy a flat 32% is withheld instead, $2,000, leaving $4,251.00. Either way the final tax is settled when you lodge.

Is this accurate, and how does it work?

The method is published rather than described. Nothing here is a black box, and the limits are listed as plainly as the workings.

  1. 1Four weeks of your ordinary hours. The entitlement is four weeks, expressed in the hours you ordinarily work. A 38-hour week accrues 152 hours a year. A 20-hour week accrues 80 hours, which is still four weeks for that person.
  2. 2Accrue progressively from day one. Leave builds up gradually across the year, including during a probation period, and unused leave rolls over rather than expiring.
  3. 3Pay it at your base rate, plus any loading. Annual leave is paid at your current base pay rate for every hour of leave taken. The Fair Work Ombudsman lists what that leaves out: overtime, penalty rates, allowances and bonuses. An award or agreement can add annual leave loading on top, and some pay the higher of the loading or the shift loading you normally get, which the Leave Loading Calculator sets out. Unused leave paid out when employment ends must include any loading you would have been paid on taking it.
  4. 4Add the fifth week only where the award says so. Some shiftworkers get five weeks, but only where the award or agreement includes shiftwork provisions and defines them as a shiftworker for this purpose. It is not automatic for anyone who works shifts.
  5. 5Withhold tax from a payout under Schedule 7. On a resignation, retirement or dismissal, payroll divides the payout by the 52, 26 or 12 pays in a year, cents dropped, adds that share to one normal pay and runs it through the regular tax table. The extra withheld is multiplied back up, so the payout is withheld at close to your marginal rate. A payout under $300 withholds the lesser of that and 32%. On a genuine redundancy, invalidity or an approved early retirement scheme, a flat 32% is withheld instead. Normal pay here is your ordinary hours at the base rate.

What this does not cover.

  • The payout figure is Schedule 7 withholding on leave accrued after 17 August 1993, not the final tax, which is settled in your tax return. Leave accrued before 18 August 1993 is not split out. If the job ends in redundancy, the Redundancy Calculator works out the redundancy pay, notice and tax-free limit that sit alongside the leave payout. For any other ending, the notice owed and the tax on pay in lieu of it are on the Notice Period Calculator.
  • Normal pay is taken as your ordinary hours at the base rate. Schedule 7 uses everything paid in your last full pay period, overtime and allowances included, so regular extras lift the withholding a little. It assumes you have given your employer your tax file number, and it does not model a withholding variation or a working holiday maker.
  • It applies leave loading only at the rate you enter. It does not check whether your award pays loading, or apply the higher-of rule some awards use against a shift loading.
  • It assumes steady ordinary hours. Irregular part-time hours accrue on the hours actually worked.
  • In accrual mode it does not take off leave already taken or cashed out, only what accrues over the period you enter. For a payout, enter the balance on your payslip, which already has.

Where these figures come from.

Every rate this site uses is listed on the Methodology page.

Common questions.

How do I calculate my annual leave payout?

Take the unused hours on your last payslip and multiply them by your base hourly rate. Add leave loading if you would have been paid it on taking the leave, because Fair Work says the payout must include it. That is the payout before tax. Payroll then withholds tax under the ATO's Schedule 7, and the calculator above does all three steps: leave it on the payout setting, enter your balance, hours and base rate, and choose why the job ended.

How much tax is taken out of an annual leave payout?

It depends on why the job ended. After a resignation, retirement or dismissal, the payout is withheld at close to your marginal rate: Schedule 7 spreads it over a year of pays, adds one pay's share to your normal pay and multiplies the extra withholding back up. After a genuine redundancy, invalidity or an approved early retirement scheme, a flat 32% is withheld, and leave accrued before 18 August 1993 has 32% withheld on any termination. Leave loading is treated the same as the leave, and no HECS or other study loan amount is withheld from the payout. The payout is not an employment termination payment, and the ETP Tax Calculator shows the two side by side when both are paid in the final pay. The withholding is not the final tax, which is settled when you lodge, as the Tax Return Calculator works through.

How is annual leave pay calculated?

Multiply the hours of leave by your base hourly rate, which is the rate for your ordinary hours before overtime, penalty rates, allowances and bonuses. Then add annual leave loading only if your award or agreement provides it, at the rate it sets. The calculator above does both: switch it to accrual, enter your ordinary hours, the weeks worked and your base rate, and put your award’s loading in the loading field, or leave it at 0 if there is none. The worked examples above show the sum for a week off and for a payout when you leave.

How much annual leave do I accrue per year?

Four weeks of your ordinary hours. On a 38-hour week that is 152 hours a year, which works out to about 2.923 hours for each week worked. Part-time employees accrue the same four weeks measured against their own ordinary hours. Their salary is scaled the same way, and the Pro Rata Salary Calculator works out a part-time salary from the full-time figure.

Do casual employees get annual leave?

No. Casual employees do not accrue paid annual leave under the National Employment Standards. The casual loading, usually 25%, is paid partly in compensation for that. Neither does an independent contractor, and what a contract rate has to cover for it is on the Contractor vs Employee Calculator.

Does annual leave expire?

No. Unused annual leave rolls over from year to year and must be paid out when your employment ends. The Final Pay Calculator adds it to your other final pay, with the tax on each part. An employer can direct you to take leave in some situations, such as an excessive balance or a Christmas shutdown, but only where the award or agreement allows it. Long service leave is the other balance that builds up rather than expiring, and the Long Service Leave Calculator works it out for your state. Time off taken instead of overtime pay works the other way: under most awards it must be taken within 6 months, and anything left is paid out, as the Time in Lieu Calculator shows.

Does leave accrue while I am on leave?

It accrues while you are on paid leave, including paid annual leave, paid sick and carer’s leave, paid family and domestic violence leave, community service leave and long service leave. It does not accrue on unpaid leave, including unpaid parental leave. Being paid Parental Leave Pay does not change that, because section 99 of the Paid Parental Leave Act 2010 says a period of unpaid leave is not paid leave just because the payment is received, and the Parental Leave Pay Calculator works out that payment. The Sick Leave Calculator works out the sick and carer’s leave balance.

Related pages.

  • Sick Leave CalculatorWork out paid sick and carer's leave accrued under the National Employment Standards: 10 days a year full-time, pro rata part-time, in hours, days and dollars.
  • Leave Loading CalculatorWork out annual leave loading on a period of leave, and check whether the 17.5% figure actually applies to you.
  • Casual LoadingCasual loading is 25 per cent in every award we publish. What differs is whether the award prints the casual rate or leaves it to be derived.
  • Pro Rata Salary CalculatorWork out a part-time salary from a full-time figure and the hours actually worked, with take-home pay after income tax and the Medicare levy.
  • Award Pay RatesModern award minimum pay rates by industry, how classification levels and pay points work, and how casual loading and penalty rates change what you earn.

Every calculator on this site is listed on the Wage Calculator page.