Carer’s leave in Australia: who you can take it for, how many days, and what evidence you need

Who counts as immediate family or household?

Carer’s leave isn’t limited to your children or partner. The Fair Work Ombudsman describes an immediate family member as your:

• spouse or former spouse
• de facto partner or former de facto partner
• child, parent, grandparent, grandchild or sibling
• child, parent, grandparent, grandchild or sibling of your spouse or de facto partner, including a former spouse or de facto partner.

Step and adoptive relationships are included.

A household member is a separate category: anyone who lives with you. That means a housemate can be covered even though they aren’t family.

When can you take carer’s leave?

You can take carer’s leave to care for or support one of those people when they are:

• sick
• injured, or
• affected by an unexpected emergency.

Carer’s leave is about the support you need to give someone else. If you’re the one who is unwell, that’s sick leave, which draws on the same balance. Our guide to personal leave vs sick leave vs carer’s leave explains how the names fit together.

How many days of carer’s leave do you get?

There’s no separate carer’s leave allowance. Paid sick leave and paid carer’s leave are part of one entitlement under the National Employment Standards, often called personal/carer’s leave.

• Full-time employees get 10 days a year.
• Part-time employees get a pro rata amount based on their ordinary hours.
• For both, it works out to 1/26 of your ordinary hours of work in a year.

The balance builds up gradually from your first day of work, and anything you don’t use carries over to the next year. You can take as much as you’ve accumulated. There’s no minimum or maximum amount you have to take at once, so you might need part of a day or several days, depending on the situation. For how the numbers are worked out, see how much sick leave you get in Australia.

	Full-time and part-time	Casual
Paid carer’s leave	Yes, from the shared sick and carer’s balance	No
Unpaid carer’s leave	2 days each time, once paid leave is used up	2 days each time

What happens when your paid leave runs out?

All employees, including casuals, can take 2 days of unpaid carer’s leave each time an immediate family or household member needs care because of an illness, injury or unexpected emergency. Full-time and part-time employees can only use it when they have no paid sick or carer’s leave left.

You can take the 2 days in one continuous block, or in separate periods if you and your employer agree. The Fair Work Ombudsman gives the example of four half days in a row. Your employer can’t take negative action against you for taking unpaid carer’s leave.

If you’re casual, our guide to sick and carer’s leave for casual and part-time workers covers what else you’re entitled to.

Do you need to tell your employer?

Yes. Let your employer know you’re taking carer’s leave as soon as possible. That can be after the leave has started, which matters when something happens without warning. Tell them how long you expect to be away.

What evidence can your employer ask for?

Your employer can ask for evidence showing you took the leave because you needed to care for or support an immediate family or household member affected by an illness, injury or unexpected emergency. They can ask for it even if you were off for one day or less.

There are no strict rules about what form the evidence takes. It has to convince a reasonable person that you were genuinely entitled to the leave. The Fair Work Ombudsman gives medical certificates and statutory declarations as examples. A statutory declaration can be useful when the person you were caring for couldn’t get an appointment in time; see using a statutory declaration for sick or carer’s leave.

A few other points:

• Your award or registered agreement can say when evidence is needed and what type. The type requested must be reasonable in the circumstances.
• If your employer asks for evidence and you don’t provide it, you may not be paid for the leave.
• The Fair Work Ombudsman doesn’t consider it reasonable for an employer to contact your doctor for more information.

How is carer’s leave paid?

Paid carer’s leave is paid at your base pay rate for the hours you would normally have worked during the leave. Your base pay rate doesn’t include overtime, penalty rates, loadings, allowances, bonuses or incentive-based payments.

Where can the rules be different?

A registered agreement, award or contract can give you more sick and carer’s leave than the National Employment Standards, but not less. It may also set its own evidence rules. Check yours, along with any workplace leave policy, before you need the leave. If you’re unsure what applies, the Fair Work Ombudsman can help on 13 13 94.

This is general information, not legal advice about your situation.

If someone you care for is unwell now and your employer has asked for evidence, you can read about carer’s leave certificates. A registered practitioner assesses each request, and a certificate is issued only when it’s clinically appropriate.