Everyone
How employers can get ready for the changes coming in 2028
There are changes to leave coming into effect on 6 August 2028. Find out what employers can start thinking about now to get ready for the changes.
What's changing in 2028
The new Employment Leave Act will change how leave works from 6 August 2028. It will replace the Holidays Act.
If you have not read about the changes, do this first to understand what they mean for your business.
We'll provide more guidance soon
We’ll provide more guidance in the coming months to help you review and update your:
- payroll system (if you do not have a payroll provider)
- employment agreements
- workplace policies
- pay statements and leave records.
We’ll also provide guidance on how to convert leave balances.
Check back here for updated information and guidance.
To find out more about what guidance will be available when, have a look at our timeline:
Timeline for Employment Leave Act guidance and resources
We also have a suggested preparation planning guide that shows when you can plan, prepare and take action before the new law starts.
What you should start thinking about
The new law starts on 6 August 2028. This gives you 2 years from 6 August 2026 to understand the changes and update your systems and processes.
You do not have to do anything now, but thinking about these changes can help you understand how much work may be involved and plan ahead.
It will give you time to:
- understand the new requirements
- check if your payroll system (and any payroll-related systems) will need changes and make updates if required
- check if employment agreements will need changes and update them if required
- check if workplace policies will need changes and update them if required
- make sure your payroll data is correct so you can convert leave balances.
Your payroll system
Payroll systems will need updating to support the new rules around how leave is earned, taken and paid.
Updating payroll systems can be complex and take time. How these updates are done depends on how you manage payroll.
If you use payroll software
If you use payroll software and have a current provider, they should know about the changes and be able to share information soon. If you do not hear from them, you can talk to them to check if:
- they know about the changes
- their software will support the new rules
- you will need to change any of your processes, including any data you’ll need to provide.
They may already be planning for these changes and able to help you.
If you use payroll software but do not have a current software provider, for example, if you use ‘off-the-shelf’ software, you can:
- check with the vendor if upgrades or support will be available
- plan for any manual processes, for example, calculations you will need to do.
If your payroll software cannot support the changes, you may need to consider moving to a new provider.
If you do not use payroll software
You can check if your processes can support the new rules. To find out what your processes will need to do, visit:
How payroll software providers can get ready for the changes
Review payroll-related processes and systems
You can also consider any changes that might be needed to payroll-related processes and systems.
For example, changes to:
- time and attendance
- pay information
- onboarding and rostering
- records and leave tracking
- arrangements for employees with multiple roles
- restructuring and employee-transfer processes.
If you have a payroll software provider, they may be able to help you with this.
Employment agreements
You can review employment agreements to check what may need to change.
The changes you will need to make depend on what your employment agreements say. For example, changes might be needed to:
- accurately reflect employees’ hours of work
- align with the new leave entitlements and leave pay rules
- meet the new requirements about what happens to leave balances in a restructure
- refer to the Employment Leave Act 2026 instead of the Holidays Act 2003.
More guidance on updating employment agreements will be provided. To find out more about what guidance will be available when, have a look at our timeline:
Updating employment agreements
After you’ve reviewed your employment agreements, you can plan:
- how and when changes to employment agreements will be discussed and agreed with employees, and
- who will be involved in the process.
If you have collective agreements, you can plan how they will be bargained and agreed.
You must not make changes to employment agreements without discussing and agreeing them with employees first. Keep records of any agreed changes. The amount of negotiation needed will depend on how much your existing agreements need to change. More detailed agreements may require more negotiation.
You can start planning now if you have:
- collective agreements that are coming up for re-negotiation
- a large number of employees, or
- employees with complex working arrangements.
Starting early will give you the best chance of updating employment agreements on time.
When employment agreements should be updated
The new law starts on 6 August 2028. You should aim to have employment agreements updated by then.
If you update agreements before 6 August 2028, make sure they clearly say:
- the employee’s current leave entitlements will apply until 6 August 2028, and
- their new leave entitlements under the Employment Leave Act will apply from 6 August 2028.
If you need more time, you will have up to an extra year, until 6 August 2029, to update employment agreements.
However, if you use the extra year, you will have to follow the employment agreement and the Employment Leave Act. If the agreement and the new law say different things, you will have to follow the one that is better for the employee. This will make payroll harder to manage.
After August 2029, if an agreement does not match the new law, employees will get the new legal minimum entitlements. This will apply even if current agreements provide better terms and conditions than the new minimum entitlements.
Workplace policies
You can review your workplace policies to check what may need to change for 6 August 2028.
The changes you will need to make depend on:
- the workplace policies you have, and
- what they say.
For example, you may need to update policies about:
- leave and holidays
- pay and allowances
- record-keeping and pay statements
- annual closedowns and agreed closures
- family violence support.
More guidance on reviewing workplace policies will be provided. To find out more about what guidance will be available when, have a look at our timeline:
Make sure your payroll data is accurate (under the Holidays Act)
You should make sure you’re meeting your obligations under the current Holidays Act.
This includes:
- checking leave balances and leave pay calculations
- fixing any errors
- paying any money owed to employees (remediation).
Starting from accurate records means leave balances are correct before you move to the new law. If your data is wrong, any errors will carry over and be harder to fix later.
If you have a payroll provider, they may be able to help you with this. We also have resources available to help.