Long service leave when a business is sold in New South Wales
When a business in New South Wales is sold, NSW Industrial Relations' guidance counts a transferred worker's service with the old employer as service with the new one, and makes the new employer responsible for that worker's long service leave. The same guidance says the business must keep the same character under the new owner for service to carry over, and that a contract for the sale cannot exclude workers' long service leave.
- By Book Keeping Pros
- Sources checked 15 Oct 2026
The rules in New South Wales
| What it is | Value | When it applies | Where it is set |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service with the old employer counts as service with the new employer after a sale | Yes | As published on 13 October 2026 | 20. What happens to a worker's long service leave when a business is sold? Continuity of service |
| The new employer is responsible for the long service leave of transferred workers | Yes | As published on 2 March 2026 | 4.4.1 What happens to long service leave after a transmission?, page 12 |
| A contract for the sale of the business can exclude workers' long service leave | No | As published on 13 October 2026 | 20. What happens to a worker's long service leave when a business is sold? Long service leave liability |
| The business must keep the same character under the new owner for service to carry over | Yes | As published on 2 March 2026 | 4.4.1 What is a transmission of business? When does a transmission occur?, page 11 |
| A selling employer must hand transferred workers' records to the new employer | Yes | As published on 13 October 2026 | 55. What records is an employer required to keep for long service leave? |
| Years after they were made that the selling employer keeps copies of records it hands over | 6 years | As published on 2 March 2026 | 10 Record keeping, page 40 |
| Months within which a move to a related employer keeps service continuous | 2 months | As published on 13 October 2026 | 21. What if a worker is transferred to a related company? |
Each rule is read from the source and provision shown; the sources are listed below. Checked 15 Oct 2026.
What it means for your books
- The selling employer hands transferred workers' records to the new employer and keeps copies for the period in the table after they were made, so the seller's books need a dated set of those copies it can find later.
- On the buyer's side, the records received become the start of each transferred worker's service history, so the original start date with the old employer carries into the new employer's books.
- A move to a related employer keeps service continuous when it happens within the months in the table, so the date a worker left one company and the date they started with the related one belong in both companies' records.
- The sale contract and the list of workers who transferred can sit with the records handed over. Whether the business kept the same character, or whether a particular move keeps service continuous, is a question for your accountant or NSW Industrial Relations.
General information
Sources
- Long service leave
NSW Industrial Relations. Page modified 13 October 2026 (dcterms.modified metadata), released 13 October 2026. Checked 15 October 2026.
© State of New South Wales, licensed under CC BY 4.0 Licence: CC BY 4.0.
- Long Service Leave Guide (NSW), March 2026
NSW Industrial Relations. First published March 2026, released 2 March 2026. Checked 15 October 2026.
© State of New South Wales 2026 Licence: All rights reserved, State of New South Wales.
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