Free New Zealand calculator · 2026/27
Public Holiday Pay Calculator NZ: Time and a Half & Day in Lieu
Work out what you should be paid for a New Zealand public holiday — whether you worked or not — using the Holidays Act 2003 comparison between time and a half and your contractual rate.
Rules and rates checked against official sources on 2 November 2026 · NZD · Estimates only
How is public holiday pay calculated in NZ?
If you work on a public holiday, your employer must pay you the greater of (a) time and a half on your relevant daily pay for the hours you actually worked, or (b) your relevant daily pay including any penal or public holiday rate in your agreement. You never get both. Time and a half is a minimum, not an extra loading on top of double time.
If the day would otherwise be a working day, you also get one whole alternative holiday, paid at your relevant or average daily pay when you take it. If you do not work on a day that would otherwise be a working day, you are paid your relevant or average daily pay for the day off.
Your details
Your estimate
The four public holiday situations
| Situation | What you are paid | Alternative holiday? |
|---|---|---|
| Worked, otherwise a working day | Greater of time and a half or your contractual rate, for hours worked | Yes — one whole day, paid at RDP or ADP when taken |
| Worked, not otherwise a working day | Greater of time and a half or your contractual rate, for hours worked | No |
| Did not work, otherwise a working day | Relevant daily pay (or average daily pay) for the day | No |
| Did not work, not otherwise a working day | Nothing extra | No |
You get one alternative holiday even if you work only part of the public holiday. Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day, 2 January, Waitangi Day and ANZAC Day can be “Mondayised” when they fall on a weekend, which affects which day counts as the public holiday for you.
Relevant daily pay vs average daily pay
Relevant daily pay (RDP) is what you would have received had you worked that day: your ordinary pay plus regular extras such as productivity or incentive payments, overtime you would normally work, and the cash value of board or lodgings. For the time-and-a-half comparison, RDP is worked out without penal rates.
Average daily pay (ADP) is your gross earnings over the last 52 weeks divided by the number of whole or part days you worked or were on paid leave or a paid holiday. It can be used only if your RDP is impossible or impractical to work out, or your daily pay varies within the pay period. Example: $46,800 ÷ 234 days = $200.00 a day.
Worked examples
1. Time and a half
Mere earns $30 an hour and works 8 hours on Labour Day, which is normally a working day for her. Her agreement has no special rate. Time and a half: 8 × $30 × 1.5 = $360.00. She also gets an alternative holiday paid at her RDP of $240.00 when she takes it.
2. Double time in the agreement
If Mere’s agreement pays double time on public holidays, her contractual amount is 8 × $30 × 2 = $480.00. That beats time and a half, so she is paid $480.00, not $480 plus a half. She still gets the alternative holiday.
3. A Sunday penal rate that is lower than time and a half
If the agreement only has a Sunday rate of time and a quarter and the public holiday falls on a Sunday she normally works, the contractual amount is $300.00. Time and a half ($360.00) is higher, so $360.00 applies.
4. Day off on a normal working day
If Mere does not work on Waitangi Day and it would otherwise be one of her working days, she is paid her RDP: $240.00.
Law changes and limits of this calculator
These rules come from the Holidays Act 2003. Parliament has passed the Employment Leave Act 2026, which will replace the Holidays Act on 6 August 2028. Until then, the Holidays Act rules shown here still apply.
- Results are gross pay before PAYE, KiwiSaver and student loan.
- Shift and on-call work, transferred public holidays, close-down periods and whether a day is “otherwise a working day” can need closer analysis. Employment New Zealand has detailed guidance and a flowchart.
- Casual employees who work on a public holiday must still get at least time and a half, but usually no alternative holiday.
- The calculator does not decide disputes. If you think you have been underpaid, talk to your employer first, then Employment New Zealand.
Official sources
Checked 2 November 2026:
- Employment New Zealand — Public holiday pay
- Employment New Zealand — Calculating public holiday payments
- Employment New Zealand — Flowchart: applying relevant daily pay when working a public holiday (PDF)
- Holidays Act 2003 (sections 9, 9A, 49, 50 and 56)
- New Zealand Parliament — Employment Leave Bill (Royal assent August 2026)
Frequently asked questions
Do I get time and a half and double time on a public holiday?
No. You get whichever is greater: time and a half on your relevant daily pay for the hours worked, or the public holiday rate in your employment agreement. If your agreement pays double time, you get double time, not double time plus a half.
When do I get an alternative holiday (day in lieu)?
When you work any part of a public holiday that would otherwise be a working day for you. It is a whole day off, paid at your relevant or average daily pay when you take it.
What is relevant daily pay?
The amount you would have received had you worked on the day, including regular extras such as productivity or incentive payments and overtime you would normally work. For the time-and-a-half test it is calculated without penal rates.
When can average daily pay be used?
Only when relevant daily pay is impossible or impractical to work out, or your daily pay varies within the pay period. It is your gross earnings over the last 52 weeks divided by the days you worked or were on paid leave.
Do casual workers get public holiday pay?
A casual employee who works on a public holiday must be paid at least time and a half. Because a casual day is usually not “otherwise a working day”, there is normally no alternative holiday or paid day off.
Has the Holidays Act been replaced?
The Employment Leave Act 2026 has been passed but does not start until 6 August 2028. The Holidays Act 2003 still applies until then.