Personal Leave Explained
Sick leave and carer's leave are one combined pool, never two separate entitlements. This guide explains how much you accrue, how it builds up, what it is paid at, and why it is worth $0 when you leave.
Rules checked October 2026 · No signup — nothing you enter leaves your browser.
What personal leave is
Personal leave is the National Employment Standards entitlement officially called paid personal/carer's leave. It covers two situations from a single balance: time off because you are ill or injured, and time off to care for or support an immediate family or household member who is ill, injured or affected by an unexpected emergency. Your payslip may label it "sick leave", but that label does not create a second entitlement. Work out your balance with the Personal Leave Calculator or the Sick Leave Calculator, which both track the same combined pool.
The entitlement
Full-time employees accrue 10 days a year. In hours that is 1/26 of annual ordinary hours: a full-time employee working 38 hours a week accrues 76 hours a year. Part-time employees accrue the same entitlement pro-rata on their ordinary hours, so 20 hours a week accrues 40 hours a year. The entitlement accrues progressively from day 1 of employment, carries over from year to year, and the National Employment Standards state no cap.
How accrual works
Accrual is measured in hours against your ordinary hours. Your day length is your weekly ordinary hours divided by the days you work each week — never a fixed 7.6 hour day for part-timers, whose days are shorter. For exact start and end dates, service is measured with the calendar-span convention: whole calendar months divided by 12, plus remainder days divided by 365.25. Literal days divided by 365.25 is not used, because it understates a full year. Personal leave accrues while you are on paid leave, community service leave and long service leave. It does not accrue on unpaid leave: unpaid annual leave, unpaid sick or carer's leave, unpaid parental leave, and unpaid family and domestic violence leave all pause accrual.
Using it
Personal leave is paid at your base rate only, for the ordinary hours you would have worked — no overtime, penalties, loadings or allowances. You must give notice as soon as practicable and, if your employer requests it, evidence such as a medical certificate or statutory declaration. It covers your own personal illness or injury, and caring for or supporting an immediate family or household member: a spouse or de facto partner, child, parent, grandparent, grandchild or sibling, including the equivalent relatives of your partner.
Casuals and termination
Casual employees get no paid personal leave. Instead they get 2 days' unpaid carer's leave per occasion and 2 days' unpaid compassionate leave per occasion. Permanent employees who have exhausted their paid leave also get 2 days' unpaid carer's leave per occasion. On termination, unused personal leave pays $0, unless an award, agreement or contract provides otherwise. Any dollar figure attached to your balance is its value if taken as leave, never a payout. See how that $0 sits alongside your other leave in the Leave Payout Calculator.
Worked examples
All examples use a base rate of $40 an hour unless stated, and match the Personal Leave Calculator exactly.
- Full-time, 1 year (P1): 76.00 hours accrued = 10.00 days = $3,040.00.
- Full-time, 2 years, sick 15.20 hours + carer's 7.60 hours taken (P2): 152.00 hours accrued, 22.80 hours taken, balance 129.20 hours = $5,168.00. Note how both kinds of leave came out of the one pool.
- Part-time, 20 hours a week, 1 year (P3): 40.00 hours accrued = $1,600.00 — pro-rata, not the full-time 76 hours.
- Exact dates, 1 October 2025 to 1 April 2026 (P4): exactly 6 calendar months = 38.00 hours.
- Full-time, 3 years, 76 hours taken, employment ended (P6): balance 152.00 hours = $6,080.00 value if taken as leave, but termination payout $0.00.
- Full-time, 5 years, nothing taken (P8): 380.00 hours. No cap applies, so the balance keeps growing.
Frequently asked questions
Are sick leave and carer's leave two separate entitlements?
No. Sick leave and carer's leave are one combined pool, officially called paid personal/carer's leave. Every hour you take as sick leave and every hour you take as carer's leave comes out of the same balance. There is no separate sick balance and carer's balance to track.
How much personal leave do I accrue?
Full-time employees accrue 10 days a year, which is 1/26 of annual ordinary hours. For a full-time employee working 38 hours a week, that is 76 hours a year. Part-time employees accrue the same entitlement pro-rata, based on their ordinary hours.
How does part-time accrual work?
Part-time accrual is pro-rata on ordinary hours, not on a fixed day length. Your day length is your weekly ordinary hours divided by the days you work each week, so a part-timer never uses a fixed 7.6 hour day. For example, 20 hours a week accrues 40 hours a year, not 76.
Does personal leave accrue while I am on unpaid leave?
No. Personal leave does not build up during unpaid leave, including unpaid annual leave, unpaid sick or carer's leave, unpaid parental leave, and unpaid family and domestic violence leave. It does accrue on paid leave, community service leave and long service leave.
What rate is personal leave paid at?
Personal leave is paid at your base rate only, for the ordinary hours you would have worked. It does not include overtime, penalty rates, loadings, allowances, bonuses or incentive payments.
What evidence can my employer ask for?
You must tell your employer as soon as practicable that you are taking personal leave. Your employer may ask for evidence that shows you took the leave for a genuine reason, such as a medical certificate or statutory declaration, and you must provide it if requested.
What do casual employees get?
Casual employees get no paid personal leave. Instead they get 2 days' unpaid carer's leave per occasion and 2 days' unpaid compassionate leave per occasion. Permanent employees who have exhausted their paid leave also get 2 days' unpaid carer's leave per occasion.
Is unused personal leave paid out when I leave a job?
No. Unused personal leave pays $0 on termination, unless your award, agreement or contract provides otherwise. Any dollar figure for your balance is its value if taken as leave, never a payout. Use the Leave Payout Calculator to see how that $0 sits alongside your annual and long service leave.
Does personal leave expire, or is there a cap?
No. Unused personal leave carries over from year to year and the National Employment Standards state no cap. A balance keeps growing while you work and take less than you accrue, which is why long-serving employees can hold very large balances.
Sources
Related tools
- Personal Leave Calculator — your combined sick + carer's balance in hours, days and dollars.
- Sick Leave Calculator — the same combined pool, from the sick-leave angle.
- Leave Payout Calculator — what your leave is worth on termination, including the $0 personal leave line.
- Annual Leave Calculator — the leave that is paid out when you leave.
Related guides
LeavePayout gives general information and estimates only. It is not legal advice. Confirm your entitlement with your employer, your award or agreement, or the Fair Work Ombudsman.