Holidays Act 2003

Final pay calculator for NZ, worked out line by line

A final pay is rarely one number. On $1,600 of wages owed, two weeks of unused annual holidays and $24,000 of gross earnings since the last anniversary, the total is $6,470 before tax. Enter your own figures to see each line separately.

How long had you worked there?

Annual holiday entitlement starts at 12 months of continuous employment. Under 12 months there is no week-based entitlement, only the 8% payment.

Wages for hours worked but not yet paid

Pay for the rest of the notice period

If you gave the notice your agreement requires, your employer must pay you to the end of it, worked or not.

Unused annual holidays you are entitled to (weeks)

weeks

Only weeks you have become entitled to. Ignored if you had under 12 months' service.

Ordinary weekly pay

What you are normally paid for a working week, including regular allowances, commission and regular overtime.

Average weekly earnings

Gross earnings for the 12 months to the end of the last pay period, divided by 52.

Gross earnings for the 8% payment

Since your last holiday anniversary, or since you started if under 12 months, including the other payments in this final pay.

Holiday pay you have already had

Annual holidays taken in advance, or paid on a pay-as-you-go basis. These come off the 8%.

Public and alternative holidays owed

Includes public holidays falling inside the period your unused annual holidays extend into.

Final pay before tax

$6,470

Gross. PAYE, KiwiSaver, student loan and any lawful deductions come off this.

Have this final pay reviewed

Rate for unused annual holidays	$1,475
Unused annual holidays	$2,950
8% of gross earnings	$1,920

The assumptions

Employment New Zealand states that final pay must include pay to the end of the notice period if the right notice was given, all hours worked since the last pay, all annual holidays, public holidays and alternative holidays owed, and any lump sums in the agreement (Employment NZ: final pay).
Unused annual holidays you are entitled to are paid as if taken at the end of employment, at whichever is higher of ordinary weekly pay or average weekly earnings (Employment NZ). The calculator asks for both and takes the greater.
On top of that, Employment New Zealand says employees also get 8% of gross earnings since their last anniversary date, including other payments in the final pay, less any amount already paid for holidays taken in advance or on a pay-as-you-go basis. If you have not reached 12 months, the 8% is calculated on gross earnings since you started instead.
Whether the entitled annual holiday payout itself belongs in the base for the 8% is treated differently by different payroll systems. We leave that base as a field you fill in, so you can match your employer's approach and ask if it looks wrong. Verify with your employer or a Labour Inspector before relying on the figure.
Public holiday pay is calculated on relevant daily pay, or average daily pay where that is permitted, not on the weekly annual holiday rate. Work it out separately and enter the amount (Employment NZ: public holiday pay).
Everything here is gross. PAYE, KiwiSaver, child support, student loan and any deductions you have agreed to in writing come off the total.
This states the law as Employment New Zealand states it today, under the Holidays Act 2003. Employment New Zealand says the Employment Leave Act will replace the Holidays Act on 6 August 2028 and that the current rules apply until then (Employment NZ).

Final Pay Calculator NZ is an independent information site operated by Ellul Solutions Ltd. It is not affiliated with Employment New Zealand, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment or the Labour Inspectorate, and nothing here is legal or employment advice. Check your own figures with your employer, a payroll professional or an employment lawyer before acting on them.

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New Zealand final pay, five worked examples

Last updated 2026-08-15

Each row is a whole final pay: wages owed, unused annual holidays at the greater of ordinary weekly pay and average weekly earnings, and 8% of gross earnings since the last anniversary. Row four shows the under 12 months case, where only the 8% applies.

Computed with this page's own formulas. Wages owed $1,600 throughout; average weekly earnings $1,475; gross earnings for the 8% $24,000 except the under 12 months row, which uses $18,000. No notice pay, no public holidays and nothing already paid. Figures are gross, before PAYE.

New Zealand final pay, five worked examples
Situation	Rate used for leave	Unused annual holidays	8% component	Final pay before tax
2 years' service, 2 weeks owed, ordinary weekly pay $1,400	$1,475	$2,950	$1,920	$6,470
2 years' service, 4 weeks owed, ordinary weekly pay $1,400	$1,475	$5,900	$1,920	$9,420
2 years' service, all leave already taken	$1,475	$0	$1,920	$3,520
Under 12 months, $18,000 gross since starting	Not used	$0	$1,440	$3,040
2 years' service, 2 weeks owed, ordinary weekly pay $1,600	$1,600	$3,200	$1,920	$6,720

A New Zealand employee with two years' service, two unused weeks of annual holidays and $24,000 of gross earnings since their last anniversary is owed $6,470 gross, of which $1,920 is the 8% component that most people forget to check.
The last row is the same person with a higher ordinary weekly pay of $1,600: the rate switches from average weekly earnings to ordinary weekly pay and the final pay rises to $6,720, because the law requires the greater of the two.
An employee who leaves before 12 months has no week-based annual holiday entitlement at all. Their annual holiday payment is 8% of gross earnings since they started, $1,440 on $18,000.

Cite this page

“New Zealand final pay, five worked examples”, Final Pay Calculator NZ, https://finalpaycalculator.co.nz/ (updated 2026-08-15). Computed with this page's own formulas. Wages owed $1,600 throughout; average weekly earnings $1,475; gross earnings for the 8% $24,000 except the under 12 months row, which uses $18,000. No notice pay, no public holidays and nothing already paid. Figures are gross, before PAYE.

Guides

Every figure sourced and dated.

Straight answers

What is included in a final pay in New Zealand?

Pay to the end of the notice period if you gave the right notice, all hours worked since your last pay, all annual holidays, public holidays and alternative holidays owed, and any lump sums in your agreement or leaving package.

How is unused annual leave paid out when I leave?

As if you took it at the end of your employment, at whichever is higher of your ordinary weekly pay or your average weekly earnings for the 12 months to the end of the last pay period before employment ended.

Do I get 8% holiday pay on top of my unused annual leave?

Employment New Zealand says employees also get 8% of gross earnings since their last anniversary date, including other payments in the final pay, minus anything already paid for holidays taken in advance or on a pay-as-you-go basis.

What if I worked there for less than a year?

You have no week-based annual holiday entitlement, because that starts at 12 months. Instead you get 8% of your total before-tax earnings since you started, less any holiday pay already received.

When must my employer pay my final pay?

On or before the pay day of the final pay period. That may be after your last day at work, so payment on the normal payday is not late.

Is New Zealand holiday law changing?

Employment New Zealand says the Employment Leave Act will replace the Holidays Act from 6 August 2028, and that the current Holidays Act 2003 rules must be followed until then. Everything on this page states the current rules.

Sources

Leaving a job? Check the number before you sign anything.

Wages, notice, unused holidays and the 8%, itemised in under a minute.

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