Holiday Pay Calculator NZ 2026

There are two situations. Casual or fixed-term staff who cannot practically take annual leave are usually paid 8% of gross earnings on top of each pay ('pay as you go'). Permanent employees accrue four weeks of annual leave a year, and each week taken is paid at the higher of ordinary weekly pay or average weekly earnings over the last 12 months.

Four weeks of leave out of a 52-week year is roughly 1/13th of your earnings, which works out at about 8%. The Holidays Act 2003 sets 8% as the equivalent cash figure for pay-as-you-go holiday pay and for any leave still owing in a final pay.

Yes. Holiday pay is part of your gross salary or wages, so PAYE, the ACC earner levy, KiwiSaver and any student loan repayment all apply exactly as they do to normal pay. A lump sum of accrued leave in a final pay is taxed as extra pay at your marginal rate, which is why it can look heavily taxed.

Your final pay includes any annual leave you have accrued but not taken, plus 8% of gross earnings since your last leave entitlement anniversary, plus any pay for public holidays or alternative days owed. It is paid in your last pay run.

Gross earnings for the 8% calculation include overtime, most bonuses, commission and productivity payments. It excludes reimbursements and genuinely discretionary payments the employer is not bound to pay.

If you are a permanent salaried employee, no — your four weeks of annual leave are already paid at your normal rate while you are away, so you are not owed a separate 8%. Pay-as-you-go 8% applies only where taking leave is not practical, such as genuinely casual work.

Public holidays are separate from annual leave. If a public holiday falls on a day you would normally work and you do not work it, you get paid your relevant daily pay. If you do work it, you get time and a half plus an alternative day off.