Bereavement leave is time off work after someone close to you dies, and whether it's a legal right depends on where you work. In the UK there's no general right except for parents who lose a child, in the US federal law doesn't require it at all, Australia gives every employee 2 days of compassionate leave each time, and Ontario gives up to 2 unpaid days a year.
When someone dies, nobody wants to read employment law. But the rules decide whether the time off is protected, whether it's paid and what your employer can ask for. They're very different from one country to the next, so here's what each official body says, and what a small business owner should put in writing before it's needed.
The short comparison
| Where you work | Legal minimum | Paid by law? |
|---|---|---|
| UK (general bereavement) | No legal right, unless the person was a dependant (then 'reasonable' time off) | No |
| UK (death of a child under 18 or stillbirth after 24 weeks) | 2 weeks' Parental Bereavement Leave from day one | Statutory pay if eligible |
| US (federal) | No requirement | No |
| Australia | 2 days compassionate leave each time it's needed | Yes for full-time and part-time, unpaid for casuals |
| Ontario, Canada | Up to 2 days a calendar year after 2 weeks' employment | No (unpaid, job-protected) |
UK: the right most people don't have
Acas is blunt about it: if the person who died wasn't a child or a dependant, there's no legal right to time off. Employers should still be compassionate, and many offer compassionate, bereavement or special leave through a policy, but that's a choice. If there's no policy, Acas says the time could be treated as sick leave or, if the employee asks, as holiday.
The exception is time off for dependants. A dependant includes a partner, child, parent, someone who lives in your household (not a tenant or lodger) or someone who relies on you. The law doesn't set a number of days, only that the time is 'reasonable', it covers arranging or attending the funeral, and there's no legal right for it to be paid.
UK: Parental Bereavement Leave and pay
Jack's Law gives employees 2 weeks off if their child dies under the age of 18, or if they have a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy. GOV.UK says it's a right from the first day of employment, and a week means your normal working week, so 2 days if you only work Mondays and Tuesdays.
- Take it as one 2-week block or two separate weeks.
- It can start on or after the date of death and must finish within 56 weeks.
- In the first 8 weeks, you only need to tell your employer before you'd normally start work on the first day.
- From week 9 to week 56, give at least one week's notice.
- Notice doesn't have to be in writing, and you don't need to give proof of the death.
Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay is £194.32 a week or 90% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower (as of October 2026). To get the pay you need 26 weeks' continuous employment up to the 'relevant week' and average earnings of at least £129 a week, and you must ask within 28 days. GOV.UK also notes that from 6 April 2026 the eligibility rules differ for employees in Northern Ireland.
US: no federal bereavement leave
The US Department of Labor says the Fair Labor Standards Act doesn't require payment for time not worked, including attending a funeral. So at federal level, bereavement leave is a benefit an employer chooses to offer, usually through a written policy or an employment contract, rather than a legal entitlement.
Australia: 2 days, every time
Under the National Employment Standards, every employee, including casuals, can take compassionate leave when a member of their immediate family or household dies or develops a life-threatening illness or injury, when a baby in the family or household is stillborn, or after a miscarriage (theirs or their partner's). The Fair Work Ombudsman says it's 2 days each time, taken as one 2-day period, two single days or other periods agreed with the employer.
Full-time and part-time employees are paid at their base rate for the ordinary hours they'd have worked. Casuals get the leave unpaid. It doesn't accumulate, it isn't taken from sick and carer's leave, and an employer can ask for reasonable evidence, such as a death or funeral notice.
Ontario: 2 days a year, not per death
This is the detail that catches people out. Ontario's Employment Standards Act gives up to 2 unpaid, job-protected bereavement days each calendar year, not each time someone dies, once you've worked for the employer for at least 2 consecutive weeks. The days aren't pro-rated for a mid-year starter and can't be carried over.
It covers a spouse, parents, step-parents, foster parents, children, grandparents and grandchildren (of the employee or their spouse), plus a relative who depends on the employee for care. The ontario.ca guide adds two practical points: a part day can be counted as a full day of leave, and a paid bereavement day under a contract also uses up one of the 2 ESA days unless the contract gives a greater benefit.
Family leave rights sit side by side, and our UK paternity leave guide covers paternity leave.
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What I'd put in a small business bereavement policy
- Start from the legal minimum for each country or province where you employ people.
- Say who counts as close family, and leave room for a friend or someone with no legal tie.
- State how many days are paid and how many can be unpaid or taken as holiday.
- Explain how to tell you, and keep it simple: a call or a text is enough.
- Say when, if ever, you'll ask for evidence, and keep any request reasonable.
- Allow time later for a funeral, a memorial or estate appointments.
- Train managers to respond quickly and kindly, and to follow the policy consistently.
If you manage leave across several countries, leave and absence management software keeps the different entitlements straight, and UK HR support services can check a policy before you issue it.
My verdict
Don't let the law set the standard here. The legal minimums are thin, and in the US there isn't one at all, so a clear, written bereavement policy is one of the kindest and cheapest things a small business can have. Write it before you need it, because the worst time to work out the rules is the day someone calls to say a parent has died.
A separate right covers time off to care for someone, explained in our carer's leave guide.
Frequently asked questions
Is bereavement leave a legal right in the UK?
Only in some cases. There's no general right, but employees get reasonable time off for a dependant and 2 weeks' Parental Bereavement Leave if their child dies under 18 or is stillborn after 24 weeks.
Is bereavement leave paid in the UK?
There's no legal right to paid bereavement leave, except Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay for eligible parents. Many employers choose to pay through their own policy.
Do US employers have to give bereavement leave?
Not under federal law. The Department of Labor says the FLSA doesn't require payment for time not worked, including attending a funeral.
How many days of compassionate leave do Australian employees get?
2 days each time they meet the criteria, paid for full-time and part-time employees and unpaid for casuals.
How much bereavement leave do Ontario employees get?
Up to 2 unpaid, job-protected days each calendar year after 2 consecutive weeks of employment.
Can my employer ask for proof of a death?
In Australia and Ontario an employer can ask for reasonable evidence. For UK Parental Bereavement Leave, GOV.UK says you don't need to give proof.
