Fair Work Information Statement 2026

The Fair Work Information Statement (FWIS) is a document that every employer in Australia is legally required to give to every new employee. It's not optional — it's mandated under section 125 of the Fair Work Act 2009.

The statement must be given before, or as soon as practicable after, the employee starts work. In practice, that means on day one or during the onboarding process. It's a summary of the key rights and entitlements that apply to all employees under the National Employment Standards (NES).

The FWIS was last updated in November 2024 to reflect changes to casual employment laws, the right to disconnect, and updated penalty amounts. If you're using an older version, you're giving out-of-date information — and potentially exposing yourself to compliance risk.

There are actually two versions of the statement:

• The Fair Work Information Statement (FWIS) — for all employees (full-time, part-time, and casual)
• The Casual Employment Information Statement (CEIS) — an additional document specifically for casual employees, explaining their conversion rights

Both are produced by the Fair Work Ombudsman and are available for free download. The FWIS is available in over 40 languages, which is important if you employ workers whose first language isn't English. You can download translated versions directly from the Fair Work website.

Don't think of this as a bureaucratic box-ticking exercise. The FWIS is your employee's first introduction to their rights at work. Getting it right sets the tone for the entire employment relationship.

The Fair Work Information Statement covers the 11 National Employment Standards — the minimum entitlements that apply to all employees in the national workplace relations system. Here's what each one covers in 2026:

1. Maximum weekly hours — 38 hours per week for full-time employees, plus reasonable additional hours. What counts as "reasonable" depends on factors like the nature of the role, the employee's personal circumstances, and whether they're compensated for the extra hours.
2. Flexible working arrangements — Employees have the right to request flexible work (changed hours, location, patterns) if they've been with the employer for 12 months. Since 2023, employers can only refuse on reasonable business grounds and must genuinely try to reach agreement.
3. Parental leave — Up to 12 months unpaid parental leave (with a right to request an additional 12 months). From 1 July 2026, government-funded Paid Parental Leave increases to 26 weeks, with both parents able to share the entitlement.
4. Annual leave — 4 weeks per year for full-time employees (pro-rata for part-time). Shift workers get 5 weeks under most awards.
5. Personal/carer's leave — 10 days paid per year for full-time employees. Used for your own illness or injury, or to care for an immediate family member or household member who is sick.
6. Compassionate leave — 2 days paid leave per occasion, for when an immediate family or household member dies, or has a life-threatening illness or injury.
7. Family & domestic violence leave — 10 days paid leave per year. Available to all employees including casuals. This was a major change introduced in 2023.
8. Community service leave — Unpaid leave for voluntary emergency management activities (like bushfire volunteering). Jury service leave includes up to 10 days of make-up pay for permanent employees.
9. Long service leave — Entitlements vary by state and territory. Generally kicks in after 7–10 years of continuous service. The FWIS refers employees to their state legislation for specific details.
10. Public holidays — Employees (other than casuals who aren't rostered on) get paid for public holidays they'd normally work. The right to refuse unreasonable requests to work on public holidays is also covered.
11. Notice of termination & redundancy pay — Minimum notice periods based on length of service (1–4 weeks, plus an extra week if over 45 and employed for 2+ years). Redundancy pay ranges from 4–16 weeks depending on service.

The 2026 FWIS also covers several additional rights beyond the 11 NES:

• The right to disconnect — since August 2024, employees at businesses with 15+ staff can refuse to monitor or respond to work contact outside their working hours (unless the refusal is unreasonable)
• Casual conversion rights — casuals can request or be offered permanent employment after meeting eligibility criteria
• Where to get more information — links to the Fair Work Ombudsman, the Fair Work Commission, and how to lodge a complaint

The short answer: every single new employee. No exceptions.

The FWIS must be given to:

• Full-time employees
• Part-time employees
• Casual employees

It doesn't matter what industry you're in, how small your business is, or whether the employee is on a fixed-term contract. If someone is an employee under the Fair Work Act — as opposed to an independent contractor — they must receive the FWIS.

For casual employees, there's an additional requirement: they must also receive the Casual Employment Information Statement (CEIS). This is a separate document on top of the standard FWIS.

What happens if you don't provide it?

Failing to give an employee the FWIS is a contravention of the Fair Work Act. The penalties are significant:

• Individuals (e.g., a business owner or manager): up to $19,800 per contravention
• Companies: up to $99,000 per contravention

Each employee who doesn't receive the statement is a separate contravention. If you hire 10 people and give none of them the FWIS, that's potentially 10 contraventions — up to $990,000 in penalties for a company.

In practice, the Fair Work Ombudsman typically issues compliance notices before escalating to penalties. But if you're audited or an employee lodges a complaint, not having evidence that you provided the FWIS is a red flag that invites further scrutiny of your employment practices.

Use our employment check tool to make sure your employment setup meets all the legal requirements from day one.

If you're hiring casual employees, you need to give them two documents: the standard FWIS and the Casual Employment Information Statement (CEIS).

The CEIS was introduced as part of the casual employment reforms and is specifically designed to explain casual employees' rights around conversion to permanent employment. Here's what it covers:

• What casual employment means — the definition under the Fair Work Act, including that casual employment is characterised by no firm advance commitment to continuing and indefinite work according to an agreed pattern
• The right to request conversion — casual employees can request to convert to permanent (full-time or part-time) employment after a qualifying period. For large employers (15+ staff), this is after 6 months. For small employers, it's after 12 months.
• The employer's obligation to offer conversion — large employers must actively offer conversion to eligible casuals (not just wait for a request). Small employers don't have to offer, but must respond to requests.
• How to make a request — the process for requesting conversion, including that it must be in writing, and the employer has 21 days to respond
• Grounds for refusal — employers can refuse a conversion request only on fair and reasonable operational grounds (e.g., the position is genuinely temporary, or there would be significant changes to work hours)
• Dispute resolution — if the casual disagrees with a refusal, they can take the matter to the Fair Work Commission

The CEIS must be given to existing casual employees too — not just new hires. Large employers must give it to casuals every 6 months if the employee hasn't yet converted. It's a continuing obligation, not a one-off.

Check whether your casual employees might be eligible for conversion using our casual conversion tool.

The official FWIS is available for free from the Fair Work Ombudsman website. You can download it at fairwork.gov.au/employment-conditions/national-employment-standards/fair-work-information-statement.

There are several acceptable ways to provide the FWIS to a new employee:

• Print it out and hand it to them on their first day
• Email it as a PDF attachment before or on their start date
• Include it in your induction pack alongside other onboarding documents
• Provide a link to the Fair Work website where they can access it directly — this is the simplest option and ensures they always see the most up-to-date version

Whatever method you choose, keep a record that you provided it. This can be as simple as:

• A sent email with the FWIS attached (keep in your records)
• A signed acknowledgment form as part of your onboarding paperwork
• A note in your HR system recording the date the FWIS was provided

The FWIS should be part of your standard onboarding checklist alongside:

• Tax File Number (TFN) declaration
• Superannuation choice form
• Employment contract or letter of offer
• Award or enterprise agreement details
• Workplace health and safety induction
• The CEIS (if the employee is casual)

If you employ people who speak languages other than English, remember that the FWIS is available in over 40 languages from the Fair Work website. Providing a translated version shows good faith and helps ensure your employees actually understand their rights.

Here's your compliance checklist for the Fair Work Information Statement in 2026:

When	Action	Who
Before or on first day	Give the FWIS to the new employee	All new employees
Before or on first day	Give the CEIS to the new employee	All new casual employees
Every 6 months (large employers)	Re-issue the CEIS to casuals who haven't converted	Existing casual employees
Every 12 months (large employers)	Offer casual conversion to eligible casuals (15+ staff)	Eligible casual employees
Ongoing	Keep records that the FWIS and CEIS were provided	All employees

Penalties for non-compliance:

• Individuals: up to $19,800 per contravention
• Companies: up to $99,000 per contravention

Related tools and resources:

• Employment Check — verify your employment setup is legally compliant
• Award Finder — find the correct award for your employees
• Notice Period Calculator — check minimum notice requirements
• Leave Entitlements Calculator — calculate employee leave balances
• Casual Conversion Tool — check if casuals are eligible to convert

Getting the basics right from day one protects both you and your employees. The FWIS takes two minutes to send — but the penalties for forgetting can be tens of thousands of dollars. Build it into your process and never think about it again.