Yes. In Australia a verbal contract is valid: Fair Work says an employment contract can be in writing or verbal, so a job offered and accepted on the phone can already bind both sides. New Zealand is the opposite. Every employee there must have a written employment agreement, and an employer who skips it can face a $1,000 infringement fee or penalties of up to $20,000. This guide shows what each rule means for you, which papers you get either way, and how to turn a spoken offer into something you can check.
The rules below apply to anyone taking a job in either country, whatever passport you hold.
Australia: a spoken offer can be the contract
A manager rings, names a start date and an hourly rate, and you say yes. In Australia that conversation can be the contract. The Fair Work page on employment contracts says plainly that a contract can be in writing or verbal.
That cuts both ways. You cannot treat a spoken offer as "not real yet" and keep shopping around without telling anyone. And the employer cannot later claim nothing was agreed because nothing was signed.
The floor applies with or without paper
Whatever was said on the phone, a contract can't remove or give you less than your minimum entitlements under the National Employment Standards (NES), an award or an enterprise agreement. A spoken promise of "cash, no super, flat rate" does not change that floor.
Two numbers help you test a verbal pay figure. From 1 July 2026 the National Minimum Wage is $26.44 an hour, or $1004.90 for a 38-hour week. Most employees are covered by an award, and award rates may be higher than that minimum, so $26.44 is the lowest legal starting point, not the going rate.
Visa holders sit under the same floor. Fair Work says visa holders and migrant workers have the same workplace rights and protections as all other employees in Australia, including pay, leave and final pay.
Why a handshake deal is risky in practice
Valid is not the same as easy to prove. With a verbal deal, the hours, the rate, the job title and the start date live in two people's memories. When those memories drift apart, it is your word against your manager's.
The details that cause the most trouble later are the ones nobody says out loud on a quick call:
- whether you are casual, part-time, full-time or on a fixed term
- which award covers the role and what classification you are on
- how long any probation lasts and what notice either side must give
- where you will actually work and who you report to
If you start without any of this written down, the first time you find out what you agreed may be your first pay slip. Our guide to probation periods in Australia shows why the probation and notice lines matter most in the first months.
The papers you still get in Australia
Even with no written contract, an Australian employer owes you some paperwork. Fair Work says every new employee must get the Fair Work Information Statement before, or as soon as possible after, they start. Casuals also get the Casual Employment Information Statement, and anyone on a new fixed term contract gets the Fixed Term Contract Information Statement.
Pay slips are the second paper trail. They must reach you within 1 working day of pay day, even if you are on leave, and show your pay, any deductions and the super paid and the fund it went to. Since 1 July 2026, under Payday Super, super is paid for each payday rather than each quarter, and the rate is still 12%.
Together these documents are a partial record of a verbal deal. They are no substitute for written terms, but they let you check the money. Our payslip checklist for Australia walks through each line.
New Zealand: no written agreement, no excuse
Across the Tasman a verbal deal is not enough. Employment New Zealand says every employee must have a written employment agreement. It is the employer's job to provide it, not yours to ask for it.
The penalties are set out on Employment New Zealand's page on creating an employment agreement: an infringement fee of $1,000, and the Employment Relations Authority can order up to $10,000 for an individual employer or up to $20,000 for a company or other corporate body.
You can take it away and ask for changes
A written agreement is not a form you sign at the counter. Employment New Zealand says you can take an offered agreement away to read, ask advice from someone you trust and request changes, and that both sides must bargain in good faith.
Sign before day one if there is a trial clause
Timing matters. A New Zealand trial period has to be in the agreement, and if you do not sign it before you start work, the trial period is not valid. Our 90 day trial period guide for NZ explains the other conditions.
Check the pay line too. From 1 April 2026 the adult minimum wage in New Zealand is $23.95 an hour before tax. Payslips are not required by law there, but you can ask your employer for a copy of your hours and pay records.
Australia and New Zealand side by side
| Question | Australia | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Can the contract be verbal? | Yes, in writing or verbal | No, a written agreement is required |
| Penalty for no written terms | None for being verbal | $1,000 infringement fee; up to $10,000 (individual) or $20,000 (company) |
| Paper you must be given | Fair Work Information Statement (plus casual or fixed term statements) | The written agreement itself |
| Pay records | Pay slip within 1 working day of pay day | No payslip law; you can ask for hours and pay records |
| Minimum pay floor | $26.44 an hour from 1 July 2026, or the award rate if higher | $23.95 an hour from 1 April 2026 |
Sponsored jobs: why written terms matter even more
If a visa depends on the job, the terms need to be on paper whichever country you choose. In Australia a subclass 482 holder may work only in the occupation they were nominated for and only for the nominating business, so the role and employer named in your offer carry real weight.
It is also illegal to pay an employer to sponsor you, including through salary deductions. A verbal "we'll take it out of your wages" is a warning sign, not a deal.
In New Zealand, Immigration New Zealand says an AEWV job such as a duty manager role in Christchurch must come with an employment agreement that has no unlawful deductions, no trial period and no unacceptable bonding clauses. You can only check those points if the agreement is written down.
Moving from the Philippines? PinoyAbroad's contract check for Filipino workers in New Zealand covers the extra steps on that side.
How to turn a verbal offer into writing
- Reply the same day by email. Thank the employer and list what you understood: job title, start date, hours, hourly rate or salary, casual or permanent, and work location. Ask them to confirm or correct it.
- Ask for the written contract or agreement. In Australia it is a fair request; in New Zealand it is the employer's legal duty.
- Check the pay against the floor. Compare the rate with the minimum wage and the award for your role in Australia, or with the adult minimum wage in New Zealand.
- Read it away from the office. Take time, ask someone you trust, and request changes where a term does not match what was said.
- Sign before you start. In New Zealand a trial clause signed after day one is not valid; in both countries signing first means you know the terms before you work them.
- Keep copies. Save the email, the signed document, the Fair Work Information Statement and every pay slip in one folder.
A signed agreement plus pay slips also becomes proof of your work history later. Optional: a verified Talent Tabloid profile lets employers check your experience and can help your application stand out.
On JobFinder itself, the salary, location and benefits in a listing are subject to the final employment contract you make directly with the employer. The listing is where you start, not the contract. Our job offer checklist for Australia and New Zealand covers what else to check before you sign.
Common mistakes with verbal job offers
- Thinking "verbal" means "not binding" in Australia. A spoken offer you accept can be a real contract there.
- Thinking a verbal deal is fine in New Zealand. Every employee there needs a written agreement; no paper is the employer's breach, not a normal shortcut.
- Accepting a rate below the floor because it was "agreed". No contract, spoken or written, can go below the NES, the award or the minimum wage.
- Starting work before signing. In New Zealand this can make a trial clause invalid, and anywhere it means working on terms you have not read.
- Agreeing to pay for sponsorship. Paying an employer to sponsor you, even through wage deductions, is illegal in Australia.
- Keeping nothing. Without the offer email, the statement and pay slips, you have little to show if a dispute starts.
If something goes wrong in Australia, you can call the Fair Work Ombudsman on 13 13 94. For help in another language, call the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450 and ask them to call Fair Work. Our guide to unpaid trial shifts covers another early-days question people often get wrong.
Frequently asked questions
Is a verbal contract valid in Australia?
Yes. Fair Work says an employment contract can be in writing or verbal. Either way, it cannot give you less than the National Employment Standards, your award or an enterprise agreement.
Do I need a written employment agreement in New Zealand?
Yes. Employment New Zealand says every employee must have a written employment agreement. An employer who does not provide one can face a $1,000 infringement fee or penalties of up to $20,000 for a company.
Can I back out of a verbal job offer I accepted in Australia?
A verbal offer you accepted can be a binding contract, so treat it like one. Read the notice terms you agreed or check Fair Work's guidance before you walk away, and tell the employer in writing.
What papers must an Australian employer give me if there is no written contract?
You must get the Fair Work Information Statement before or soon after you start, plus the casual or fixed term statement if that applies. Pay slips must arrive within 1 working day of each pay day.
Can my AEWV employment agreement include a trial period?
No. Immigration New Zealand says an AEWV employment agreement cannot include a trial period, unlawful deductions or unacceptable bonding clauses. Check the written agreement for these before you sign it.
Key takeaways
- In Australia a verbal contract is valid, but it can never go below the NES, the award or the minimum wage.
- In New Zealand every employee must have a written agreement, with penalties of up to $20,000 for employers who skip it.
- Turn any spoken offer into an email summary the same day, then ask for the written terms.
- Sign before your first day, especially in New Zealand where a late signature voids a trial clause.
- Keep the offer, the signed terms, the Fair Work Information Statement and every pay slip.
