From Accrual to Final Pay — What Payroll Needs to Know

Who Should Attend

Designed for: Payroll practitioners, payroll managers and those responsible for administering annual leave.

Purpose

The Employment Leave Act 2026 will change how annual leave is earned, taken, recorded and paid. This introductory NZPPA webinar follows annual leave from an employee’s first accrual through to final pay, explaining the changes from the Holidays Act 2003 in plain language.

Through practical payroll examples, participants will explore accrual, leave requests, payment calculations and the information needed from employment agreements and rosters. The webinar will also cover leave in advance, cashing up, directing leave, closedowns and the records needed to support accurate processing.

Current law: The Holidays Act 2003 continues to apply until the new requirements take effect on 6 August 2028. Employers cannot adopt the new rules early.

Key Topics

The webinar will cover:

• The new annual leave framework: The move from weeks to hours, who qualifies, when leave becomes available, the main differences from the Holidays Act and the transition to the new requirements.
• How annual leave accrues: Accrual from the start of employment, the minimum rate of 0.0769 hours per qualifying standard hour, identifying standard hours, and the treatment of additional and casual hours through Leave Compensation Payments.
• What affects accrual and balances: Changes between full-time and part-time hours, variable and seasonal patterns, multiple roles, carrying leave forward, and the effects of annual leave, other paid leave, unpaid leave, parental leave and ACC absences.
• Taking annual leave: Requesting and agreeing leave, taking hours or part-days, opportunities for an uninterrupted break, and using employment agreements, notional rosters and work rosters to identify the hours to deduct.
• Annual leave in advance: Employer approval, documenting the arrangement, recording and monitoring negative balances, and lawful recovery considerations if employment ends before the leave has been earned.
• Requiring annual leave and managing closedowns: Conditions for directing leave, attempts to reach agreement, notice requirements, accumulated balances, annual closedowns, agreed closures and options where an employee has insufficient leave.
• Cashing up annual leave: Eligibility, the annual limit and relevant balance, employee requests, employer decisions and policies, restrictions on requiring cash-ups, calculating payment and updating records.
• Calculating annual leave pay and payment timing: The hourly payment approach for salaried and waged employees, different rates, fixed allowances, commission, piece rates, pay changes, when payment is due and permitted agreements about timing.
• Interaction with other leave: Public holidays during annual leave, sickness, injury, bereavement or family violence before or during booked leave, when another entitlement applies, and correcting payments and restoring leave hours where required.
• When employment or a role ends: Calculating and paying unused leave, payment timing, outstanding leave in advance, public holiday implications, leave transfers during restructuring and changes involving multiple roles.
• Additional contractual leave and payroll readiness: Managing benefits above the statutory minimum, agreement wording, separate payroll treatment, converting existing balances, recording accruals, deductions, cash-ups and payments, pay statements and checking system outputs.
• Practical payroll examples and questions: New starters, changing hours, part-day requests, closedowns with insufficient leave, cash-up requests and final pay. Worked examples will cover accrual and payment, with time to identify matters requiring further guidance.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:

1. Explain the key changes to annual leave, including accrual in hours, qualifying standard hours and factors that affect an employee’s balance.
2. Identify the rules and information needed to administer leave requests, leave in advance, cash-ups, directed leave and closedowns.
3. Apply the basic steps for calculating annual leave hours and payments in straightforward examples, including payment timing, overlapping entitlements and final pay.
4. Identify the changes needed to employment agreements, payroll systems, processes and records, including additional contractual leave and preparation for converting existing balances.

Practical Outcome

Participants will leave with a clearer understanding of how annual leave will work under the new Act, the questions payroll needs answered and the processes and system functions that will need review before implementation.

Webinar Details

Date: 29 October 2026
Time: 9 am – 12.00 pm

Cost

NZPPA Member: $175 + GST
NZPPA Non-member: $195 + GST

Group booking special: Receive 25% OFF from the second attendee onwards when booking two or more people. To arrange a group booking, email training@nzppa.co.nz.

Webinar Information

All NZPPA special webinars are recorded. Once the recording is published, attendees will receive a webinar pack that may include:

• Webinar recording
• Webinar notes
• Presentation slides, if used
• Questions and answers from the webinar
• Additional supporting documents
• Presenter’s contact email for follow-up questions

The webinar access link will be sent no later than close of business on the Tuesday of the webinar week. Any webinar notes available in advance will be sent on the morning of the webinar.

If you have not received your webinar link, please check your spam or junk folder.