Who is eligible for Statutory Adoption Leave?

To qualify, a person must be:

• An employee;

• Newly matched with a child for adoption by an approved adoption agency (the rules are different for adoptions from overseas);

• Have 26 weeks’ service with the employer by the date of matching. Contrast the right to maternity leave, where there is no qualifying service requirement.

For information on pay during Statutory Adoption Leave see below.

Statutory Adoption leave lasts for 52 weeks and divides into two parts:

• Ordinary Adoption Leave (OAL): the first 26 weeks; and

• Additional Adoption Leave (AAL): a further 26 weeks following immediately after the OAL.