Fixed term employment contract template
Hire for a set period without breaching the Fair Work Act. The contract is built around the fixed term limits that started on 6 December 2023.
Updated September 2026. Drafted with Cowell Clarke Commercial Lawyers.
Contract of employment
Fixed term
Contract particulars
- Use for
- Work with a genuine end date, such as parental leave cover or a defined project
- Maximum term
- Two years, including any extension or renewal
- Renewals
- One at most
- Reminders
- HR Command alerts you before the end date
- Included
- Fair Work and Fixed Term Contract Information Statements, plus the position description
- LegalDrafted with Cowell Clarke Commercial Lawyers
- LimitsBuilt around the two year cap
- RemindersAlerts before the end date arrives
- ComplianceStatements and position description attached
In short
What is a fixed term employment contract?
A fixed term employment contract employs someone for a set period with a clear end date. In Australia, most fixed term contracts can’t run longer than two years including extensions, can’t be renewed more than once, and must come with the Fixed Term Contract Information Statement.
When to use a fixed term contract
Use one when the work ends on a known date or when a defined task is finished. Common examples:
- Covering parental leave or another long absence
- A project with a set end date
- Seasonal or peak-period work
- A role funded by a grant with a fixed end
Don’t use one for a role that is ongoing. Rolling someone from contract to contract to avoid permanent employment is what the 2023 reforms target. If the work will continue, use a full-time or part-time contract.
The rules since 6 December 2023
You can’t enter a fixed term contract if:
- The total term, including any extension or renewal, is longer than two years
- The contract can be extended or renewed more than once
- It’s a new contract for the same or substantially similar work and the combined contracts break those limits
The same limits apply to maximum term contracts, also called outer limit contracts.
Our director at Cowell Clarke, Joe Murphy, breaks down the limits, the exemptions and the penalties in 5 essential changes to fixed-term employment contracts.
You must give the employee the Fixed Term Contract Information Statement when the contract is made. It is separate from the Fair Work Information Statement, which they also need.
Breaching the limits exposes you to civil penalties, and the end date may not be enforceable. That can leave you with an ongoing employee you didn’t plan for.
Exceptions to the limits
The limits don’t apply where the employee is:
- Engaged for a distinct task that needs specialised skills
- Under a training arrangement
- Doing essential work during a peak demand period
- Covering an emergency or another employee’s temporary absence
- Earning above the high income threshold in the first year of the contract
- In a role funded by government for more than two years with no reasonable prospect of renewal
- In a governance position with a time limit under the organisation’s rules
- Covered by a modern award that allows it
Each exception is narrow. If you plan to rely on one, get advice first.
Never miss an end date
The risk with fixed term contracts is not signing them. It is forgetting them. An end date that passes unnoticed can leave you with an employee who has kept working, an expectation of ongoing employment and no clear basis for ending it.
HR Command tracks the end date on the contract and reminds you before it arrives, so you have time to decide and to act.
Let it end
Confirm the finish date and issue the end of fixed term contract letter.
Extend it once
Check the extension still fits inside the two year cap and the single renewal limit.
Make it ongoing
Move the employee to a full-time or part-time contract before the term runs out.
Fixed term, maximum term or casual?
| Fixed term | Maximum term | Casual | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ends | On a set date or when a task is done | On a set date, or earlier with notice | No set end, work offered as needed |
| Two-year limit | Yes | Yes | No |
| Paid leave | Yes, NES entitlements | Yes, NES entitlements | No, casual loading instead |
| Information statements | FWIS and FTCIS | FWIS and FTCIS | FWIS and CEIS |
Scroll the table sideways to compare
What's in the contract
- Start date, end date and the reason for the fixed term
- Position, duties and reporting line
- Hours of work and location
- Remuneration, superannuation and award coverage
- Leave during the term
- Early termination and notice
- What happens at the end date
- Confidentiality and intellectual property
- Post-employment restraints
- Policies and procedures
- Privacy
Who can use it
Built for employers in the national workplace relations system. Get advice before using it if you are a non-constitutional corporation employer in Western Australia, a state public sector employer outside Victoria, or a local government employer outside Tasmania and Victoria. Federal rules can be more or less generous than the state rules that apply to you.
Restraints and the non-compete reform
The contract includes restraint of trade clauses. Draft legislation to ban non-compete clauses for employees earning under the high income threshold is progressing. Until it becomes law, restraints stay valid if they are reasonable and fit the role. HR Command updates the template when the law changes.
Fixed term employment contract FAQs
Straight answers to the questions employers ask most. Need a specific answer for your situation?
Talk to an advisorHow long can a fixed term contract be in Australia?
Generally no longer than two years in total, including any extension or renewal. Limited exceptions apply.
Can a fixed term contract be renewed?
Once at most, and only if the total period stays within two years. A new contract for substantially similar work counts toward the limit.
Do I need to give notice when a fixed term contract ends?
Usually not. The contract ends on the agreed date. Ending it early is different and depends on what the contract says.
What is the Fixed Term Contract Information Statement?
A Fair Work Ombudsman document you must give every fixed term employee when the contract is made. It explains the limits and the employee's rights. HR Command attaches it to the contract automatically.
Is a maximum term contract the same as a fixed term contract?
Not quite. A maximum term contract sets an outer end date but can be ended earlier with notice. The same two-year limits apply to both.
How do I keep track of when a fixed term contract ends?
HR Command tracks the end date on the contract and reminds you before it arrives, so you can let the contract end, extend it within the limits, or move the employee to an ongoing contract.
Does a fixed term employee get annual leave?
Yes. Fixed term employees accrue National Employment Standards entitlements like other full-time or part-time employees. Untaken annual leave is paid out when the contract ends.
Other employment contracts
Compare all contracts- Full-time employment contractOngoing employees averaging 38 hours a week.
- Part-time employment contractOngoing employees on fewer than 38 hours a week.
- Casual employment contractIrregular work with no firm commitment to ongoing hours.
- Independent contractor agreementIndividuals running their own business under an ABN.
Build a fixed term contract in minutes
See how the builder checks term and renewal limits and reminds you before the end date, or talk to an advisor about your workforce, or your clients'.
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