Eligibility examples for community services workers

Maria is a 61-year-old community advocate who has worked in the sector for more than 15 years. 

She joined her current employer, a small multicultural support organisation, in 2024, and plans to retire around 2029 at age 65 or 66.

• Maria was working when the scheme launched on 1 July 2025, and her service was recorded for the first 6 months, so she receives the foundation bonus of 365 days (one year).
• This means Maria only needs 4 more years of service to access a pro-rata payment from the scheme. This is because Maria is leaving the industry due to retirement with 5 or more years of recognised service in the scheme.
• Maria won’t reach the 10-year mark with her current employer to qualify under the Long Service Leave Act 1955 (the 1955 Act) before retiring.

• Maria will not qualify for long service leave under the 1955 Act, but she will become eligible in 2029 for a pro-rata payment from the scheme as she will have 5 years of recognised service in the scheme.
• She must remain employed in an eligible role within the community services sector through to 2029.
• Her payment will come entirely from the scheme, as Maria has not accrued entitlement under the 1955 Act.

Sione is a 29-year-old family support worker who started work in March 2023 with a non-government organisation. 

Sione has therefore been with his current employer for just over 2 years by the time the scheme launches.

• Sione was working in community services when the scheme started on 1 July 2025 and was included in the scheme's first 2 service return periods, so he receives the foundation bonus of 365 days.
• Under the Long Service Leave Act 1955 (the 1955 Act), Sione must stay with the same employer for 10 years to take leave – meaning he would only become eligible under the 1955 Act in March 2033.
• With the foundation bonus, he will be eligible for up to 6 weeks of leave under the scheme after 6 years of service from July 2031.
• This is because Sione will have 7 years of recognised service in the scheme: July 2025 to July 2031 of active service plus the foundation bonus of 365 days = 7 years.
• After claiming the entitled 7 years of recognised service under the scheme, if Sione decided to stay with his employer until March 2033, he will be able to make a claim for 4 years of service under the 1955 Act.
• This is because Sione can claim the 2 years of service before the scheme started and 2 years for the period of service after claiming from the scheme.

• Sione is better off under the portable scheme.
• Sione may choose to change eligible employers during this time without losing his long service benefit.
• His payment from July 2031 will come entirely from the scheme, using the foundation bonus to reduce the waiting period from 7 to 6 years.
• Sione must take leave for the service claimed.

Aisha is a casual women’s health outreach worker who has worked in the sector for 5 years with multiple employers. 

Aisha was working in the industry when the scheme started on 1 July 2025.

• Aisha was working in an eligible community service role within the first 6 months of the scheme launching, so she receives the foundation bonus of 365 days.
• Because Aisha never stayed with one employer long enough, she is not eligible under the Long Service Leave Act 1955 (the 1955 Act).
• With the foundation bonus, Aisha only needs 6 more years of recognised service to make a claim for leave under the portable scheme.

• Aisha becomes eligible in July 2031 to claim from the portable scheme, even if she works for different employers during that time.
• Aisha’s payment will be entirely from the scheme.
• Aisha must take leave for the duration of the leave claimed.
• This highlights the benefit of portability for casual and mobile workers.

Joe is a 50-year-old disability support worker employed by a non-government provider. 

He has been with the same employer for 8 years as of July 2025, starting in July 2017.

• Joe was working in the sector at the launch of the scheme on 1 July 2025 and receives the foundation worker bonus.
• He is on track to hit 10 years of continuous service in July 2027, making him eligible for long service leave under the Long Service Leave Act 1955 (the 1955 Act).
• His employer is still responsible for that 1955 Act payment.
• The employer will be able to claim back a portion of the 2 years’ worth of service that was part of the 1955 Act from the Long Service Corporation (LSC) after the leave is taken by Joe.

• Joe takes leave in July 2027 under the 1955 Act, paid by the employer. Joe’s employer calculates his leave entitlement to be 8.6667 weeks of leave for his 10-year service. Joe’s employer has been making contributions to the fund since 1 July 2025, which equates to 1.7328 weeks of this entitlement.
• Joe’s employer calculates Joe’s ordinary weekly pay rate under the provisions of the 1955 Act, which in this case is $832.50 per week.
• The employer complies with the 1955 Act and pays Joe the full leave entitlement of 8.6667 weeks x $832.50, totalling $7215.03.
• The employer then seeks 1.7328 x $832.50 from LSC, who will reimburse the employer $1442.56.

Ryan is 24 and begins his first job in community services in March 2026, working casually for a non-government youth support provider. 

He changes employers a few times but stays in the eligible sector.

• Because Ryan starts after 31 December 2025, he does not receive the foundation bonus.
• He must build 7 full years of service to be eligible to claim leave.
• However, all service across eligible employers is counted, as long as he is captured in service records.

• Ryan will be eligible for a portable leave payment in March 2033.
• Ryan’s claim is calculated on the highest period of gross ordinary wages over an average of 6 months, one, 5 or 7 years. Even though he missed the bonus, he still benefits from the portability of the new scheme, which the Long Service Leave Act 1955 would not allow.
• This suits workers who move between employers, work part-time, casual, or have multiple jobs in the sector.

Priya is a 38-year-old community legal worker who worked full-time for a NSW community legal centre from 2019 to 2026. 

She took a 3-year career break from mid-2026 to mid-2029 to care for family. 

In 2029, she returned to community services, this time with a different eligible employer in the domestic violence sector.

• Priya was working on 1 July 2025 and was reported on service returns as working within the first 6 months, so she receives the foundation bonus of 365 days.
• Her service from 2025 to 2026 is included in her portable record before the break.
• The 3-year gap from 2026 to 2029 does not count towards her service credits.
• From 2029 onward, she resumes accruing service in the scheme.
• Workers can take a break from the industry for up to 4 years and maintain their recorded service in the scheme (This may be extended if circumstances meet the required reasons outlined in the regulations).

• Priya will receive the foundation bonus of 365 days of service for being in the scheme from 1 July 2025. Priya will have 2 years of recognised service before taking a break from the industry.
• Priya will need 5 more credited years, meaning she won’t be eligible until 2034.
• Her ability to move to a new employer and still retain past credits demonstrates the value of portability, even with service interruptions.