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The Employment Leave Act received Royal Assent on 6 August 2026 and will replace the Holidays Act 2003 on 6 August 2028. Until then, employers must continue to apply the Holidays Act and cannot adopt the new rules early.

The next two years should be treated as a preparation window, not a waiting period. Employers can start becoming familiar with the Act, gathering the information they will need and identifying which parts of their business are likely to require the most attention.

The first step in Unlimit’s employer readiness methodology is Get Informed. Employers do not need every implementation detail before they start preparing.

Start by Becoming Familiar with the Act

Getting informed does not mean trying to solve every detail now. It means understanding the direction of the change, following official updates and knowing what information will be needed when detailed guidance is released.

Employers can begin by:

• Reading the available Employment Leave Act information and identifying the changes most relevant to their workforce, here

• Following MBIE and Employment New Zealand updates as guidance is released

• Attending Unlimit’s Employment Leave Act events and employer briefings

• Identifying the people who will need to be involved across payroll, people and culture, finance, operations and systems

• Start identifying timelines and timeframes – these will vary for each employer. Large employers or employers with variable workforces will require more time.

• Recording questions and areas of uncertainty to work through as further guidance becomes available.

  
  

A Simple View of the MBIE Guidance Timeline

MBIE and Employment New Zealand are releasing guidance in stages:

• November 2026 to January 2027: Initial employer guidance and priority payroll technical guidance, including worked examples and core calculation methods.

• February to April 2027: Further guidance for complex working arrangements, roster patterns, agreements, leave payments and other edge cases.

• May to July 2027: Employer checklists, planning tools and examples to support updates to agreements, policies and workplace processes.

• August 2027 to July 2028: Ongoing information sessions and implementation support as employers and payroll providers prepare for go-live.

• 6 August 2028: The Employment Leave Act comes into effect, with ongoing guidance available during the first year of operation.

  
  

This staged approach means employers should keep informed now, then use each new release to progressively refine their plans rather than waiting for one final package of guidance. The published timeframes are indicative and may be reviewed as the guidance is developed.

What Employers Can Do Now

The immediate task is not to implement the Employment Leave Act. It is to become familiar with the change, gather the right internal information and be ready to act as MBIE and Employment New Zealand release further guidance.

Think of the next two years as a preparation window, not a waiting period. Employers that act early can plan methodically, make a start by:

• Become familiar with the main changes under the Employment Leave Act

• Follow official updates and note the staged MBIE guidance dates

• Collate employment agreements, policies, workforce information and system details

• Identify complex work arrangements or areas where records may be incomplete

• Register for an Unlimit breakfast event, here

• Book an Unlimit workshop or guidance session for the new year before places fill, here

• If using ACE Payroll, begin planning a move to a supported system now.

  
  

Collate Your Internal Information Now

One of the most useful actions employers can take now is to bring together the information that will support a future readiness review. 

Start collating and understanding:

• Current individual and collective employment agreements

• Leave policies, staff handbooks and manager guidance

• Payroll, timekeeping and rostering process documents

• Details of fixed, variable, shift-based, seasonal and casual working arrangements

• Current leave balances and any known data quality issues

• A list of payroll, HR, rostering and time-recording systems, including provider contacts and support status

• Questions already being raised by employees, managers, payroll or finance teams.

Having this information in one place will help you to identify gaps, prioritise higher-risk areas, and make better use of detailed guidance when it is released.

A Specific Note for Employers Using ACE Payroll

ACE Payroll is scheduled to be decommissioned on 1 April 2027. Employers using ACE will need to move to a supported payroll system before the Employment Leave Act takes effect.

The same consideration applies to any other payroll products where support, compliance updates or ongoing development have ceased or are expected to cease. Employers in this position should start assessing replacement options now, allowing time to extract and validate data, reconcile leave balances, train users, and stabilise the replacement system.

Do not wait until the system’s final support date. Moving earlier provides more choice and reduces the risk of competing for limited implementation support when demand increases.

How Unlimit Can Help

Register for an upcoming Employment Leave Act event, here or book a workshop or tailored guidance session for the new year, here.