Paying long service leave
Understand when you need to pay long service benefits directly to your workers and claiming reimbursement for a long service leave payment.
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Paying employee long service entitlements
Before you make a long service leave payment
Claim reimbursement for a long service payment
Paying employee long service entitlements
The Community Services Industry Portable Long Service Leave Scheme (the Scheme) doesn't replace your obligation to pay long service leave to your workers under the NSW Long Service Leave Act 1955 (the 1955 Act). The portable scheme operates alongside the 1955 Act. You must maintain compliance with both Acts.
If you've been employing workers before the start of the Scheme, some workers may already be entitled to claim their long service benefit under the 1955 Act.
The portable long service leave scheme does not change any long service leave entitlements a worker has already accrued under the 1955 Act.
Workers can choose to claim their long service leave from you under the 1955 Act, or they can claim it from us under the Portable Long Service Leave Scheme. However, they cannot claim the same entitlement from both places.
For more information about the 1955 Act, contact the NSW Office of Industrial Relations on 13 16 28 or visit the NSW Industrial Relations website.
Before you make a long service leave payment
If you plan to pay long service leave under the 1955 Act to a worker listed in your service returns, you need to let us know before you make the payment.
This is to prevent workers from receiving a long service payment from the portable scheme (for the same period) should they mistakenly apply to the Corporation at the same time.
We will advise you when an employee of yours receives a long service payment from the portable scheme. Employers should note this on their records to ensure that the worker doesn't get a double payment for any period of work.
Failure by employers to adhere to the requirements, which results in a double payment to workers, may result in debt recovery action on workers. It may also prevent any reimbursement payment to an employer where a worker claims a benefit from both the employer and the Corporation.
To notify us of any proposed long service payments contact us on 13 14 41.
Claim reimbursement for a long service payment
If you pay long service leave to any of your workers under the Long Service Leave Act 1955, you can claim reimbursement for some, or all, of the portable long service leave payment the worker accrued from 1 July 2025. This is known as an Employer Claim.
To be eligible to claim, you must:
- both be registered with the scheme
- be up to date with your service returns and levy contributions
- let us know about the long service leave payment before you pay it.
Reimbursements are calculated based on the following formula:
Number of weeks accrued from 1 July 2025 x weekly pay rate used for the 1955 Act payment.
Example
Joe takes leave in July 2027 under the 1955 Act, paid by the employer. Joe’s employer calculates his leave entitlement to be 8.6667 weeks of leave for his 10-year service. Joe’s employer has been making contributions to the fund since 1 July 2025, which equates to 1.7328 weeks of this entitlement.
Joe’s employer calculates Joe’s ordinary weekly pay rate under the provisions of the 1955 Act, which in this case is $832.50 per week.
The employer pays Joe the full leave entitlement of 8.6667 weeks x $832.50, totalling $7,215.03.
The employer then seeks 1.7328 x $832.50 from the Corporation, who will reimburse the employer $1,442.56.
*For demonstrative purposes only. This scenario is not representative of any individual and does not consider your own circumstances.
