Dad and Partner Pay: helping you care for your new child
If your partner has just had a baby or you’ve just adopted a child, you have a vital role in the first few months of your child’s life. The more involved you are with your new child, the better. The Australian Government’s Dad and Partner Pay can give you the chance to:
- bond with your child
- get more involved with caring for your child
- share experiences as a family
- support your partner.
What is Dad and Partner Pay?
Dad and Partner Pay is an entitlement under the Paid Parental Leave Scheme. The Australian Government pays it directly to eligible biological fathers, partners of birthing mothers, adoptive parents and surrogate parents.
Dad and Partner Pay gives you up to 2 weeks of government-funded pay at the rate of the National Minimum Wage.
Dad and Partner Pay is for leave in the first year after birth or adoption.
Your partner might be able to claim up to 18 weeks of paid parental leave. So if you and your partner are eligible, your family might be able to get up to 20 weeks paid parental leave.
Who can get Dad and Partner Pay?
You can apply for Dad and Partner Pay if you have a newborn baby or newly adopted child and you’re the:
- child’s biological father
- partner of the child’s birthing mother
- child’s adoptive parent or partner of the adoptive parent
- parent of a child born of a surrogacy arrangement.
To get Dad and Partner Pay, you’ll need to:
- be caring for a newborn baby or newly adopted child
- be living in Australia and meet residence rules
- have worked for at least 10 of the 13 months before the start date of your Dad and Partner Pay
- have worked for at least 330 hours in that 10-month period (just over one day a week), with no more than a 12-week gap between each work day
- meet the income criteria for the payment
- be on unpaid leave or not working during the Dad and Partner Pay period.
You might be eligible for Dad and Partner Pay if you work on a full-time, part-time, casual, contract or seasonal basis, are self-employed or work in a family business.
If COVID-19 has affected your work, the rules about what counts for work are slightly different. You can find out more by visiting Services Australia – Changes if you get family payments.
To find out whether you’re eligible for Dad and Partner Pay or to claim online, visit Australian Government Department of Human Services – Dad and Partner Pay or call 136 150.
Dad and Partner Pay and paid leave
Dad and Partner Pay doesn’t affect any other paid leave you might be entitled to from your employer, like paid parental leave, personal leave or annual leave.
You can use Dad and Partner Pay while you’re on unpaid leave or not working. Also, you can use this payment before or after other paid leave that’s available to you, but you can’t take it at the same time as paid leave.
Top-up payments during unpaid leave
Some employers might choose to pay you the difference between your Dad and Partner Pay and your usual wage. This top-up payment isn’t considered paid leave for the purposes of claiming Dad and Partner Pay.
What do you need to do?
You’ll need to talk about and agree on your unpaid leave arrangements with your employer and apply for Dad and Partner Pay yourself.
You can lodge a claim for Dad and Partner Pay up to 3 months before or within 12 months after your child’s birth or adoption. It can be taken any time in the first year after birth or adoption.
Your other entitlements
Your family might be able to get other parenting payments.Visit Services Australia – Raising kids to find out more.
Dad and Partner Pay doesn’t change any of your existing entitlements to unpaid parental leave under the National Employment Standards.
Under the National Employment Standards, parents who have worked continuously for their employer for 12 months or more have an entitlement to 12 months of unpaid parental leave. If there are 2 parents in your family, you can both can take up to 8 weeks of the unpaid parental leave at the same time.
If you’ve worked for your employer for less than 12 months, you can negotiate unpaid parental leave with your employer.
You might like to read more about unpaid parental leave and the National Employment Standards.