Child employment

Find out about children and young people in employment, and apply for a child work permit

Overview

Children can work part-time from the age of 13. They can only work a set amount of hours.

Children can only work full-time once they’ve reached the minimum school leaving age of 16.

You cannot employ a young person if the job:

  • is beyond their physical or psychological capacity
  • involves harmful exposure to toxic or radioactive substances
  • involves a safety risk
  • may harm their health from extreme cold, heat, noise or vibration