Calculators · Leave and holidays

Paid parental leave calculator: your weekly payment and dates

Paid parental leave is up to 26 weeks of payments at your own weekly earnings, capped at $811.05 a week before tax from 1 July 2026. Put in your due date, your earnings and your hours: the calculator checks the work test, works out the weekly payment and gives the dates that follow.

Worked out for the example. Change the boxes to make it yours.

Paid parental leave a week$811.05Before tax, for 26 weeks: $21,087.30. Capped at the maximum.

Ordinary weekly pay	$1,350.00
Average weekly income, best 26 weeks	$1,380.00
Maximum from 1 July 2026	$811.05
Weekly payment before tax	$811.05
Over 26 weeks	$21,087.30
Tell your employer in writing by	Tuesday 15 December 2026
Payments start	Monday 1 March 2027
Last day of payments	Sunday 29 August 2027
Keeping-in-touch hours	Up to 64, from 13 Apr 2027

Payments are taxed like pay, at your tax code (Inland Revenue).
Keeping-in-touch hours: up to 64 hours of paid work during the payments, by agreement, and none in the 28 days after the birth (counted from the due date here). The 28-day rule does not apply if the baby is born before the end of the 36th week of pregnancy (s 71CE(4)). More than 64 ends the payments.
If the baby comes before the leave starts, payments start on the birth. The 26 weeks then count from there.
Payments that run past 1 July 2027 may be paid at that year's new maximum for the weeks after it; Inland Revenue sets it each year.
For applications from 1 July 2027, the Employment Leave Act 2026 replaces ordinary weekly pay with your average gross weekly earnings over about your last four weeks of pay (s 183).

Your Career adds the due date to life events, after asking, with the date to tell your employer and which parental leave applies to your job. Part of the Career and Timesheets plan.

Who gets the payments

Parental leave payments come from Inland Revenue, not your employer. To get them you must have worked an average of at least 10 hours a week for any 26 of the 52 weeks just before the due date, as an employee or as a self-employed person (section 2BA(4) of the Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act 1987). The weeks need not be in a row, but hours as an employee and hours as a self-employed person cannot be added together to meet the test (Inland Revenue). This is a different test from the job-protected leave your employer must give, which depends on six or 12 months with the same employer: our guide to parental leave in New Zealand covers both.

How much a week

For an employee, the weekly payment is the greater of your ordinary weekly pay and your average weekly income from work, capped at the maximum (section 71M). Average weekly income is the total of your 26 highest-earning weeks in the 52 before the due date, from all your jobs, divided by 26 (section 71CAA). From 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027 the maximum is $811.05 a week before tax. Self-employed people are paid their average weekly income, at least $239.50 a week (10 hours at the adult minimum wage) and at most $811.05. The payments are taxed like pay, at your tax code. For applications received from 1 July 2027, the Employment Leave Act 2026 replaces ordinary weekly pay with your average gross weekly earnings over about your last four weeks of pay.

The dates

Payments last 26 weeks from the earlier of the day your leave starts and the birth (sections 71K and 71L). You can choose to start primary carer leave up to six weeks before the due date (section 11), and earlier by agreement. As an employee, you tell your employer in writing at least three months before the due date (section 31). The calculator gives each date from the due date and the weeks you enter. If the baby is born before your leave starts, the 26 weeks run from the birth instead.

Keeping-in-touch hours

During the 26 weeks you can do up to 64 hours of paid work for your employer, by agreement, without losing the payments, but none in the 28 days after the birth (section 71CE). That 28-day rule does not apply if the baby is born before the end of the 36th week of pregnancy (section 71CE(4)). Go over 64 hours and you are treated as back at work, so later payments must be repaid. The calculator shows the first date they can start if the baby arrives on the due date.

Questions

How much is paid parental leave in NZ in 2026?

From 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027, up to $811.05 a week before tax, for up to 26 weeks. You get your own weekly earnings if they are lower. Self-employed people get at least $239.50 a week.

Is paid parental leave taxed?

Yes. Inland Revenue takes PAYE from each payment at your tax code, as it would from pay.

How many hours do I need to work to get paid parental leave?

An average of at least 10 hours a week for any 26 of the 52 weeks before the due date. The weeks do not have to be in a row, and they need not be with the same employer.

How early can I start parental leave before my due date?

Up to six weeks before the due date is your choice. Earlier needs your employer's agreement, or a doctor or midwife can certify that you should start earlier.

What are keeping-in-touch hours?

Up to 64 hours of paid work for your employer while you get the payments, if you both agree, and none in the 28 days after the birth. More than 64 hours ends the payments.

What happens when I save this?

Your account adds the due date to life events in Your Career, after asking, with the date to tell your employer and which parental leave applies to your job. The payment figures stay on this page. Your Career is part of the Career and Timesheets plan.

Sources

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