# Leave without pay Official source: https://www.employment.govt.nz/leave-and-holidays/other-types-of-leave/leave-without-pay Scanned: 2026-06-07T03:31:31.402Z Use this as a current official guidance reference, not as a substitute for legal advice. ## Page Text Home Leave and holidays Other types of leave Leave without pay Other types of leave Leave and holidays Public holidays Annual holidays Sick leave Bereavement leave Parental leave Family violence leave Jury service leave Employment Relations Education leave Time off to vote Defence force volunteers Other types of leave Leave without pay Long service leave Leave in lieu of notice Leave during and after a natural disaster Everyone Leave without pay Employees can take leave without pay if their employer agrees. This agreement should be recorded in writing. What is leave without pay? Leave without pay When an employer allows an employee time off work but does not pay them for this time. Also known as ‘unpaid leave’. , or unpaid leave, is time an employee Any person, whatever their age, who is employed by an employer to do any work for hire or reward under a ‘contract of service’ (commonly called an ‘employment agreement’). can spend off work without being paid. Typically, the employee will return to the same position with the same terms and conditions unless the employee and employer agree otherwise. Leave without pay can affect annual holidays payment and entitlement in some situations. When employees might take leave without pay Employees are not automatically entitled to take leave without pay – it’s not an entitlement in law. Employees can take unpaid leave if their employer An individual or organisation that hires 1 or more employees and contracts them to work in exchange for wages or salary under a ‘contract of service’ (commonly called an ‘employment agreement’). agrees. This could already be in their employment agreement A written document setting out the terms and conditions of employment agreed by the employer and employee (also known as a ‘contract of service’). It can include other contractual documents and agreements made by the employer and employee. Every employee must have a written employment agreement. or could be negotiated at the time leave is taken. Employees might consider requesting a period of leave without pay, for example: if they do not have enough annual holidays Paid time away from work for rest and recreation. to cover the time they want to take off work if they do not have enough sick leave Paid time away from work that eligible employees can take to care for themselves, their partners or children, or other dependants. to cover a period of illness or injury for study leave for a sabbatical if they cannot take parental leave Time an employee who is having a baby or becoming the primary carer of a child under the age of 6 can take off work to care for their child. There are 4 main types of parental leave: primary carer leave, partner’s leave, extended leave, and negotiated carer leave. or negotiated carer leave Unpaid time off work that an employee who is having a baby or becoming the primary carer of a child under the age of 6 and who does not qualify for primary carer leave can take to care for their child. . If they take time off work without their employer’s agreement, this is unauthorised leave and could result in disciplinary action. Disciplinary action Taking more than 1 week of unpaid leave If an employee takes a continuous period of more than 1 week’s unpaid leave (not including unpaid sick Paid time away from work that eligible employees can take to care for themselves, their partners or children, or other dependants. , bereavement Paid time away from work that gives an eligible employee time to grieve and to take care of matters if someone close to them dies. It can be taken at any time and for any purpose relating to the bereavement. or family violence leave Paid time away from work that eligible employees can take if they, or a child who lives with them, are affected by family violence. ): the date they become entitled to annual holidays (their anniversary date) moves out by how many extra weeks (more than 1) of unpaid leave they took. The employee will have to wait longer before they become entitled to annual holidays, or they can agree with their employer that their anniversary date stays the same. This changes the calculation for annual holiday pay. This option can be easier for employers to manage in their payroll system. If the anniversary date stays the same The employee still gets their annual holiday entitlement after 12 months if their anniversary date stays the same. However, when they take holidays, the extra unpaid leave they took (the amount that exceeds 1 week) is not counted in the calculation for average weekly earnings (AWE) 1/52 of an employee’s gross earnings for the 12 months up to the end of the last pay period before they take annual holidays (or however many weeks they’ve worked if it’s under a year). . This is so it does not reduce their annual holiday pay. When calculating AWE, reduce the divisor (the number of weeks gross earnings are averaged over) by the number of whole or part-weeks of extra unpaid leave taken. Do this every time you calculate AWE until the unpaid leave was taken more than 52 weeks ago. For example, if an employee takes 3 weeks of unpaid leave, you reduce the divisor by 2 (the amount more than 1 week) to 50 weeks instead of 52. Annual holidays Annual holiday pay Taking 1 week of leave without pay twice If an employee takes 2 periods of leave without pay at different times, each 1 week long, this does not affect their anniversary date or the calculation for annual holiday pay. The period of leave without pay needs to be for a continuous period of over 1 week to affect the date or calculation. Examples of taking more than 1 week's leave without pay Oliver started working for Michael on 1 February. In November he asks Michael if he can take leave without pay for 2 weeks (10 working days for Oliver) and an additional 2 days, as he is not entitled to any annual holidays yet and needs the time off to study for a course. Michael agrees but explains that it will affect Oliver’s entitlement for annual holidays. Oliver says that that’s okay with him, and he takes the leave without pay. Michael moves Oliver’s anniversary for annual holidays entitlement out by 1 week and 2 days to 10 February (the first week of leave without pay does not affect annual holidays entitlement). The following year Oliver wants to take leave without pay for another 2 weeks. Michael decides to ask him if he wants his anniversary date for annual holidays to stay the same this time. Oliver agrees to this, and they record their agreement in writing so that there are no misunderstandings. When Oliver takes annual holidays a few months later, Michael calculates Oliver’s average weekly earnings by dividing his gross earnings by 51, not 52, because he agreed not to move Oliver’s anniversary date for annual holidays. Public holidays and other leave during a period of leave without pay When an employee is on unpaid leave, they will generally not get paid for: a public holiday sick, bereavement or family violence leave. This is because the employee was not going to be at work, so they’re not entitled to paid leave. In some cases, employees can still be paid for a public holiday while they're on unpaid leave. It depends on the situation. When employees can still be paid for a public holiday Employees are entitled to be paid for a public holiday if: they are on unpaid leave because they've run out of sick, bereavement or family violence leave, and the public holiday falls while they're on this unpaid leave, and the public holiday is on a day they would usually work (an otherwise working day). Employees are also entitled to be paid for a public holiday if: their workplace has an annual closedown, and they have taken unpaid leave because of the closedown period, and the public holiday falls during the annual closedown, and the public holiday is on a day they would usually work (an otherwise working day). Annual closedowns and holidays Otherwise working day For more information about 'otherwise working days', see: Managing public holidays as an employer Clarifying and recording leave without pay Any agreement about unpaid leave should be recorded in writing. For unpaid leave of more than 1 week, employers and employees should agree in writing what happens to the employee’s anniversary date so that everyone is clear. Keeping a record of what was agreed helps avoid any confusion later. Holiday act guidance tool - Leave without pay [PDF, 785 KB] Published: 11 March 2024 Last modified: 12 March 2026 Written for: Everyone Share this page: Print this page: