Long service leave in the NT
In the Northern Territory, long service leave comes from the Long Service Leave Act 1981 (NT). The values in the table are read from s 8 and s 10 of the Act.
- By Book Keeping Pros
- Sources checked 15 Oct 2026
Leave for each completed year of service
1.3 weeks
- Years of service for the full entitlement
- 10 years
- Years of service for a pro rata payment on leaving for a listed reason
- 7 years
Long service leave rules
Checked for employment ending 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2027
| What it is | Value | Where it is set |
|---|---|---|
| Years of service for a pro rata payment on leaving for a listed reason | 7 years | s 10(2) |
| Years of service for the full entitlement | 10 years | s 8(1), qualifying period |
| Leave for each completed year of service | 1.3 weeks | s 8(1), amount of leave |
Each value is read from the source and provision shown; the sources are listed below. Checked 15 Oct 2026.
Who is paid before the full entitlement
- The employee resigns because of illness, incapacity, or a domestic or other pressing necessity
- The employee leaves on or after reaching retirement age
- The employer ends the employment for any reason other than serious misconduct, including redundancy
How it works in Northern Territory
- The Northern Territory sets leave as a number of weeks for each completed year of service, shown in the table. Nothing is due to be taken until the full entitlement period is reached.
- Part years are dropped. Northern Territory Government guidance rounds service down to the last completed year, both for the full entitlement and for a pro rata payment.
- While still employed, an employee takes leave in blocks: the first once the full entitlement is reached, then one after each further block of service the Act sets out.
- Short of the full entitlement, s 10 allows a pro rata payment from the period in the table, only for the reasons that follow. A plain resignation or a dismissal for serious misconduct is not one of them.
- An employee dismissed for serious misconduct after the full entitlement is paid only for the blocks of service completed, under s 10, rather than for every completed year.
- On a death, s 10 pays what the employee would have received had employment ended another way that day. Where the death falls after the pro rata period but short of the full entitlement, the Act does not settle what is paid.
General information
Sources
- Long Service Leave Act 1981 (NT), reprint as in force at 14 October 2015
Office of the Parliamentary Counsel, Northern Territory. Reprint as in force at 14 October 2015, released 14 October 2015. Checked 15 October 2026.
© Northern Territory of Australia Licence: NT Legislation terms of use: copyright, Northern Territory of Australia.
- Long service leave
Northern Territory Government (NT.GOV.AU). Page modified 26 February 2025 (dcterms.modified metadata), released 26 February 2025. Checked 15 October 2026.
© Northern Territory of Australia Licence: NT.GOV.AU copyright notice: copyright, Northern Territory of Australia (fair dealing only unless a Creative Commons licence is stated).
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