Understanding Your Parental Leave Rights

Your entitlement depends on how long you’ve worked for your employer and whether you’ve averaged at least 10 hours a week in the relevant period before the due date or the date you take over care of the child.

• Primary Carer Leave (paid): Up to 26 continuous weeks for the primary carer.

• Extended Leave (unpaid): Up to 26 weeks if you’ve met the 6-month test, or up to 52 weeks if you’ve met the 12-month test. This can be shared with your spouse or partner.

• Partner’s Leave (unpaid): 1 week if you meet the 6-month test, or 2 weeks if you meet the 12-month test. It must be taken in one continuous block.

This government-funded payment is managed by the Inland Revenue Department (IRD), not your employer. You must be the primary carer and have worked an average of at least 10 hours a week for any 26 of the 52 weeks immediately before the expected delivery date or the date you become the primary carer. The payment runs for one continuous period of up to 26 weeks, with a maximum weekly rate of $788.66 (or the current adjusted amount).

You need to give written notice.

• If the child is expected to be born to you or your partner, provide notice at least 3 months before the due date, along with a certificate from a doctor or midwife confirming the expected delivery date.

• For adoption or other situations, give at least 14 days’ notice before you become the primary carer. Your notice should clearly state the type of leave, the start date, and how long you plan to be away.

You can ask for negotiated carer leave. Put the request in writing, explaining the length of leave you want and confirming you’ll be the primary carer and eligible for the payment. Your employer must reply in writing within 1 month. They can only turn you down if the request would seriously harm performance, make it impossible to reorganise work, or create an unreasonable cost burden.

In most cases, yes—your employer is expected to keep your position open until you return. They can only fill it permanently if it’s a key position or if a genuine business restructuring leads to redundancy. If your role can’t be held open for one of these justified reasons, you get a 26-week period of preference for any vacant job that is substantially similar to your old one.

Yes, through Keeping-in-Touch (KIT) days. You’re allowed up to 64 hours of paid work for your employer during the payment period without it counting as a full return to work. Both you and your employer must agree, and generally you can’t work KIT days in the first 28 days after birth (unless the baby arrived prematurely before the end of the 36th week of pregnancy).

Absolutely. You’re entitled to up to 10 days of unpaid special leave for anything related to your pregnancy, such as check-ups. This doesn’t eat into your primary carer leave or extended leave entitlements.

You can resign while on leave, but you still need to give the notice period stated in your employment agreement. If your job was being kept open, let your employer know in writing at least 21 days before your leave ends whether you’re returning. Choosing not to return may affect your holiday pay, so check your contract.

If your child is born alive before the end of the 36th week of pregnancy, you may qualify for a preterm baby payment on top of the standard parental leave payment. You’ll also get extra keeping-in-touch hours—3 hours per week of payment received.

If you think the refusal isn’t justified, you can challenge it. Start with mediation through the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE). If that doesn’t resolve things, you can take the matter to the Employment Relations Authority under Part 7 of the Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act 1987. Note that parental leave disputes are not treated as personal grievances under the Employment Relations Act 2000.