National Employment Standards redundancy scale
| Continuous service | Redundancy pay |
|---|---|
| Less than 1 year | Nil |
| 1 – 2 years | 4 weeks |
| 2 – 3 years | 6 weeks |
| 3 – 4 years | 7 weeks |
| 4 – 5 years | 8 weeks |
| 5 – 6 years | 10 weeks |
| 6 – 7 years | 11 weeks |
| 7 – 8 years | 13 weeks |
| 8 – 9 years | 14 weeks |
| 9 – 10 years | 16 weeks |
| 10 years or more | 12 weeks |
Source: Fair Work Ombudsman, notice of termination and redundancy pay. Small business employers with fewer than 15 employees are generally exempt from NES redundancy pay.
Questions people actually ask
Why does my redundancy pay drop after 10 years of service?+
It's a quirk of the NES scale itself, not a mistake. Entitlement peaks at 16 weeks for 9–10 years of service, then drops to 12 weeks at 10+ years, because long-serving employees are assumed to have separate long service leave entitlements.
Is all of my redundancy payout tax-free?+
Only up to the ATO's genuine redundancy limit — a base amount plus an amount for each completed year of service. Anything above that limit is taxed as an employment termination payment (ETP), usually at a concessional rate.
Do all employers have to pay redundancy pay?+
No. Small business employers with fewer than 15 employees are generally exempt under the NES, even when the role is genuinely made redundant. Toggle "Fewer than 15" above to see the difference.