Canada
Ontario's Employment Standards Act scales written notice (or pay in lieu) at roughly a week per year of service, capping at 8 weeks. Courts can award longer common-law reasonable notice based on the Bardal factors, which is why Canadian termination costs are hard to predict from statute alone; the ESA figure is the floor, not the estimate. Federally regulated employers follow a separate graduated scale, 2 weeks until 3 years' service and then a week per year to the same 8-week cap.
- Ontario notice1 to 8 weeks by tenure
- Qualifying period3 months
- Federal scale2 weeks, then 1 week per year from 3 years (cap 8)
- Common lawCan exceed the ESA floor; no formula
| Length of service | Entitlement |
|---|
| Under 3 months | None |
| 3 months to under 1 year | 1 week |
| 1 to under 3 years | 2 weeks |
| 3 to under 4 years | 3 weeks |
| 4 to under 5 years | 4 weeks |
| 5 to under 6 years | 5 weeks |
| 6 to under 7 years | 6 weeks |
| 7 to under 8 years | 7 weeks |
| 8 years or more | 8 weeks (cap) |
- We publish the statutory minimums only. Common-law reasonable notice is real and often larger, but courts reject per-year formulas, so no calculator or table can state it honestly.
- Provinces vary; Ontario is the reference jurisdiction here.
Source: Ontario ESA guide (ESA 2000; federal scale from 1 Feb 2024). Checked July 2026.
New Zealand
New Zealand law sets no minimum notice period. Whatever the employment agreement says applies, and where it says nothing, notice must be fair and reasonable for the role, judged on things like length of service and how long a replacement takes to find. Employment New Zealand's own guidance points to 2 to 4 weeks as the common range.
- Statutory minimumNone
- Common practice2 to 4 weeks (guidance, not law)
- 90-day trialsNotice must be given within the trial period
- A dismissal under a valid 90-day trial generally cannot be challenged as unjustified.
- From 21 Feb 2026, employees on new agreements earning NZ$200,000 or more cannot raise an unjustified dismissal grievance, though contractual notice still applies.
Source: Employment New Zealand (Employment Relations Act 2000). Checked July 2026.
Sources
Every figure on this page comes from the government source for its market.
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