Life in Australia Guide

When you become a parent in Australia, the path to protecting your 'work and income' usually works through three overlapping pieces.

• ① Government Parental Leave Pay (PPL) — A government payment made by Services Australia (Centrelink) at the national minimum wage rate. You must meet certain work (work test), income (income test), and residence conditions to receive it.
• ② Fair Work unpaid protected leave — A legal right requiring your employer to keep your position open and allow leave for a set period. It applies to any employee with 12 months of continuous service, regardless of visa type.
• ③ Employer's own paid parental leave — Paid leave that the company provides separately under company policy (or an award or employment contract). You may be able to receive it at the same time as government PPL (they are not mutually exclusive).

In other words, the government payment (income) and the job protection (your position) are different schemes, and the key is to design the two together.

• You can take up to 12 months of unpaid parental leave, and if your employer agrees, you can request an extension of up to an additional 12 months (24 months total).
• An extension request must be made in writing and submitted to your employer at least 4 weeks before the end of your first leave period.
• Because it is 'protected leave', you have the right to return to your original position (or a comparable one) when the leave ends.
• This is unpaid — it only protects your position; no wages are paid. Income is covered separately through government PPL (or ③ employer paid leave).
• Casual employees may also be covered if they have worked regularly and systematically for 12 months or more and could reasonably have expected continued employment.

Check the detailed eligibility and notice procedures with the Fair Work Ombudsman. If there are also wage, dismissal, or discrimination issues, see the 'Reporting workplace problems and unpaid wages' guide below.

• Rate: Everyone receives the same amount based on the national minimum wage — around $948.10 per week before tax as at 1 July 2025 (updated annually).
• Days: The number of days you can receive varies depending on when your child is born or adopted. One day is counted as one weekday (based on a 5-day working week).
• PPL can be taken flexibly in portions, so you can take it all at once or spread it out between periods of work.
• PPL is taxable income, and if your employer also provides company paid leave, you can receive both at the same time.

Part of Parental Leave Pay is set aside specifically for the partner (or other parent). These 'reserved days' cannot be transferred to one person, and if not used, they are lost ('use it or lose it').

• From 1 July 2025 the partner's reserved days increase to 15 days, and from 1 July 2026 to 20 days.
• Both parents can apply together and take some periods at the same time.
• In some situations, such as single parents, an exemption from the reserved-day limit may apply, so check with Services Australia.

The key point is that 'the partner's share must be claimed separately so the family does not lose days it could otherwise receive'.

1. Prepare: Create a myGov account and link a Centrelink online account. (If you do not have one, you will first need to register a Centrelink CRN.)
2. Claim: Sign in to myGov → 'Make a claim' → Families → select 'Apply for Family Assistance (including Paid Parental Leave)' and follow the prompts to submit.
3. Documents: You may be asked for proof of your child's birth or adoption, and income and work information.
4. If applying online is difficult, you can call the Centrelink families line 136 150 for help.