The Family and 

Medical Leave Act

The Employer’s Guide to

WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
The Department of Labor has provided this guide as a public service. It is intended as general information 

only and does not carry the force of legal opinion. The Department reserves the right to update the material 

and information contained herein to ensure it is accessible, easy to understand and educational, and 

conforms with regulatory or statutory changes in the law. The Federal Register and the Code of Federal 

Regulations remain the official sources for regulatory information published by the Department of Labor. 

MESSAGE FROM WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION 

Since its enactment in 1993, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) has served as the cornerstone 

of the Department of Labor’s efforts to promote work-life balance and we have worked in support of the 

principle that no worker should have to choose between the job they need and the family they love. With 

the FMLA, our country made it a priority to give workers the ability to balance the demands of work and 

family. It made the healthy development of babies, healthy families, and healthy workplaces a priority. It 

was a remarkable accomplishment at the time and, since its enactment, the FMLA has been used more 

than 100 million times to help workers balance the demands of the workplace with the needs of their 

families and their own health. 
The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 3

INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 1 – COVERED EMPLOYERS UNDER THE FMLA AND THEIR 

GENERAL NOTICE REQUIREMENTS

Covered Employers

Private Sector Employer

Public Agency

Schools

Other Ways Employers May Be Covered under the FMLA

An Employer’s Obligation to Provide Employees with General Notice of FMLA Rights

Posting Requirement

Providing General Notice to Employees

CHAPTER 2 – WHEN AN EMPLOYEE NEEDS FMLA LEAVE

An Employee’s Obligation to Provide Notice of the Need for Leave

Content of an Employee’s Notice

Timing of an Employee’s Notice – Leave that Is Foreseeable

Timing of an Employee’s Notice – Leave that Is Unforeseeable

Employee Eligibility

12 Months of Employment

1,250 Hours of Service

50 Employees within 75 miles of the Employee’s Worksite

Public Agency and School Employees

Special Eligibility Rule for Airline Flight Crew Employees

An Employer’s Obligation to Provide Employees with an Eligibility Notice

An Employer’s Obligation to Provide Employees with a Rights and Responsibilities Notice

Contents of the Rights and Responsibilities Notice

CHAPTER 3 – QUALIFYING REASONS FOR LEAVE

Circumstances that Qualify for FMLA Leave

Immediate Family Members

In Loco Parentis

Documenting the Family Relationship

Serious Health Condition

CHAPTER 4 – THE CERTIFICATION PROCESS

Circumstances When an Employer May Require a Certification

Health Care Providers

Medical Certification Notice and Timing

Contents of a Complete and Sufficient Medical Certification

Appropriate Medical Facts

CONTENTS

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4 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Additional Information for Intermittent or Reduced Schedule Leave

Incomplete or Insufficient Medical Certification

Medical Certification from Abroad

Authentication and Clarification

Second and Third Opinions

Recertification

Annual Medical Certification

CHAPTER 5 – MILITARY FAMILY LEAVE

Types of Military Family Leave 

Qualifying Exigency Leave

Covered Active Duty

Family Members for Whom an Employee May Take Qualifying Exigency Leave

Qualifying Exigency Categories

Certification for Qualifying Exigency Leave

Military Caregiver Leave 

Covered Servicemember 

Family Members for Whom an Employee May Take Military Caregiver Leave

A Serious Injury or Illness

A “Single 12-Month Period”

Certification for Military Caregiver Leave

CHAPTER 6 – DURING AN EMPLOYEE’S FMLA LEAVE

Designation of FMLA Leave and an Employer’s Obligation to 

Provide Employees with a Designation Notice 

Contents of the Designation Notice 

Fitness-for-Duty Certification 

Retroactive Designation of FMLA Leave 

Rules for Scheduling and Taking FMLA Leave

A 12-Month Leave Year

Intermittent Leave or Reduced Schedule Leave

Transfer to an Alternative Position

Spouses Working for the Same Employer

Special Rules for School Instructional Employees

Calculating FMLA Leave

Increments of FMLA Leave for Intermittent or Reduced Schedule Leave

Special Rules for Airline Flight Crew Employees

Substitution of Paid Leave

FMLA and Other Paid Leaves

Effect of Unpaid Leave for Salaried Employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act

Maintenance of Benefits

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CONTENTS
The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 5

Group Health Plan

Employer Responsibilities

Multi-Employer Health Plans

Employee Responsibilities

Employee Failure to Pay Health Plan Premium Payment

When an Employee Fails to Return to Work

Restoration 

Limitations on an Employee’s Right to Return to Work 

Recordkeeping Requirements and Other Laws

Recordkeeping Requirements 

Content of Records

Confidentiality of Records

Airline Flight Crew Employees

Interaction with Other Federal and State Laws, and an Employer’s Policies

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA)

Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA)

Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA)

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule

Workers’ Compensation

Interaction with State Family and Medical Leave Laws

Interaction with an Employer’s Policies

CHAPTER 7 – FMLA PROHIBITIONS

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CONTENTS
6 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a federal law that provides eligible employees of covered 

employers with unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons. Eligible employees 

may take up to 12 workweeks of leave in a 12-month period for one or more of the following reasons: 

• The birth of a son or daughter or placement of a son or daughter with the employee for adoption or 

foster care, and to bond with the newborn or newly-placed child;

• To care for a spouse, son, daughter, or parent who has a serious health condition, including 

incapacity due to pregnancy and for prenatal medical care;

• For a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the essential functions of 

his or her job, including incapacity due to pregnancy and for prenatal medical care; or

• For any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that a spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a 

military member on covered active duty or call to covered active duty status.

An eligible employee may also take up to 26 workweeks of leave during a single 12-month period to 

care for a covered servicemember with a serious injury or illness when the employee is the spouse, son, 

daughter, parent, or next of kin of the servicemember. An eligible employee is limited to a combined total 

of 26 workweeks of leave for any FMLA-qualifying reasons during the single 12-month period.

In addition to providing eligible employees an entitlement to leave, the FMLA requires that employers 

maintain employees’ health benefits during leave and restore employees to their same or an equivalent job 

after leave. The law sets requirements for notice, by both the employee and the employer, and provides 

employers with the right to require certification of the need for FMLA leave in certain circumstances. The 

law protects employees from interference and retaliation for exercising or attempting to exercise their 

FMLA rights. The law also includes certain employer recordkeeping requirements.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division is responsible for administering and enforcing 

the FMLA for most employees. In most instances, an employee also has the right to file a private law suit 

under the FMLA in any federal or state court of competent jurisdiction.

The Wage and Hour Division is committed to strengthening compliance with the FMLA by providing 

assistance to employers and helping increase their knowledge of the law. This Employer’s Guide to the 

Family and Medical Leave Act is designed to provide essential information about the FMLA, including 

information about employers’ obligations under the law and the options available to employers in 

administering leave under the FMLA. The Guide is organized to correspond to the order of events from an 

employee’s leave request to restoration of the employee to the same or equivalent job at the end of the 

employee’s FMLA leave. It also includes a topical index for ease of use.

The Department of Labor is providing this Guide in an effort to increase public awareness of the FMLA 

and of the various Departmental resources and services available to the public. This publication is a 

guidance document that is subject to change in the future. The United States Code, Federal Register, and 

the Code of Federal Regulations remain the official sources for legislative and regulatory information. For 

more information about the FMLA, please visit the Department’s website at dol.gov/whd/fmla, call us at 

1-866-4US-WAGE (1-866-487-9243), or visit the nearest Wage and Hour Division Office.

INTRODUCTION
The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 7

Visit the Department’s website for resources containing information about the FMLA including:

• Key News

• General Guidance

• The Employee’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

• The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 

• Fact Sheets

• E-Tools

• FMLA PowerPoint

• Posters

• Forms

• Interpretive Guidance

• Law

• Regulations

INTRODUCTION
THE EMPLOYER’S ROAD MAP TO THE FMLA

Employee asks for FMLA

or the employer learns the 

employee’s leave may be for 

an FMLA qualifying reason

Display the FMLA poster & 

provide General Notice

Provide Eligibility and

Rights & Responsibilities

Notices to the employee

Determine if the employee 

is eligible

Restore the employee

to the same or an equivalent 

position at the end of 

the leave

Maintain records properly

Covered Employer

1 2

3

4

Let the employee know 

that a Certification will 

be required

6

5

Grant or deny the leave 

request & provide 

Designation Notice to 

the employee

8

Maintain Health Benefits

during the leave

9 10 11

Certification Process

825

Determine if the leave 

request is for an 

FMLA-qualifying reason

7

Optional

None Required
The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 9

COVERED EMPLOYERS UNDER THE FMLA AND 

THEIR GENERAL NOTICE REQUIREMENTS

Covered Employers

The FMLA applies only to “covered” employers. A covered employer may be a private-sector employer, a public 

agency, or a school. Covered employers must provide FMLA benefits and protections to eligible employees 

and comply with other responsibilities required under the FMLA and its regulations at 29 CFR Part 825. 

Private Sector Employer

A private-sector employer is covered by the FMLA if it employs 50 or more employees* in 20 or more workweeks 

in the current or previous calendar year. An employee is considered to be employed each working day of the 

calendar week if the employee works any part of the week. The workweeks do not have to be consecutive.

Employees who must be counted include:

• Any employee who works in the United States, or any territory or possession of the United States, 

• Any employee whose name appears on payroll records, whether or not any compensation is received for 

the workweek, 

• Any employee on paid or unpaid leave (including FMLA leave, leaves of absences, disciplinary suspension, 

etc.), as long as there is a reasonable expectation the employee will return to active employment, 

• Employees of foreign firms operating in the United States, and 

• Part-time, temporary, seasonal, and full-time employees.

Others who do NOT have to be counted include:

• Employees with whom the employment relationship has ended, such as employees who have been laid off, 

• Unpaid volunteers who do not appear on the payroll and do not meet the definition of an employee,

• Employees of United States firms stationed at worksites outside the United States, its territories, or 

possessions, and

• Employees of foreign firms working outside the United States.

DID YOU KNOW?

Once an employer meets the requirement for FMLA coverage, the employer is a covered employer and 

will remain covered as long as it employs 50 or more employees in 20 or more workweeks in either the 

current calendar year or in the previous calendar year. 

For example, last year during its busy season from June 1st to October 31st, a restaurant 

had more than 50 employees on payroll. In the current year, the same restaurant employs 

fewer than 50 employees when an employee requests FMLA leave. Because the restaurant 

employed more than 50 employees for more than 20 workweeks in the previous year, the 

restaurant is considered to be covered at the time of the request and must offer the FMLA 

benefits and protections to its employee, if eligible.

Review sections 825.104 and 825.105 of the FMLA regulations for more information about coverage.

* The term “employee” means any individual employed by an employer. An employee is employed when he or she is “suffered or permitted” 

to work, as defined under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

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10 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Public Agency

Public agencies are covered employers under the FMLA, regardless of the number of employees they employ.

Public agencies include:

• The federal government, 

• The government of a state or political subdivision of a state, and

• An agency of the United States, a state, or a political subdivision of a state, including counties, cities and 

towns, or any interstate governmental agency. 

• The term “state” includes any state within the United States, the District of Columbia, and any territory or 

possession of the United States.

Review section 825.108 of the FMLA regulations for more information about public agency 

coverage.

Federal Government

The Office of Personnel Management administers the FMLA for most federal employees. The Wage and Hour 

Division administers the FMLA for a limited number of federal employees, including employees of the: 

• United States Postal Service, 

• Postal Regulatory Commission,

• Federal Aviation Administration, and

• The judicial branch of the United States (in certain circumstances).

Review section 825.109 of the FMLA regulations for more information about coverage of a federal 

agency.

Schools

Local educational agencies are covered under the FMLA, regardless of the number of employees they employ. 

Such educational agencies include:

• Public school boards, 

• Public elementary and secondary schools, and

• Private elementary and secondary schools.

Review section 825.600 of the FMLA regulations for more information about coverage of schools.

COVERED EMPLOYERS UNDER THE FMLA AND 

THEIR GENERAL NOTICE REQUIREMENTS

CHAPTER 1
The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 11

Other Ways Employers May Be Covered under the FMLA

Integrated Employers 

A corporation is a single employer under the FMLA rather than its separate establishments or divisions; all 

employees of the corporation, at all locations, are counted for coverage purposes. 

In addition, separate businesses may be parts of a single employer for FMLA purposes if they are an 

integrated employer. Factors to be considered in determining if separate businesses are an integrated 

employer include: 

• Common management, 

• Interrelation between operations,

• Centralized control of labor relations, and

• Degree of common ownership or financial control. 

For purposes of determining employer coverage under the FMLA, the employees of all entities making up the 

integrated employer must be counted.

Review section 825.104(c) of the FMLA regulations for more information about coverage for 

integrated employers.

Joint Employers

Where two or more businesses exercise some control over the work or working conditions of an employee, 

such as with a temporary employment agency, the businesses may be joint employers under the FMLA. For 

purposes of determining employer coverage under the FMLA, employees jointly employed by two employers 

must be counted by both employers, even if the employees are maintained on only one of the employer’s 

payrolls.

DID YOU KNOW?

Two (or more) businesses may simultaneously employ an employee, making them joint employers 

of the employee. For example, joint employment ordinarily will exist when a temporary employment 

agency supplies employees to a second employer. In that case, the employee must be counted by 

both employers when determining FMLA coverage.

Review section 825.106 of the FMLA regulations for more information about coverage for joint 

employers.

COVERED EMPLOYERS UNDER THE FMLA AND 

THEIR GENERAL NOTICE REQUIREMENTS

CHAPTER 1
12 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Successor Employers

An employer may be a covered employer if it takes over the business operations (i.e., becomes a 

“successor in interest”) of a covered employer. Some of the factors to be considered in determining if an 

employer is a successor include:

• Continuing the same business operations and providing similar products or services,

• Providing similar jobs and working conditions,

• Continuing to use the same work force and supervisor structure, and

• Using the same location and similar equipment and production methods.

Review section 825.107 of the FMLA regulations for more information about coverage of a 

successor in interest employer.

An Employer’s Obligation to Provide Employees 

with General Notice of FMLA Rights

Every employer covered by the FMLA must provide a general notice 

to their employees regarding the FMLA. To satisfy the general notice 

requirement, employers must (1) display or post a general notice 

(referred to as a poster), and (2) if the employer has any FMLA 

eligible employees, provide a written general notice to employees.

Posting Requirement

Every employer covered by the FMLA must display or post an 

informative general notice about the FMLA.

• The poster must be displayed in plain view where all 

employees and applicants can readily see it, and must have 

large enough text so it can be easily read.

• The information displayed on the poster must explain the 

FMLA provisions and provide information on how to file a

complaint with the Wage and Hour Division.

• This poster must be displayed even if no employees are 

currently eligible for FMLA leave. 

• If a significant portion of an employer’s employees do not read and write English, the employer must 

provide the General Notice in a language in which they can read and write. Spanish language FMLA 

posters are available from the nearest Wage and Hour Division office or online at dol.gov/whd/fmla.

When providing FMLA notices to sensory-impaired individuals, employers must also comply with all 

applicable requirements under federal and state law.

COVERED EMPLOYERS UNDER THE FMLA AND 

THEIR GENERAL NOTICE REQUIREMENTS

CHAPTER 1
The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 13

Employers who willfully violate this posting requirement may be assessed a civil money penalty for each 

separate offense. Employers may use the Department’s FMLA Poster, which is free and publicly available 

on the Department’s website, dol.gov/whd/fmla, to satisfy this requirement.

Employers may make the poster available electronically, create their own poster, or use another format, as 

long as the information provided includes, at a minimum, all the information contained in the Department’s 

FMLA Poster, is viewable by applicants for employment and current employees, and meets all other 

posting requirements.

Providing General Notice to Employees

In addition to displaying a poster, if a covered employer has any FMLA eligible employees, it must also 

provide each employee with a general notice about the FMLA in the employer’s employee handbook 

or other written materials about leave and benefits. If no handbook or written leave materials exist, the 

employer must distribute this general notice to each new employee upon hire. 

This general notice requirement can be met by either duplicating the general notice language found on 

the Department’s FMLA Poster or by using another format as long as the information provided includes, 

at a minimum, all the information contained in the Department’s FMLA Poster. The general notice may be 

distributed electronically provided all the requirements are met.

Review section 825.300(a) of the FMLA regulations for more information about the general 

notice provisions.

COVERED EMPLOYERS UNDER THE FMLA AND 

THEIR GENERAL NOTICE REQUIREMENTS

CHAPTER 1
14 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Bobby: Can I 

take a few weeks

off to help my 

mom recover 

from surgery?

MNGR

Will (thinking): 

This could qualify 

for FMLA leave that 

I heard about in the 

managers’ training 

last month. 

MNGR

Will: Please 

put in a leave 

request.

MNGR Will: 

I will talk to 

HR about the 

next steps.

MNGR

WHEN AN EMPLOYEE NEEDS FMLA LEAVE

Effective communication is critical at all stages of the FMLA process and is a key component of 

successfully administering the FMLA. Keeping open lines of communication is especially important 

because employees do not have to specifically request FMLA leave in order to be entitled to it initially. 

An Employee’s Obligation to Provide Notice of the 

Need for Leave

Employees must provide notice of their need for FMLA leave. In general, an employer may require that 

employees comply with the employer’s usual and customary policies for requesting leave, unless unusual 

circumstances prevent the employee from doing so. The employer can take action under its internal 

rules and procedures if the employee fails to follow its usual and customary rules for requesting leave. 

Employers may not, however, discriminate against employees taking FMLA leave. An employer may also 

choose to waive the employee’s notice requirement or its own internal rules about leave requests.

Content of an Employee’s Notice

An employee’s notice of a need for FMLA leave may be oral or written. The first time the employee 

requests leave for a qualifying reason, he or she is not required to specifically mention the FMLA. 

However, the employee is required to provide enough information for the employer to know that the leave 

may be covered by the FMLA. For foreseeable leave, the employee must also indicate when and how 

much leave is needed. 

Once approved for a particular FMLA leave reason, if additional leave is needed for that same reason, 

the employee may be required to reference that reason or the FMLA. In all cases, the employer may ask 

additional questions to determine if the leave is FMLA-qualifying.

Timing of an Employee’s Notice - Leave that Is Foreseeable

Generally, an employee must give at least 30 days advance notice of the need to take FMLA leave when 

he or she knows about the need for the leave in advance and it is possible and practical to do so. For 

example, if an employee is scheduled for surgery in two months, the need for leave is foreseeable and the 

employee must provide at least 30 days advance notice. If an employee does not provide at least 30 days 

advance notice, and it was possible and practical to do so, the employer may delay the FMLA leave until 

30 days after the date that the employee provides the notice.

CHAPTER 

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 15

If 30 days advance notice is not possible because the foreseeable situation has changed or the employee 

does not know exactly when leave will be required, the employee must provide notice of the need for leave 

as soon as possible and practical. 

In the case of FMLA leave for a qualifying exigency of a military family member, the employee must give 

notice of the need for such leave as soon as possible and practical, regardless of how far in advance the 

leave is needed. 

For planned medical treatment, the employee must consult with his or her employer and try to schedule 

the treatment at a time that minimizes the disruption to company operations. The employee should consult 

with the employer prior to scheduling the treatment in order to arrange a schedule that best suits the 

needs of both the employee and employer. Of course, any schedule of treatment is subject to the approval 

of the treating health care provider. 

Timing of an Employee’s Notice - Leave that Is Unforeseeable 

When the need for leave is unexpected, the employee must provide notice as soon as possible and 

practical. It should usually be reasonable for the employee to provide notice of leave that is unforeseeable 

within the time required by the employer’s usual and customary notice requirements. Whether the 

employee’s notice of unforeseeable leave is timely will depend upon the facts of the particular case. 

For example, if the employee’s child has a severe asthma attack and the employee takes 

the child to the emergency room, the employee is not required to leave the child to report 

the absence while the child is receiving emergency treatment. However, if the child’s 

asthma attack required only the use of an inhaler at home followed by a period of rest, 

the employee would be expected to call the employer promptly after ensuring the child 

has used the inhaler. 

DID YOU KNOW?

As soon as an employer has enough information that indicates an employee’s need for leave may 

be for an FMLA-qualifying reason, the employer should begin the FMLA leave process.

An employer’s management team and leave administrators play a vital role in ensuring FMLA 

compliance. Managers, assistant managers, supervisors and leave administrators must be able 

to recognize FMLA-qualifying reasons for leave and properly initiate the required notifications 

and eligibility checks. Providing FMLA training regularly helps to make sure those responsible for 

implementing the FMLA are up-to-date on the requirements of the law and the employer’s policy, 

procedures and practices. Keeping everyone informed, for example by using the FMLA power 

point found on the Wage and Hour Division’s FMLA webpage, can help an employer stay in 

compliance with the law.

Review sections 825.302 and 825.303 of the FMLA regulations for more information about 

employee notice requirements.

WHEN AN EMPLOYEE NEEDS FMLA LEAVE

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16 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Brenda (on phone):

If he is eligible, I will 

make sure that he gets 

the required notices. 

Let me know if he tells 

you anything else.

FMLA Leave Request

Will (on phone): 

I told him to put in 

a leave request. Is 

there anything else 

I should do?

Brenda: I’ll check 

his records to 

see if he is eligible 

for FMLA. Ask 

him to come by 

HR today. 

HR

Will (on phone):

Brenda, I have a 

worker who wants to 

take leave to care for 

his mother. I think he 

may be eligible for 

FMLA leave.

Employee Eligibility

The first step in determining an employee’s entitlement to the benefits and protections of the FMLA 

is to establish if he or she is eligible for FMLA leave. The eligibility requirements are the same for all 

employees, regardless of the reason for the leave request. There are four criteria. 

An eligible employee is one who: 

1. Works for a covered employer,

2. Has worked for the employer for at least 12 months as of the date the FMLA leave is to start, 

3. Has at least 1,250 hours of service for the employer during the 12-month period immediately before 

the date the FMLA leave is to start (a different hours of service requirement applies to airline flight 

crew employees), and 

4. Works at a location where the employer employs at least 50 employees within 75 miles of that 

worksite as of the date when the employee gives notice of the need for leave.

12 Months of Employment

The 12 months of employment do not have to be consecutive:

• Part-time, temporary, or seasonal work generally counts towards the 12 months of employment; 

• If an employee is maintained on the payroll for any part of a week, that week counts as a week of 

employment;

• Any combination of 52 weeks equals 12 months, and

• If the employee has a break in employment that lasted seven years or more, the employer is not 

required to count the time worked prior to the break, unless: 

- The break in employment is due to service covered by the Uniformed Services Employment 

and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), or 

- There is a written agreement, including a collective bargaining agreement, outlining the 

employer’s intention to rehire the employee after the break in employment;

- An employer may voluntarily consider periods of employment prior to a break of more than 

seven years, but it must do so uniformly for all employees with similar breaks in employment. 

WHEN AN EMPLOYEE NEEDS FMLA LEAVE

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 17

1,250 Hours of Service

The hours of service requirement will be met if an employee has worked a total of 1,250 hours of service 

in the 12 months immediately preceding the start of the FMLA leave. This averages to a little more than 24 

hours of work a week in the 12-month period.

• Generally, the principles for compensable hours of work under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) 

are used in determining the hours of service that an employee has worked. 

• Only the time actually worked, including overtime hours worked, is counted. Time not actually 

worked, including vacation, personal leave, sick leave, holidays, and any other form of paid time 

off (PTO) is not counted towards the 1,250 hours of service. Unpaid leave of any kind or periods of 

layoff also are not counted. 

• Time worked as a part-time, temporary, or seasonal employee counts toward the requirement.

• An employee returning from fulfilling a USERRA-covered military service obligation is credited with 

the hours of service that would have been performed but for the period of military service. The 

employee’s pre-service work schedule can generally be used for calculations to determine hours 

that would have been worked during the period of military service.

• If an employer does not maintain accurate time records of hours worked by an employee, 

the employer has the burden of showing that the employee has not met the hours of service 

requirement.

DID YOU KNOW?

An employer has the burden of showing that the employee has not met the hours of service 

requirement even if it is not required to maintain time records for that employee. This may be the 

case with certain employees, such as school teachers, who may work additional time outside of 

the classroom or at home. 

50 Employees within 75 Miles of the Employee’s Worksite

• The 50 or more employee count is determined based on the number of employees on payroll 

regardless of whether they are part-time, temporary, or seasonal employees. 

• The 75 miles are measured from the employee’s worksite by surface miles, using surface 

transportation over public streets, roads, highways, and waterways by the shortest route possible.

• The worksite is ordinarily the site the employee reports to, or from which the employee’s work 

is assigned. A worksite can refer to a single location, a group of buildings, such as a campus or 

industrial park, or to separate facilities in geographic proximity to one another. 

• An employee’s personal residence is not a worksite. For employees who work from home under 

“telework” or “flexi-place” arrangements, or other employees, such as salespersons who may leave 

to work from and return to their residence, the worksite is the office to which they report or from 

which they receive assignments. 

• For employees with no fixed worksite, such as construction workers, transportation workers, and 

airline flight crew employees, the site to which they report, from which their work is assigned, or the 

location to which they are assigned as their home base, is their worksite. 

WHEN AN EMPLOYEE NEEDS FMLA LEAVE

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18 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

For example, an airline pilot may work for an airline with headquarters in New York, but 

the pilot regularly reports for duty and originates or begins flights from the company’s 

facilities located in an airport in Chicago and returns to Chicago at the completion of one 

or more flights to go off duty. The pilot’s worksite is the facility in Chicago. 

If 50 employees are employed within 75 miles from the employee’s worksite, the employee meets the 

requirements for the test, regardless of where the employee is currently performing his or her duties.

DID YOU KNOW?

If the employee does not meet the eligibility requirements, an employer may not designate the 

leave as FMLA even if the leave would otherwise qualify for FMLA protection. If the employee is not 

eligible for FMLA leave, the employer may grant the employee leave under the employer’s policy. 

Once the employee becomes eligible and the leave is FMLA-qualifying, any of the remaining leave 

period taken for an FMLA-qualifying reason becomes FMLA-protected leave. 

For example, a pregnant employee has been with the company for 11 months as of 

December 1. She has more than 1,250 hours of service and works at a location that 

has more than 50 employees. The employee takes leave under the employer’s policy 

beginning on December 1. One month later, on January 1, when she has reached 12 

months of service, she becomes immediately eligible for FMLA and can now take up to 

12 workweeks of FMLA-protected leave. 

Review section 825.110 of the FMLA regulations for more information about employee eligibility.

Public Agency and School Employees

Although public agencies and elementary and secondary schools are covered employers without regard 

to the number of employees they employ, public agency and school employees must still meet FMLA 

eligibility requirements. 

This means that an eligible employee of a public agency or school is one who: 

• Will have worked for the employer for at least 12 months as of the date the FMLA leave is to start, 

• Will have at least 1,250 hours of service for the employer during the 12-month period immediately 

before the date the FMLA leave is to start, and 

• Works at a location where the employer employs at least 50 employees within 75 miles as of the 

date when the employee gives notice of the need for leave. 

Generally, a public agency is treated as a single employer for purposes of determining employee eligibility. 

For example, a state is a single employer, a county is a single employer, and a city is a single employer.

WHEN AN EMPLOYEE NEEDS FMLA LEAVE

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DID YOU KNOW?

School employees who are employed permanently or who are under contract are considered “on 

the payroll” during any portion of the year when school is not in session, and are counted when 

determining the number of employees at a worksite.

Review section 825.108(c) of the FMLA regulations for more information about the eligibility of 

public agency employees, and section 825.600(b) for more information about the eligibility of school 

employees.

Special Eligibility Rule for Airline Flight Crew Employees

A special rule applies to the hours of service requirement for airline flight crew employees, including pilots, 

co-pilots, flight attendants, and flight engineers. The special rule does not apply to other employees of the 

airlines, such as employees of reservations and baggage departments. 

Whether an airline flight crew employee meets the FMLA hours of service requirement is determined by 

assessing the number of hours the employee has worked or been paid over the previous 12 months. An 

airline flight crew employee will meet the hours of service requirement if, during the previous 12 months, he 

or she has: 

• worked or been paid for not less than 60 percent of the employee’s applicable monthly 

guarantee, and 

• worked or been paid for not less than 504 hours. 

The applicable monthly guarantee for an airline flight crew employee who is not on reserve status (line 

holder) is the minimum number of hours an employer has agreed to schedule the employee. The applicable 

monthly guarantee for an airline flight crew employee who is on reserve status is the minimum number of 

hours an employer has agreed to pay the employee. 

The hours an employee has worked during the previous 12 months is the employee’s duty hours during 

that time. The hours an airline flight crew employee has been paid during the previous 12 months is the 

number of hours for which the employee received wages during that time. The 504 hours do not include 

personal commute time or time spent on vacation, medical, or sick leave.

Review section 825.801 of the FMLA regulations for more information about the hours of service 

requirement for airline flight crew employees.

WHEN AN EMPLOYEE NEEDS FMLA LEAVE

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20 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

An Employer’s Obligation to Provide Employees with an 

Eligibility Notice

After an employer has determined an employee’s FMLA eligibility status, the employer must:

• Provide an Eligibility Notice to the employee, either orally or in writing, informing the employee 

whether he or she is eligible for FMLA leave; 

- If the employer determines that the employee is not eligible for FMLA leave, it must state at 

least one reason why the employee is not eligible. 

• Provide the Eligibility Notice to the employee within five business days of the initial request for leave 

or of learning that an employee’s leave may be for an FMLA-qualifying reason, unless there are 

extenuating circumstances; 

• Provide the Eligibility Notice the first time the employee takes leave for an FMLA-qualifying reason in 

the designated 12-month leave year, and

• If a significant portion of the employer’s workforce is not literate in English, provide the Eligibility 

Notice in a language in which employees are literate.

Employers are not required to provide a new Eligibility Notice for: 

• FMLA absences for the same qualifying reason during the same leave year, or 

• FMLA absences for a different qualifying reason where the employee’s eligibility status has not 

changed.

Employers can use the Wage and Hour Division prototype form WH-381, Notice of Eligibility and Rights

and Responsibilities, which is available on the Department’s website at dol.gov/whd/fmla, or from 

the nearest Wage and Hour Division office, or may create their own version.

DID YOU KNOW?

An employer could be exposing itself to liability by failing to make a timely eligibility determination 

or failing to provide timely notice to its employees. Failure to timely notify employees of their 

eligibility status may constitute interference with, restraint, or denial of the exercise of an 

employee's FMLA rights.

Review section 825.300(b) of the FMLA regulations for more information about the Eligibility 

Notice. 

WHEN AN EMPLOYEE NEEDS FMLA LEAVE

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 21

An Employer’s Obligation to Provide Employees with a Rights 

and Responsibilities Notice

Employers must provide a written Rights and Responsibilities Notice each time the employer provides an 

eligible employee the Eligibility Notice, within five business days of having notice of the employee’s need 

for leave. If the employee’s leave has already begun, the Rights and Responsibilities Notice should be 

mailed to the employee’s address of record. The Rights and Responsibilities Notice details the specific 

expectations and obligations of the employee relating to his or her FMLA leave.

Employers are expected to be responsive in answering questions from employees concerning their rights 

and responsibilities under the FMLA. If a significant portion of an employer’s workforce is not literate in 

English, the Rights and Responsibilities Notice must be provided in a language in which employees are 

literate.

Contents of the Rights and Responsibilities Notice

The Rights and Responsibilities Notice must be in writing and must include all of the following information, 

as appropriate:

• A statement of the period of leave that may be designated and counted against the employee’s 

FMLA leave entitlement,

• The 12-month period used to track FMLA leave usage,

• Whether the employee will be required to provide certification of the need for leave,

• The employee’s right to use paid leave, whether the employer will require the substitution of paid 

leave, any conditions related to the substitution, and the employee’s right to take unpaid FMLA leave 

if the employee does not meet the conditions for paid leave;

• The employee’s status as a “key employee” and potential restoration consequences, if applicable;

- A “key employee” is a salaried FMLA-eligible employee who is among the highest paid 10% of 

all employees, both eligible and ineligible, within 75 miles of the worksite.

• The employee’s right to job restoration and maintenance of benefits,

• Whether the employee will be required to make premium payments to maintain health benefits and 

any arrangements for doing so, the consequences of failing to make payments on a timely basis, 

and the employee’s potential liability for premium payments made by the employer if the employee 

fails to return to work; and

• The consequences of failing to meet his or her obligations. 

If information provided in the Rights and Responsibilities Notice changes, the employer must inform the 

employee of the changes, in writing, within five business days of the first time subsequent to the changes 

that the employee gives notice of need for leave. 

WHEN AN EMPLOYEE NEEDS FMLA LEAVE

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22 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

For example, if the initial leave period was paid leave and the subsequent leave period 

would be unpaid leave, notice of new arrangements for making health insurance 

premium payments may be required. 

The Rights and Responsibilities Notice may be distributed electronically provided it meets all of the 

requirements stated above. Employers can use the Wage and Hour Division prototype form WH-381, 

Notice of Eligibility and Rights and Responsibilities, which is available on the Department’s website at 

dol.gov/whd/fmla, or from the nearest Wage and Hour Division office, or may create their own version 

of the notice containing the same basic information.

DID YOU KNOW?

If the employer opts to provide the Eligibility Notice in writing, it may be combined and provided to 

the employee at the same time that the employer provides the Rights and Responsibilities Notice. 

Review section 825.300(c) of the FMLA regulations for more information about the Rights and 

Responsibilities Notice. 

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An employee who meets the FMLA eligibility requirements may take leave for certain FMLA-qualifying 

reasons. 

Circumstances that Qualify for FMLA Leave

Eligible employees may take up to 12 workweeks of FMLA leave in a 12-month period for the following 

qualifying reasons:

• The birth of a child and to bond with the newborn child within one year of birth, 

• The placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care and to bond with the newlyplaced child within one year of placement, 

• A serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the functions of his or her 

job, including incapacity due to pregnancy and for prenatal medical care,

• To care for the employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or parent who has a serious health condition, 

including incapacity due to pregnancy and for prenatal medical care;

• Any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that the employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or parent 

is a military member on covered active duty or call to covered active duty status.

In addition, eligible employees may take up to 26 workweeks of leave in a single 12-month period to care 

for a covered servicemember with a serious injury or illness if the employee is the spouse, son, daughter, 

parent, or next of kin of the servicemember (referred to as military caregiver leave). An eligible employee 

is limited to a combined total of 26 workweeks of leave for any FMLA-qualifying reasons during the single 

12-month period. 

DID YOU KNOW?

The right to take FMLA leave applies equally to male and female employees. Fathers are equally 

entitled to take up to 12 workweeks of FMLA leave for the birth or placement for adoption or foster 

care of a child and to bond with the child within 12-months from the date of birth or placement. 

Review section 825.112 of the FMLA regulations for more information about qualifying reasons 

for FMLA leave.

DID YOU KNOW?

Eligible employees may take FMLA leave before the actual placement or adoption of a child if 

an absence from work is required for the placement for adoption or foster care. For example, the 

employee may be required to attend counseling sessions, appear in court, consult with his or her 

attorney or the doctor(s) representing the birth parent, submit to a physical examination, or travel 

to another country to complete an adoption. 

Review section 825.121 of the FMLA regulations for more information about FMLA leave for 

adoption or foster care.

QUALIFYING REASONS FOR LEAVE

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24 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Immediate Family Members

Employees can take FMLA leave due to a serious health condition of the following immediate family members:

• Spouse

• Parent

• Son or Daughter

Spouse

Spouse means a husband or wife as defined or recognized in the state where the individual was married, 

including in a common law marriage or same-sex marriage. Spouse also includes a husband or wife in a 

marriage that was validly entered into outside of the United States, if the marriage could have been entered 

into in at least one state.

Parent

Parent means a biological, adoptive, step or foster father or mother, or any other individual who stood in loco 

parentis to the employee when the employee was a child. This term does not include “parents-in-law.” 

Son or daughter

Son or daughter means a biological, adopted, or foster child, a stepchild, a legal ward, or a child of a person 

standing in loco parentis, who is under 18 years of age or who is 18 years of age or older and incapable of 

self-care because of a mental or physical disability at the time that FMLA leave is to commence. The onset of a 

disability may occur at any age for purposes of the definition of an adult “son or daughter” under the FMLA.

DID YOU KNOW?

In order for a parent to take FMLA leave for a child who is 18 or over, the son or daughter must:

• Have a disability as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) 

at the time the leave is to commence, 

• Be incapable of self-care because of the disability, 

• Have a serious health condition, and

• Need care because of the serious health condition.

Review section 825.122 of the FMLA regulations for more information about the definition of family 

members for purposes of FMLA leave and Administrator’s Interpretation No. 2013-1 for 

more information about an adult son or daughter incapable of self-care because of a mental 

or physical disability.

Note: The definition of son or daughter for purposes of FMLA military family leave is different. Information 

on FMLA military family leave (qualifying exigency leave and military caregiver leave) can be found in 

chapter 5. 

QUALIFYING REASONS FOR LEAVE

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 25

In Loco Parentis

An individual stands in loco parentis to a child if he or she has day-to-day responsibilities to care for or 

financially support the child. The person standing in loco parentis is not required to have a biological or 

legal relationship with the child. Although no legal or biological relationship is necessary, grandparents 

or other relatives, such as siblings, may stand in loco parentis to a child under the FMLA where all other 

requirements are met. The in loco parentis relationship exists when an individual intends to take on 

the role of a parent. Similarly, an individual may have stood in loco parentis to an employee when the 

employee was a child even if the individual has no legal or biological relationship to the employee.

Review Administrator’s Interpretation No. 2010-3 for more information about in loco parentis.

Documenting the Family Relationship

An employer may, but is not required to, request that an employee provide reasonable documentation of 

the qualifying family relationship. An employee may satisfy this requirement by providing either a simple 

statement asserting that the requisite family relationship exists, or other documentation such as a child’s 

birth certificate or a court document. It is the employee’s choice whether to provide a simple statement 

or other documentation. Employers may not use a request for confirmation of a family relationship in a 

manner that interferes with an employee’s exercise or attempt to exercise his or her FMLA rights. 

Serious Health Condition

A serious health condition is an illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition that involves 

inpatient care or continuing treatment by a health care provider. The FMLA does not apply to routine 

medical examinations, such as a physical, or to common medical conditions, such as an upset stomach, 

unless complications develop. 

For all conditions “incapacity” means inability to work, including being unable to perform any one of the 

essential functions of the employee’s position, or inability to attend school, or perform other regular daily 

activities due to the serious health condition, treatment of the serious health condition, or recovery from 

the serious health condition. The term “treatment” includes but is not limited to examinations to determine 

if a serious health condition exists and evaluations of the condition. 

The chart below describes the different types of conditions that are serious health conditions under the 

FMLA. Serious health conditions may include conditions that involve an inpatient hospital stay or ones that 

include one or more visits to a health care provider and ongoing treatment. Chronic conditions and longterm or permanent periods of incapacity may also meet the requirements. Certain conditions requiring 

multiple treatments may also be FMLA-qualifying. See the chart on the next page for more information.

QUALIFYING REASONS FOR LEAVE

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26 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Inpatient Care

• An overnight stay in a hospital, hospice, or residential medical care facility.

• Includes any period of incapacity or any subsequent treatment in connection with the overnight stay.

Continuing Treatment by a Health Care Provider 

(any one or more of the following)

Incapacity Plus Treatment

A period of incapacity of more than three consecutive, full calendar days, and any subsequent treatment or period 

of incapacity relating to the same condition, that also involves:

- Two or more in-person visits to a health care provider for treatment within 30 days of the first day of incapacity 

unless extenuating circumstances exist. The first visit must be within seven days of the first day of incapacity; or,

- At least one in-person visit to a health care provider for treatment within seven days of the first day of incapacity, 

which results in a regimen of continuing treatment under the supervision of the health care provider. For example, 

the health provider might prescribe a course of prescription medication or therapy requiring special equipment.

Pregnancy

Any period of incapacity due to pregnancy or for prenatal care.

Chronic Conditions

Any period of incapacity due to or treatment for a chronic serious health condition, such as diabetes, asthma, 

migraine headaches. A chronic serious health condition is one which requires visits to a health care provider (or 

nurse supervised by the provider) at least twice a year and recurs over an extended period of time. A chronic 

condition may cause episodic rather than a continuing period of incapacity.

Permanent or Long-term Conditions

A period of incapacity which is permanent or long-term due to a condition for which treatment may not be 

effective, but which requires the continuing supervision of a health care provider, such as Alzheimer’s disease or 

the terminal stages of cancer.

Conditions Requiring Multiple Treatments

• Restorative surgery after an accident or other injury; or, 

• A condition that would likely result in a period of incapacity of more than three consecutive, full calendar 

days if the employee or employee’s family member did not receive the treatment.

QUALIFYING REASONS FOR LEAVE

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DID YOU KNOW?

If an eligible employee requests FMLA leave for surgery which requires and/or results in an 

overnight stay in the hospital, the leave request would meet the definition of a serious health 

condition under the inpatient care criteria, even if the surgery is considered elective.

Review sections 825.113 to 825.121 of the FMLA regulations for more information about 

serious health conditions.

QUALIFYING REASONS FOR LEAVE

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28 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

In certain circumstances, an employer may require that an employee submit a certification to support 

the employee’s need for FMLA leave. The certification is a document or form that is completed by the 

employee and, as appropriate, a health care provider. 

The certification will allow the employer to: 

• Obtain information related to the FMLA leave request, including the likely periods of absences; and

• Verify that an employee, or the employee’s ill family member, has a serious health condition (or, in 

the case of military family leave, that facts exist to support the employee’s request for such leave).

The employee has the responsibility to provide the initial certification if his or her employer requests it. 

This includes the responsibility, when applicable, to find a health care provider to provide a complete and 

sufficient certification, and to pay for the cost of the initial certification. 

If the employee does not provide the certification, the employer may deny the employee’s request for 

FMLA leave.

THE CERTIFICATION PROCESS

STEP 1

The employer must 

notify the employee if a 

certification is required

STEP 2

The employee 

provides a completed 

certification within 15 

calendar days, absent 

unusual circumstances

STEP 3

The employer must 

notify the employee, in 

writing, if the leave will 

or will not be FMLAprotected

Identify, in writing, 

any deficiencies in the 

medical certification 

and ask the employee 

to provide corrected 

information within 7 

calendar days

Contact the health 

care provider to clarify 

and/or authenticate 

the certification

Require a 2nd medical 

opinion, at the 

employer’s expense, 

if there are concerns 

about the validity of 

the certification

Require a 3rd medical 

opinion, at the 

employer’s expense, 

if the 1st and 2nd 

opinions differ

the employer may:

the employer may deny fmla leave if the employee fails to provide a requested certification

Certification at a Glance

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 29

Circumstances When an Employer May Require a 

Certification

An employer may require a certification when an employee requests leave for: 

• The employee’s own serious health condition, 

- An employer may also, in certain circumstances, require a fitness-for-duty certification at the 

conclusion of the employee’s leave as a condition to returning the employee to the job (see 

chapter 6 for information about the fitness-for-duty certification). 

• The serious health condition of the employee’s parent, spouse, son or daughter, and

• Military family leave (see chapter 5 for information about certification for military family leave).

DID YOU KNOW?

Employers may not request a certification for leave to bond with a healthy newborn child or a 

child placed for adoption or foster care. However, employers may request documentation to 

confirm the family relationship (see chapter 3 for information about documenting the family 

relationship).

Health Care Providers

If an employer requires a medical certification, part of it must be completed by a health care provider, 

which is defined as:

• A doctor of medicine or osteopathy authorized to practice medicine or surgery by the state in which 

the doctor practices,

• A podiatrist, dentist, clinical psychologist, optometrist, or chiropractor (with limitations) authorized to 

practice in the state and performing within the scope of his or her practice;

• A nurse practitioner, nurse-midwife, clinical social worker, or physician assistant authorized to 

practice in the state and performing within the scope of his or her practice;

• A Christian Science practitioner listed with the First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, 

Massachusetts; or

• Any health care provider from whom the employer or the employer’s group health plan’s benefits 

manager will accept a medical certification to substantiate a claim for benefits.

Medical Certification Notice and Timing 

Employers must notify employees each time they require a medical certification. The employer’s notice 

that a certification is required must be included in the written Rights and Responsibilities Notice that the 

employer gives the employee within five business days of becoming aware of the employee’s need for 

FMLA leave. In some instances, an employer may request a medical certification at a later date if the 

employer has reason to question the appropriateness of the leave or its duration. When requesting a 

medical certification, the employer must advise the employee of the consequences of failing to provide a 

complete and sufficient certification. 

THE CERTIFICATION PROCESS

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30 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

The employee must provide the requested medical certification within 15 calendar days after an 

employer’s request, unless it is not feasible under the particular circumstances to do so despite the 

employee’s good faith efforts, or if the employer permits more than 15 calendar days to return the 

requested certification. When an employee makes diligent good faith efforts but is unable to meet the 

15-calendar day deadline, the employee is entitled to additional time to provide the certification. If an 

employee fails to return the certification in a timely manner, the employer can deny FMLA protections 

for the leave following the expiration of the 15-calendar day time period until a complete and sufficient 

certification is provided. However, the 15-day period and the period of absence beginning the day the 

certification was received is FMLA-protected leave. 

For example, an employer gives an employee 15 calendar days to provide a certification 

and the employee does not provide certification for 45 calendar days without sufficient 

reason for the delay, the employer may deny FMLA protections for the period following 

expiration of the 15-calendar day time period, i.e., from day 16 through day 44. 

If an employee fails to provide a certification within 15 calendar days from receipt of the request 

for certification but made diligent, good faith efforts to do so and the delay was due to extenuating 

circumstances outside his or her control, the employer may not deny the leave for the period that the 

certification was late. In all cases, if the employee never produces the certification, the leave is not 

FMLA-protected leave. 

Review sections 825.305 and 825.313 of the FMLA regulations for more information about the 

medical certification and failure to provide the certification. 

Contents of a Complete and Sufficient Medical Certification 

The medical facts appropriate for inclusion on the certification form will vary depending on the nature of 

the serious health condition and are to be determined by the health care provider but must be sufficient to 

support the need for leave. The information requested may relate only to the serious health condition for 

which the employee is seeking leave. 

A complete and sufficient certification need only include the following information:

• Contact information for the health care provider, including name, address, telephone number, fax 

number, and type of medical practice / specialty; 

• When the serious health condition began, 

• How long the serious health condition is expected to last, 

• If the employee is the patient, whether the employee is unable to work, and the likely duration of this 

inability;

THE CERTIFICATION PROCESS

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 31

• If a family member is the patient, whether the family member needs care, and an estimate of the 

frequency and duration of the leave required to care for the family member; 

• Whether the employee’s need for leave is continuous or intermittent, and

• Appropriate medical facts about the condition. 

Appropriate Medical Facts

At the health care provider’s discretion, the medical facts may include information on symptoms, doctor’s 

visits, or a diagnosis. Whether a diagnosis is included in the certification form is left to the discretion of 

the health care provider and an employer may not reject a complete and sufficient certification because it 

lacks a diagnosis. 

Additional Information for Intermittent or Reduced Schedule Leave

For intermittent or reduced schedule leave, the employer may require certain additional information in the 

certification:

Planned Medical 

Treatment for the 

Employee’s Own or 

Family Member’s 

Serious Health 

Condition

Unforeseeable

Leave for the 

Employee’s Own 

Serious Health 

Condition, Including 

Pregnancy

Unforeseeable

Leave for the Family 

Member’s Serious 

Health Condition

• Information that 

establishes the 

medical necessity 

of intermittent or 

reduced schedule 

leave

• An estimate of the 

dates and duration 

of such treatment 

and periods of 

recovery

• Information that 

establishes the 

medical necessity 

of intermittent or 

reduced schedule 

leave

• An estimate of 

the frequency

and duration of 

the episodes of 

incapacity due to 

the serious health 

condition

• A statement that the 

leave schedule is 

medically necessary 

for the care of the 

family member, 

which can include 

assisting in the 

family member’s 

recovery

• An estimate of the 

frequency and 

duration of leave

THE CERTIFICATION PROCESS

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32 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Not all absences caused by certain serious health conditions are predictable. Health care providers 

are expected to provide only their best informed medical judgment when estimating the need for 

unforeseeable intermittent leave. The FMLA does not permit an employer to require an exact schedule of 

leave for such instances. 

Review section 825.306 of the FMLA regulations for more information about the content of the 

medical certification. 

The employer must accept a complete and sufficient medical certification, regardless of the format. The 

employer cannot reject a medical certification that contains all the information needed to determine if the 

leave is FMLA-qualifying. 

The employer cannot refuse: 

• A fax or copy of the medical certification, 

• A medical certification that is not completed on the employer’s standard company form, or 

• Any other record of the medical documentation, such as a communication on the letterhead of the 

health care provider. 

DID YOU KNOW?

The FMLA does not require employees to use any specific certification form. An employer may 

provide employees with the Department of Labor’s optional-use forms, listed below, for obtaining 

certification. 

- WH-380-E, Certification of Health Care Provider for Employee’s Serious Health Condition; 

- WH-380-F, Certification of Health Care Provider for Family Member’s Serious Health

Condition; 

- WH-384, Certification of Qualifying Exigency for Military Family Leave; 

- WH-385, Certification for Serious Injury or Illness of a Covered Servicemember – for

Military Family Leave; 

- WH-385-V, Certification for Serious Injury or Illness of a Veteran for Military Caregiver Leave. 

These are available on the Department’s website at dol.gov/whd/fmla or from the nearest

Wage and Hour Division office. An employer may also develop its own certification forms, 

but it may not request any additional information beyond what is specified in the FMLA and its 

regulations.

THE CERTIFICATION PROCESS

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 33

Brenda: Bobby, 

the medical 

certification is 

incomplete. We 

need more info 

to approve your 

HR FMLA leave.

Incomplete Request

Brenda (on phone): 

I sent you an email 

listing the information 

we still need.

Brenda (on phone): We need 

the additional information 

within seven calendar days.

Bobby (on phone):

I got the email. I 

will have my mom 

speak to her doctor 

right away.

Whenever an employer finds any medical certification “incomplete” or “insufficient,” the employer must give 

the employee a written notice stating what additional information is necessary to make the certification 

complete and sufficient. The employer may use the designation notice to inform the employee that the 

certification is incomplete or insufficient and identify what information is needed to make the certification 

complete and sufficient. See chapter 6 for more information about the designation notice.

• A certification is considered incomplete if one or more applicable entries have not been completed. 

• A certification is considered insufficient if the information provided is vague, ambiguous, or nonresponsive.

The employer must provide the employee with at least seven calendar days to correct any deficiency in 

the certification. If it is not practicable under the particular circumstances for the employee to cure any 

deficiency in the seven-day period despite the employee’s diligent good faith efforts, the employer should 

provide additional time. 

If an employee fails to provide a complete and sufficient certification despite the opportunity to cure the 

deficiency, an employer may deny the employee’s request for FMLA leave. 

DID YOU KNOW?

After acquiring a complete and sufficient certification, an employer is not permitted to ask for 

more information, such as requiring a doctor’s note for each FMLA-related absence. Requiring 

a doctor’s note for each unpaid FMLA related absence may be considered interference with the 

employee’s use of FMLA leave.

Review section 825.305(c) of the FMLA regulations for more information about complete and 

sufficient certifications. 

Incomplete or Insufficient Medical Certification

THE CERTIFICATION PROCESS

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34 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Medical Certification from Abroad

If the employee or employee’s family member is visiting another country, or a family member resides in 

another country, an employer must accept a medical certification, including second and third opinions, 

from a health care provider who is authorized to practice in that country and is performing within the scope 

of his or her practice. If a certification by a foreign health care provider is not in English, the employee 

must provide a written translation at the employer’s request. 

Authentication and Clarification

After the employer has given the employee the opportunity to cure any deficiencies, the employer may 

contact the health care provider only for purposes of authentication and/or clarification of the medical 

certification.

Under no circumstances may the employee’s direct supervisor contact the employee’s health care 

provider. A human resources professional, a leave administrator, or a management official must make the 

contact.

Authentication means providing the health care provider with a copy of the certification and confirming 

that the information contained on the certification form was completed and/or authorized by the health 

care provider who signed the document. 

Clarification means contacting the health care provider to understand the handwriting on the medical 

certification or to understand the meaning of a response. 

An employer may not ask health care providers for additional information beyond that in the certification 

form. 

The requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule govern 

the privacy of individually-identifiable health information created or held by HIPAA-covered entities. 

Therefore, HIPAA requirements must be satisfied for a HIPAA-covered entity to share an employee’s or an 

employee’s family member’s individually-identifiable health information with an employer. HIPAA requires, 

among other things, a written authorization by the employee (or the employee’s family member) in order to 

release information for clarification purposes. 

An employee may choose to authorize his or her health care provider to provide clarification directly to the 

employer; however, the employee may not be required to do so. If the employee chooses not to provide 

such authorization and does not otherwise clarify the certification, the employer may deny the FMLA 

leave request if the certification is unclear. It is the employee’s responsibility to provide the employer with a 

complete and sufficient certification and to clarify the certification if necessary.

THE CERTIFICATION PROCESS

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 35

Second and Third Opinions 

If an employer has received a complete and sufficient certification but has a reason to doubt that it is 

valid, the employer may require the employee to obtain a second opinion at the employer’s expense. The 

employer can choose the health care provider to provide the second opinion, but generally may not select 

a health care provider who it employs on a regular or routine basis. 

If the first and second opinions reach different conclusions, the employer may require a third opinion at 

the employer’s expense. The third health care provider must be approved by both the employer and the 

employee. The opinion of the third health care provider is final. 

While waiting for the second (or third) opinion, the employee is provisionally entitled to FMLA leave, 

including the right to maintain his or her group health benefits. If the certifications do not ultimately 

establish that the employee is entitled to FMLA leave, the leave is not considered FMLA leave and may be 

treated as paid or unpaid leave under the employer’s established leave policy.

If the employee requests it, the employer must provide copies of second or third opinions within five 

business days absent extenuating circumstances.

If a second or third opinion health care provider requests information relevant to the serious health 

condition at issue from the employee’s or his or her family member’s health care provider, and the 

employee or their family member does not authorize their health care provider to release such information, 

the FMLA leave may be denied. 

Review section 825.307 of the FMLA regulations for more information about authentication, 

clarification, and second and third opinions.

Recertification 

An employer may, under certain circumstances, request that an employee “recertify” his or her serious 

health condition or the serious health condition of his or her family member within the same leave year.

In general, an employer may request the employee provide a recertification no more often than every 30 

days and only when the employee is actually absent or has requested to be absent. 

In some instances, an employer must wait longer than 30 days to request recertification. If the initial 

certification indicates that the minimum duration of the serious health condition will be more than 30 days, 

an employer must generally wait until that minimum duration expires before requesting recertification. In all 

cases, an employer may request recertification every six months in connection with an absence. If the initial 

medical certification indicates that the employee will need intermittent or reduced schedule leave for longer 

than six months, including cases where the serious health condition has no anticipated end, the employer 

may request a recertification every six months, but only in connection with an absence by the employee. 

THE CERTIFICATION PROCESS

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36 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

An employer may request a recertification in connection with an absence by the employee in less than 30 

days only if: 

• The employee requests an extension of leave, 

• The circumstances described by the previous certification have changed significantly, or

• The employer receives information that casts doubt on the employee’s stated reason for the 

absence or the continuing validity of the existing medical certification. 

In general, an employer may ask for the same information in a recertification as that permitted in the initial 

medical certification. As with the initial certification, in most circumstances, the employee has 15 calendar 

days after the employer’s request to provide a complete and sufficient recertification. The employee is 

responsible for paying for the cost of a recertification. 

During recertification an employer may provide the health care provider with a record of the employee’s 

absence pattern, such as an attendance record of FMLA leave use, and ask the health care provider if the 

serious health condition and need for leave is consistent with the absence pattern provided. 

DID YOU KNOW?

For serious health conditions, an employer may contact the health care provider to authenticate or 

clarify recertification, but cannot require second or third opinions for recertification.

Review section 825.308 of the FMLA regulations for more information about recertifications. 

Annual Medical Certification 

Where the need for leave for an employee’s or family member’s serious health condition lasts beyond a 

single leave year, the employer may require a new certification in each subsequent FMLA leave year. That 

means the employer may request a new medical certification with the first absence in a new 12-month 

leave year. Because it is a new certification and not a recertification, an employer may seek second and 

third opinions for these new medical certifications, as well as authenticate or clarify the certification with 

the health care provider. 

Review section 825.305(e) of the FMLA regulations for more information about annual medical 

certifications. 

THE CERTIFICATION PROCESS

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 37

Eligible employees are entitled to two types of FMLA leave related to a qualifying family member’s military 

service. This type of FMLA leave is referred to as military family leave.

Types of Military Family Leave

The military family leave provisions of the FMLA entitle eligible employees of covered employers to take 

FMLA leave for:

• Any “qualifying exigency” arising from the foreign deployment of the employee’s spouse, son, 

daughter, or parent with the Armed Forces, or 

• To care for a covered servicemember with a serious injury or illness if the employee is the 

servicemember’s spouse, child, parent, or next of kin. 

- FMLA leave for this purpose is called “military caregiver leave.”

Qualifying Exigency Leave

An eligible employee may take qualifying exigency leave when the employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or 

parent who is a member of the Armed Forces (including the National Guard and Reserves) is on covered 

active duty or has been notified of an impending call or order to covered active duty. 

Covered Active Duty

In order for the employee to take qualifying exigency leave, the military member must be on covered active 

duty, under a call to covered active duty status, or have been notified of an impending call or order to 

covered active duty. 

For members of the Regular Armed Forces, covered active duty is duty during the deployment of the 

member with the Armed Forces to a foreign country. 

For members of the Reserve components of the Armed Forces (members of the U. S. National Guard 

and Reserves), covered active duty is duty during the deployment of the member with the Armed Forces 

to a foreign country under a call or order to active duty in support of a contingency operation. 

Deployment to a foreign country means deployment to areas outside of the United States, the District of 

Columbia, or any territory or possession of the United States. It also includes deployment to international 

waters.

MILITARY FAMILY LEAVE

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38 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Family Members for Whom an Employee May Take Qualifying 

Exigency Leave

To take qualifying exigency leave, the military member must be the employee’s spouse, parent, or son or 

daughter. Unlike non-military FMLA leave, for purposes of qualifying exigency leave, an employee’s son or 

daughter on covered active duty refers to a son or daughter of any age. 

Qualifying Exigency Categories 

An eligible employee with a family member on covered active duty may take FMLA leave for the following 

qualifying exigencies:

1. Issues arising from the military member’s short notice deployment (i.e., deployment within seven or 

fewer days of notice),

2. To make or update financial and legal arrangements to address a military member’s absence,

3. To attend counseling for the employee, the military member, or a child of the military member when 

the need for that counseling arises from the covered active duty or call to covered active duty status of 

the military member and the counseling is provided by someone other than a health care provider;

4. To attend military events and related activities, including official military ceremonies and programs or 

informational briefings related to the military member’s covered active duty sponsored or promoted by 

the military or military service organizations;

5. To spend up to 15 calendar days with a military member who is on rest and recuperation leave,

6. Certain childcare and related activities for the military member’s child while the military member is on 

covered active duty,

• The employee does not need to 

be related to the military member’s 

child to take qualifying exigency 

leave for this purpose. But, (1) 

the military member must be the 

parent, spouse, or child of the 

employee taking leave; and (2) 

the child for whom the employee 

is arranging for or providing 

childcare must be the child of the 

military member.

7. To attend post-deployment activities within 90 days of the end of the military member’s covered active 

duty or to attend to issues arising from the death of a military member while on covered active duty;

Eligible 

Employee

Military Member on 

Covered Active Duty

Child

parent, 

spouse, 

child

son or

daughter

no relationship

necessary

MILITARY FAMILY LEAVE

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 39

8. Certain parental care activities for the military member’s parent who is incapable of self-care, and

• The employee does not need 

to be related to the military 

member’s parent to take 

qualifying exigency leave for this 

purpose. But, (1) the military 

member must be the parent, 

spouse, or child of the employee 

taking FMLA leave; and (2) the 

parent receiving assistance must 

be the parent of the military 

member.

9. Any other event that the employee and employer agree is a qualifying exigency. 

• Both the employee and employer must agree to the timing and duration of the leave.

DID YOU KNOW?

FMLA allows qualifying exigency leave for counseling services that are non-medical in nature. 

This non-medical counseling could include, for example, counseling provided by a military 

chaplain, pastor, or minister, or counseling offered by the military or a military service organization 

that is not provided by a health care provider. 

Review section 825.126 of the FMLA regulations for more information about qualifying exigency 

leave.

Eligible 

Employee

Military Member on 

Covered Active Duty

Parent

parent, 

spouse, 

child

parent

no relationship

necessary

MILITARY FAMILY LEAVE

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40 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Certification for Qualifying Exigency Leave

When an eligible employee requests qualifying exigency leave, the employer may request the following 

information and documentation:

• A copy of the military member’s active duty orders (or other official documentation issued by the 

military) which indicates the military member is on covered active duty or call to covered active duty 

status, which need be provided only once per deployment;

- An employer may contact the Department of Defense to request verification that the military 

member is on covered active duty.

- However, an employer may not request any additional information from the Department of 

Defense. 

• A statement or description of the appropriate facts regarding the qualifying exigency,

• The approximate date on which the leave began (or will begin), and how long and/or how often 

leave will be needed; and

• The contact information for any meeting with a third party and a brief description of the purpose of 

the meeting.

The employer may contact a third party to confirm the nature of a third-party meeting, but may not request 

additional information from the third party during this contact. The employer does not have to obtain 

permission from the employee for this contact. 

The employer may choose to use the Wage and Hour Division prototype form WH-384, Certification of

Qualifying Exigency for Military Family Leave, which is available on the Department’s website at 

dol.gov/whd/fmla, or from the nearest Wage and Hour Division office, or may create its own version of 

the certification containing the same basic information; however, no additional information can be requested. 

DID YOU KNOW?

For qualifying exigency leave, an employer is not permitted to require second and third opinions 

or recertifications. However, when the leave involves meeting with a third party, an employer may 

contact the third party to confirm that the meeting is taking place and the nature of the meeting, 

but no additional information may be requested. An employer may also contact the Department of 

Defense to verify a military member’s covered active duty status.

Authentication & 

Clarification Recertification 2nd / 3rd Option

Qualifying 

Exigency Leave

Only to verify a meeting, 

an appointment, or the 

military member’s covered 

active duty status. X X

MILITARY FAMILY LEAVE

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 41

Review section 825.309 of the FMLA regulations for more information about certification for 

leave taken because of a qualifying exigency.

The notice and timing requirements for a certification for qualifying exigency leave are the same as for 

medical certifications. See chapter 4 for more information about certifications.

Military Caregiver Leave

Military caregiver leave allows an eligible employee who is the spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of 

kin of a covered servicemember with a serious injury or illness to take up to a total of 26 workweeks of 

unpaid leave during a “single 12-month period” to provide care for the servicemember.

Covered Servicemember

A covered servicemember is either: 

• A Current Servicemember: A covered servicemember means a current member of the Armed 

Forces, including a member of the U. S. National Guard or Reserves, who is undergoing medical 

treatment, recuperation, or therapy, is otherwise in outpatient status, or is otherwise on the 

temporary disability retired list, for a serious injury or illness; or

• A Veteran:A covered servicemember means a veteran who is undergoing medical treatment, 

recuperation, or therapy for a serious injury or illness, and who was discharged within the previous 

five years before the employee takes military caregiver leave to care for the veteran. 

MILITARY FAMILY LEAVE

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42 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Family Members for Whom an Employee May Take Military Caregiver Leave

To take military caregiver leave, the eligible employee must be the spouse, parent, son or daughter, or 

next of kin of the covered servicemember. For purposes of military caregiver leave, a son or daughter 

refers to the servicemember’s son or daughter of any age. 

A next of kin is the servicemember’s nearest blood relative, other than the servicemember’s spouse, 

parent, son, or daughter, in the following order of priority: 

Covered 

Servicemember

In this order:

Spouse

Parent

Son or 

Daughter

Next 

of Kin

and

and

and

2. All blood relatives 

with legal custody

3. All brothers and sisters

4. All grandparents

5. All aunts and uncles

6. All first cousins

1. One designated blood 

relative (in writing)

if none

if none

if none

if none

if none

MILITARY FAMILY LEAVE

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 43

DID YOU KNOW?

If the servicemember designates in writing a next of kin, that relative is the only next of kin for FMLA 

leave purposes. However, if the servicemember makes no such designation, all the family members 

sharing the closest level of family relationship to the servicemember or veteran are considered the 

next of kin.

For example, if a servicemember has three siblings, and has not designated a next of kin in 

writing or granted legal custody, all three siblings may take military caregiver leave as the 

next of kin if each works for a covered employer and meets the eligibility requirements.

A Serious Injury or Illness

A serious injury or illness for a current servicemember is an injury or illness that was incurred by the 

servicemember in the line of duty on active duty that may render the servicemember medically unfit to 

perform the duties of his or her office, grade, rank, or rating. A serious injury or illness may also result from 

the aggravation of a pre-existing condition in the line of duty on active duty.

A serious injury or illness for a veteran is an injury or illness that was incurred in the line of duty when 

the veteran was on active duty in the Armed Forces, including any injury or illness that resulted from the 

aggravation of a preexisting condition in the line of duty on active duty. The injury or illness may manifest 

itself during active duty or may develop after the servicemember becomes a veteran.

A serious injury or illness of a veteran must be either:

• A continuation of a serious injury or illness that was incurred or aggravated when the covered 

veteran was a member of the Armed Forces and rendered the servicemember unable to perform the 

duties of the servicemember’s office, grade, rank, or rating; or

• A physical or mental condition for which the veteran has received a United States Department of 

Veterans Affairs Service Related Disability Rating (VASRD) of 50% or more and the need for care is 

related to that condition, or

• A physical or mental condition because of a disability or disabilities related to military service that 

substantially impairs the veteran’s ability to work, or would do so absent treatment; or

• An injury for which the veteran is enrolled in the Department of Veterans’ Affairs Program of 

Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers.

MILITARY FAMILY LEAVE

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44 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

A “Single 12-Month Period”

The “single 12-month period” for military caregiver leave begins on the first day the employee takes leave 

for this reason and ends 12 months later, regardless of the 12-month period established by the employer 

for other types of FMLA leave. An eligible employee is limited to a combined total of 26 workweeks of 

leave for any FMLA-qualifying reason during the “single 12-month period.” Up to 12 of the 26 workweeks 

may be for an FMLA-qualifying reason other than to care for a covered servicemember.

For example, the employer uses the calendar year method (January 1st to December 31st) 

for determining an employee’s leave balance for FMLA leave taken for all qualifying reasons 

other than military caregiver leave. An employee first takes military caregiver leave in June 2015. 

Between June 2015 and June 2016 (the ‘‘single 12-month period’’ for military caregiver leave), 

the employee can take a combined total of 26 workweeks of leave, including up to 12 workweeks 

for any other qualifying FMLA reason if he has not yet taken any FMLA leave in 2015.

If, however, the employee had already taken five workweeks of FMLA leave for his own serious 

health condition when he began taking military caregiver leave in June 2015, he would then be 

entitled to no more than seven workweeks of FMLA leave for reasons other than to care for a 

covered servicemember during the remainder of the 2015 calendar year (i.e., the 12 workweeks 

yearly entitlement minus the five workweeks already taken). Although his entitlement to FMLA 

leave for reasons other than military caregiver leave is limited by his prior use of FMLA leave 

during the calendar year, the employee is still entitled to take up to 26 workweeks of FMLA 

leave to care for a covered servicemember from June to December 2015.

Beginning in January 2016, the employee is entitled to an additional 12 workweeks of FMLA 

leave for reasons other than to care for a covered servicemember. If the employee takes four 

workweeks of FMLA leave for his own serious health condition in January 2016, this would 

reduce both the number of available workweeks of FMLA leave remaining in calendar year 

2016 (i.e., the 12 workweeks yearly entitlement minus the four workweeks already taken) and 

the number of workweeks of FMLA leave available for either military caregiver leave or other 

FMLA qualifying reasons during the ‘‘single 12-month period’’ of June 2015 to June 2016.

Once the employee exhausts his or her 26-workweek entitlement, he or she may not take 

any additional FMLA leave for any reason until the ‘‘single 12-month period’’ ends. Thus, for 

example, if the employee took 20 workweeks of military caregiver leave from June to December 

2015, four workweeks of leave in January 2016 for his or her own serious health condition, and 

another two workweeks of military caregiver leave in March 2016, the employee will have 

exhausted his or her 26-workweek entitlement for the ‘‘single 12-month period’’ of June 2015 

to June 2016. While the employee would still have eight workweeks of FMLA leave available 

in calendar year 2016, the employee could not take such leave until after June 2016, when the 

‘‘single 12-month period’’ ends.

MILITARY FAMILY LEAVE

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 45

Review section 825.127 of the FMLA regulations for more information about military caregiver 

leave and section 825.200 for more information about 12-month periods. See chapter 6 for more 

information about a 12-month leave year.

Calendar Year Method 

(January 1st to December 31st)

New FMLA Leave Year 

(Calendar Year Method)

Single 12-Month Period for Military Caregiver Leave 

from June 2015 to June 2016

Jan

2015

Feb

2015

Mar

2015

Apr

2015

May

2015

June

2015

Jul

2015

Aug

2015

Sept

2015

Oct

2015

Nov

2015

Dec

2015

Jan

2016

Feb

2016

Mar

2016

Apr

2016

May

2016

June

2016

July

2016

Aug

2016

Sept

2016

Oct

2016

Nov

2016

Dec

2016

5 Workweeks of FMLA Leave Taken

7 Workweeks of FMLA Leave Available 

Through December 31st

20 Workweeks of Military 

Caregiver Leave Taken

4 Workweeks of FMLA Leave Taken

2 Workweeks of Military Caregiver Leave Taken

8 Workweeks of FMLA 

Leave Available through 

December 31st

MILITARY FAMILY LEAVE

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46 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Certification for Military Caregiver Leave

An employer may require that a request for military caregiver leave be supported by a certification. The 

certification may be completed by a Department of Defense (DOD), Veterans Affairs (VA), or TRICARE 

health care provider, or by a private health care provider.

• Second and third opinions and recertifications are not permitted for certification of a serious injury or 

illness of a covered servicemember when the servicemember is treated by a DOD, VA, or TRICARE 

health care provider. However, if the covered servicemember is seeking care from a private (nonDOD) health care provider, the employer may request a second or third opinion.

• The employee may not be held liable for administrative delays in the issuance of military documents, 

where the employee has exercised diligent, good-faith efforts to obtain such documents. 

An employer may choose to use the Wage and Hour Division prototype Military Caregiver Leave 

certification forms. Form WH-385, Certification for Serious Injury or Illness of a Covered 

Servicemember - Military Family Leave and form WH-385-V Certification for Serious Illness or Injury 

of a Veteran for Military Caregiver Leave, are available on the Department’s website at dol.gov/whd/

fmla or from the nearest Wage and Hour Division office. An employer may create its own version of the 

certification containing the same information; however, no additional information can be requested.

DID YOU KNOW?

For leave to care for a covered servicemember (military caregiver leave), an employer may 

contact the health care provider to authenticate or clarify a certification, but cannot require a 

recertification.

Review section 825.310 of the FMLA regulations for more information about certification for 

leave taken to care for a covered servicemember.

MILITARY FAMILY LEAVE

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 47

An eligible employee is entitled to up to 12 workweeks of FMLA leave in a 12-month leave year for qualifying 

reasons or up to 26 workweeks in a single 12-month period for military caregiver leave. Airline flight crew 

employees are entitled to a different amount of FMLA leave, as discussed below.

FMLA leave can be taken for more than one qualifying reason in the same 12-month leave year. However, 

multiple serious health conditions or qualifying reasons for leave do not increase the total FMLA leave 

entitlement available. 

Designation of FMLA Leave and an Employer’s Obligation to 

Provide Employees with a Designation Notice

DURING AN EMPLOYEE’S FMLA LEAVE

Brenda (on phone): 

Bobby, your FMLA 

leave request was 

approved. Did you 

get the Designation 

Notice confirming 

the approval?

FMLA Leave Request

Bobby(on phone): 

Yes, thank you. 

Do I need to do 

anything else?

Brenda: No. If 

you have any 

questions about 

your FMLA leave 

while you are out, 

please call. 

HR

Bobby (on phone): Thank 

you. I will be back at work on 

the 22nd.

Bobby (on phone): Thank 

you. I will be back at work on 

the 22nd.

The employer is responsible in all circumstances for designating leave as FMLA-qualifying and giving a 

Designation Notice to the employee. The Designation Notice informs the employee that the requested leave 

will be designated as FMLA leave and sets out the requirements applicable while the employee is on leave. 

The determination of whether leave is FMLA-qualifying must be based only on information received from 

the employee or the employee’s spokesperson. If the employer does not have enough information to 

determine whether an employee’s reason for leave qualifies for FMLA protections, the employer may ask 

the employee or his or her spokesperson to provide more information about the reason for leave. If an 

employer is unable to determine whether a leave request should be designated as FMLA-protected because 

a submitted certification is incomplete or insufficient, the employer is required to state in writing what 

additional information is needed. The employer may use the Designation Notice to inform the employee that 

the certification is incomplete or insufficient and identify what information is needed to make the certification 

complete and sufficient. See chapter 4 for more information on the certification process.

Once the employer has enough information to determine that the employee’s requested leave qualifies as 

FMLA leave, the employer must provide the employee with a written Designation Notice within no more 

than five business days, absent extenuating circumstances. If the leave does not qualify as FMLA leave, the 

employer must notify the employee in writing that the leave is not FMLA-protected. Such notice can be a 

simple written statement.

CHAPTER 

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48 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

The employer needs to provide the employee with only one Designation Notice for each FMLA-qualifying 

reason for leave in the 12-month leave year, regardless of whether the leave is taken in a continuous block 

or intermittently or on a reduced schedule. If the employee requests leave and the information provided in 

the Designation Notice changes (for example, the employee exhausts his or her FMLA entitlement), the 

employer must provide the employee written notice of the change within five business days of receiving 

the employee’s leave request subsequent to any change.

Although a medical certification will often provide the information needed to determine that the leave 

is FMLA-qualifying, if the employer has enough information to designate the leave as FMLA leave 

immediately after receiving the notice of the need for leave, the employer may provide the employee with 

the Designation Notice at that time.

Failure to provide a timely Designation Notice to an employee may be considered interference with, 

restraint, or denial of the exercise of the employee's FMLA rights.

DID YOU KNOW?

FMLA leave and workers’ compensation or short-term or long-term disability can run 

concurrently,provided the reason for the absence is due to an FMLA-qualifying serious health 

condition and the employer properly notified the employee that the leave would be counted as 

FMLA leave. 

Contents of the Designation Notice

In addition to designating leave as FMLA qualifying, the written Designation Notice must include all of the 

following:

• The amount of leave that will count against the employee’s FMLA leave entitlement, if known; 

- If the exact amount of leave is not known at the time of the designation (for example, 

when the employee needs unforeseeable intermittent leave), the employer must provide 

this information in writing upon the employee’s request, but no more often than once in a 

30-day period and only if leave was taken. 

• Whether the employee is required to substitute paid leave for unpaid FMLA leave, and

• Whether the employee will be required to submit a fitness-for-duty certification to return to work.

Employers may use Wage and Hour Division prototype form WH-382, Designation Notice, which 

is available on the Department’s website at dol.gov/whd/fmla or from the nearest Wage and Hour

Division office, or may create their own Designation Notice or use, as long as it meets the Designation 

Notice requirements. 

Review sections 825.300(d) and 825.301 of the FMLA regulations for more information about 

designating leave and the Designation Notice.

DURING AN EMPLOYEE’S FMLA LEAVE

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 49

Fitness-for-Duty Certification

• An employer may have a uniformly-applied policy or practice that requires all similarly-situated 

employees who take leave for their own serious health condition to obtain and present certification 

from the employee’s health care provider that the employee is able to resume work as a condition of 

restoring an employee.

• This fitness-for-duty certification can be requested only for the health condition that caused the 

employee’s need for FMLA leave. Certain limitations apply to the frequency with which an employer 

may require a fitness-for-duty certification for absences taken on an intermittent or reduced schedule 

basis.

• If the employer requires that the fitness-for-duty certification address the employee’s ability to 

perform the essential functions of the employee’s position, the employer must indicate this in the 

Designation Notice and must provide the employee a list of the essential functions of the employee’s 

position.

• The employee is responsible for the cost of the fitness-for-duty certification.

• The employer may delay restoration of the employee until the employee submits a required fitnessfor-duty certification.

• The employer may contact the employee’s health care provider to authenticate or clarify the fitnessfor-duty certification. The employer may not delay the employee’s return to work while contacting the 

health care provider. The employer may not require second or third opinions. 

DID YOU KNOW?

Separately from the employer’s ability to request that the employee provide a fitness-for-duty 

certification, employers may also require an employee to submit to an examination at the 

employer’s expense by the employer’s medical staff provided the examination by the employer’s 

medical staff is job-related and consistent with business necessity. An employer may not deny or 

delay reinstating an employee who has been absent on FMLA leave pending an examination by 

the employer’s medical staff. The employer may require the employee to submit to examination 

after reinstatement, including the first day of the employee’s reinstatement. 

Review section 825.312 of the FMLA regulations for more information about fitness-for-duty 

certifications.

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Retroactive Designation of FMLA Leave

If an employer does not timely designate FMLA leave, the employer may retroactively designate the 

absence as FMLA leave if the employer provides appropriate notice to the employee and the retroactive 

designation does not cause harm or injury to the employee. 

For example, if an employer that was put on notice that an employee needed FMLA leave 

failed to designate the leave properly, but the employee’s own serious health condition 

prevented him or her from returning to work during that time period regardless of the 

designation, an employee may not be able to show that the employee suffered harm as 

a result of the employer’s actions. However, if an employee took leave to provide care 

for a son or daughter with a serious health condition believing it would not count toward 

his or her FMLA entitlement, and the employee planned to later use that FMLA leave to 

provide care for a spouse who would need assistance when recovering from surgery 

planned for a later date, the employee may be able to show that harm has occurred as 

a result of the employer’s failure to designate properly. The employee might establish 

this by showing that he or she would have arranged for an alternative caregiver for the 

seriously ill son or daughter if the leave had been designated timely.

In all cases where leave would qualify for FMLA protections, the employer and employee can mutually 

agree that leave be retroactively designated as FMLA leave. 

If an employer fails to timely designate FMLA leave and that failure causes the employee to suffer harm, 

the employer may be liable for damages or be required to take other remedial actions.

Review sections 825.301(d) and (e) of the FMLA regulations for more information about 

retroactive designation.

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RULES FOR SCHEDULING AND TAKING FMLA LEAVE

A 12-Month Leave Year

Employees take FMLA leave in a defined 12-month period or “leave year.” When an employee’s need for 

FMLA leave extends beyond the 12-month leave year, any additional time the employee requests counts 

against his or entitlement for the next leave year.

The employer may select any one of the following four methods for determining the 12-month period 

during which eligible employees may take up to 12 workweeks of leave: 

1. The calendar year (January 1st through December 31st),

2. Any fixed 12 months, such as a fiscal year or a leave year beginning on the first day of an employee’s 

employment,

3. A 12-month period measured forward from the first date an employee takes FMLA leave (the next 

12-month period would begin the first time the employee takes FMLA leave after the completion of the 

prior 12-month period), or

4. A rolling 12-month period measured backward from the date an employee uses FMLA leave (each 

time an employee takes FMLA leave, the remaining leave is the balance of the 12 weeks not used 

during the immediately preceding 12 months). 

For example, an eligible employee requests two weeks of FMLA leave to begin on 

November 1st. The employer looks back 12 months (from November 1st back to the 

previous November 2nd) and sees that the employee had taken four weeks of FMLA 

leave beginning January 1st, four weeks beginning March 1st, and three weeks beginning 

June 1st. The employee has taken 11 weeks of FMLA leave in the 12-month period and 

only has one week of FMLA-protected leave available. After the employee takes the one 

week in November, the employee can next take FMLA leave beginning January 1st as 

the days of the previous January leave “roll off” the leave year. 

4 Weeks 

of FMLA 

Leave

11/1 12/1 1/1 2/1 3/1 4/1 5/1 6/1 7/1 8/1 9/1 10/1 11/1

4 Weeks 

of FMLA 

Leave

3 Weeks 

of FMLA 

Leave

date timeline

1 Week 

of FMLA 

Leave

November 2 12 MONTH LOOK BACK November 1

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Whichever method an employer chooses the employer must apply it uniformly and consistently to all 

employees. The only exception is for a multi-state employer who has eligible employees in a state with a 

state family and medical leave statute that requires a specific method for determining the leave period. The 

employer may comply with the state provision for all employees within that state, and uniformly use one of 

the four methods described above for all other employees. 

An employer may change methods to use a different 12-month period only after providing 60 days’ notice 

of the intended change to all employees. During the transition, employees must retain the full benefit of 12 

workweeks of leave under whichever method provides the most benefit to the employee. If an employer 

fails to select a 12-month period, the employer must use the method that is most beneficial to the 

employee.

Special rules apply for employees using military caregiver leave, which permits leave to be taken during 

a single 12-month leave period. The single 12-month leave period for military caregiver leave will not 

necessarily overlap with the 12-month period that the employer chooses to use for all other types of FMLA 

leave. See chapter 5 for more information about military caregiver leave. 

Review section 825.200 of the FMLA regulations for more information about the 12-month 

leave period.

Intermittent Leave or Reduced Schedule Leave

Under certain circumstances, an employee is entitled to take FMLA leave on an intermittent or reduced 

schedule basis. Employers must permit employees to take intermittent or reduced schedule leave when 

there is a medical need for such leave for an employee’s own serious health condition, to care for a 

spouse, parent, son, or daughter with a serious health condition, or to care for a covered servicemember 

with a serious injury or illness. An employee is also entitled to use intermittent or reduced schedule leave 

for qualifying exigencies. An employee is not entitled to take intermittent leave for the birth and care of 

a newborn child or for the placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care unless the 

employer agrees to the arrangement. 

If an employee needs leave intermittently or on a reduced schedule for planned medical treatment for 

their own serious health condition or for that of a qualifying family member, the employee must make a 

reasonable effort to schedule the treatment so as to not unduly disrupt the employer’s operations.

Review sections 825.202 and 825.203 of the FMLA regulations for more information about 

intermittent and reduced schedule leave.

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Transfer to an Alternative Position

If an employee needs intermittent or reduced schedule leave that is foreseeable based on planned 

medical treatment, he or she may be temporarily transferred to an alternative position that better 

accommodates recurring periods of leave. 

The employee must be provided pay and benefits equivalent to those the employee had in the position 

prior to the transfer; however, the position does not have to have equivalent duties.

When the employee no longer needs to continue on intermittent or reduced schedule leave, the employee 

must be restored to the same or equivalent job as the job that the employee left when the leave started. 

An employer may not transfer the employee to an alternative position in order to discourage the employee 

from taking leave or otherwise work a hardship on the employee. 

Review section 825.204 of the FMLA regulations for more information about transferring an 

employee to an alternative position.

Spouses Working for the Same Employer

Eligible spouses who work for the same employer are limited to a combined total of 12 workweeks of leave 

in a 12-month period to share for the following FMLA-qualifying reasons: 

• The birth of a son or daughter and bonding with the newborn child, 

• The placement of a son or daughter with the employee for adoption or foster care, and bonding with 

the newly-placed child, and

• The care of a parent with a serious health condition. 

Eligible spouses who work for the same employer are also limited to a combined total of 26 workweeks 

in a single 12-month period to care for a covered servicemember with a serious injury or illness if each 

spouse is a parent, spouse, son or daughter, or next of kin of the servicemember (commonly referred to 

as “military caregiver leave”). This limitation also applies to a combination of military caregiver leave and 

leave for the other qualifying reasons listed above.

These limitations apply even if the spouses are employed at different locations that are more than 75 miles 

apart.

These limitations do not apply to two employees working for the same employer who are not legally 

married, even if they are living together or have a child or children together, or to siblings or other relatives 

who are working for the same employer.

If only one of the spouses is eligible for FMLA leave, that individual is entitled to the full 12 workweeks of 

leave.

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This limitation does not apply to leave: 

• For one’s own serious health condition, such as with the recovery period following the birth of a child; 

• To care for a spouse, son, or daughter with a serious health condition; or 

• For any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that the employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or parent 

is a military member on “covered active duty.”

Where a spouse uses a portion of his or her leave for an FMLA-qualifying reason that is subject to the 

combined 12-workweek limit, that employee has the remainder of his or her 12 workweeks of entitlement for 

leave for an FMLA-qualifying reason that is not subject to the combined limit. 

For example, Mary and Juan are married, FMLA-eligible employees, who work for the same 

employer. After Mary gives birth to their daughter, she uses six workweeks of FMLA for 

her own serious health condition and two workweeks of FMLA leave for bonding with her 

newborn baby, Anna. In the same 12-month period, Juan also wishes to use leave to bond 

with his infant daughter. Birth and bonding with a child is a combined leave category for 

spouses who work for the same employer. Juan and Mary are limited to a combined total of 

12 workweeks in a 12-month period for the birth of their daughter and for bonding with their 

child, and Mary has used two of the 12 workweeks of leave available to the couple for this 

leave reason. Juan may take up to 10 workweeks of FMLA leave for the birth of his daughter 

and to bond with his child. If Juan uses ten workweeks of FMLA leave available to bond with 

Anna, he may use up to two workweeks of leave for non-combined FMLA-qualifying leave 

reasons, such as caring for Mary if she has a serious health condition. Mary may also use up 

to 4 workweeks of leave for non-combined FMLA qualifying leave reasons. 

Review sections 825.120(a)(3), 825.121(a)(3), and 825.201(b) of the FMLA regulations for more 

information on spouses working for the same employer.

Special Rules for School Instructional Employees

Special rules for taking leave on an intermittent or reduced schedule basis apply to school instructional 

employees. There are also special rules when a school instructional employee takes leave near the end of 

an academic term. 

DID YOU KNOW?

Leave taken by an instructional employee for a period that ends with the school year and begins the 

next semester is leave taken consecutively rather than intermittently. The period during the summer 

vacation, when the employee would not have been required to report for duty, is not counted against 

an employee’s FMLA leave entitlement.

Review sections 825.600 to 825.604 of the FMLA regulations for more information about special 

rules for school employees.

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Calculating FMLA Leave 

Time that an employee is not scheduled to report for work may not be counted as FMLA leave. Only the 

amount of leave actually taken may be counted against the employee’s leave entitlement. 

When a holiday falls during a week in which an employee is taking the full week of FMLA leave, the entire 

week is counted as FMLA leave. However, when a holiday falls during a week when an employee is taking 

less than the full week of FMLA leave, the holiday is not counted as FMLA leave, unless the employee 

was scheduled and expected to work on the holiday and used FMLA leave for that day. 

An employee does not accrue FMLA leave at any particular hourly rate.

DID YOU KNOW?

If an employer temporarily stops business activity and employees are not expected to report for 

work for one or more weeks (e.g., a school that closes two weeks for the winter holiday, or a plant 

that closes for a week for repairs), the period of time that the employer’s business activities have 

stopped does not count against an employee’s FMLA leave entitlement. 

Increments of FMLA Leave for Intermittent or Reduced Schedule Leave

Eligible employees are entitled to up to 12 workweeks of leave or 26 workweeks of military caregiver 

leave. An employee may take FMLA leave in periods of weeks, days, hours, and in some cases even less 

than an hour. The total number of hours in those workweeks that an eligible employee is entitled to take on 

an intermittent or reduced schedule basis depends on the specific hours the employee would have worked 

had the employee not taken FMLA leave. 

When an employee takes leave for less than one full workweek, the amount of FMLA leave used is 

determined as a proportion of the employee’s actual workweek. An employer may convert fractions of a 

workweek to their hourly equivalent as long as the conversion fairly reflects the employee’s total hours. 

For example, an eligible employee whose actual workweek is always 32 hours per week is 

entitled to 384 hours (12 workweeks x 32 hours per week) of FMLA leave in a 12-month period. 

An eligible employee whose actual workweek is always 48 hours per week is entitled to 576 

hours (12 workweeks x 48 hours per week) of FMLA leave in a 12-month period. 

When an employee’s schedule varies from week to week so much that it is not possible to determine how 

many hours the employee would have worked during the week had he or she not taken FMLA leave, an 

employer may use a weekly average to calculate the employee’s FMLA leave entitlement. The weekly 

average is determined by the hours scheduled over the 12 months prior to the beginning of the leave and 

includes any hours for which the employee took any type of leave.

Employees may use FMLA leave in the smallest increment of time the employer allows for the use of other 

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forms of leave, as long as the smallest increment is no more than one hour. If an employer uses different 

increments for different types of leave (for example, accounting for sick leave in 15-minute increments and 

vacation leave in one-day increments), the employer must allow FMLA leave to be used in the smallest 

increment used for any type of leave. If an employer permits or requires employees to use leave in 

different increments during specific times of the day (for example, requiring a one-hour increment of leave 

at the start of the shift and using 15-minute increments for leave at other times), the same increment may 

be used for FMLA leave at those specific times of the day. The employer may always allow FMLA leave 

in shorter increments than used for other forms of leave; however, no work may be performed during any 

period of time counted as FMLA leave.

Where it is physically impossible for an employee using intermittent leave or working a reduced schedule 

to begin or end work mid-way through a shift, the entire period that the employee is forced to be absent 

is designated as FMLA leave and counts against the employee’s entitlement. This “physical impossibility” 

rule may be used only when it is truly physically impossible to return the employee to work after an FMLA 

absence. 

For example, if a laboratory employee is unable to enter or leave a sealed “clean room” 

during a certain period of time, it would be physically impossible for the employee to 

start or end work mid-way through a shift. 

DID YOU KNOW?

If an employee would normally be required to work overtime, but is unable to do so because of an 

FMLA-qualifying reason, the hours which the employee would have been required to work may 

be counted against the employee’s FMLA entitlement. However, voluntary overtime hours that 

an employee does not work due to an FMLA-qualifying reason may not be counted against the 

employee’s FMLA leave entitlement. 

Review sections 825.200 and 825.205 of the FMLA regulations for more information about the 

calculation of leave.

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Special Rules for Airline Flight Crew Employees 

Special rules apply to airline flight crew employees regarding their FMLA leave entitlement and calculation of 

FMLA leave. An eligible airline flight crew employee is entitled to 72 days of FMLA leave during any 12-month 

period for one or more FMLA-qualifying reasons, and 156 days of military caregiver leave during a single 

12-month period to care for a covered servicemember with a serious injury or illness. This entitlement is based 

on a uniform six-day workweek for all airline flight crew employees, regardless of time actually worked or paid. 

Review section 825.802 of the FMLA regulations for more information about special rules for 

airline flight crew employees.

Substitution of Paid Leave

An eligible employee may choose, or an employer may require the employee, to substitute accrued paid 

leave for FMLA leave. Substitute means that the accrued paid leave will run concurrently with the unpaid 

FMLA leave. When paid leave is used for an FMLA-covered reason, the leave is FMLA-protected.

For the purpose of substituting accrued paid leave, the employee must have both earned the leave and 

be able to use that leave during the FMLA leave period. The employer may not require the employee to 

substitute leave that is not yet available to the employee to use under the terms of the employer’s leave 

plan. However, an employer may voluntarily advance paid leave to an employee and an employee may 

voluntarily accept such leave during an FMLA absence. 

The employee receives pay pursuant to the employer’s applicable paid leave policy during the period of 

otherwise unpaid FMLA leave. An employee’s ability to substitute accrued paid leave is determined by the 

terms and conditions of the employer’s normal leave policy. 

For example, an employer is not obligated to allow an employee to substitute paid sick 

leave for unpaid FMLA leave in order to care for a child with a serious health condition 

if the employer’s normal sick leave rules allow such leave only for the employee’s illness. 

When an employee chooses, or an employer requires, substitution of paid leave, the employer must inform 

the employee (in the Rights and Responsibilities Notice) of any procedural requirements of the employer’s 

paid leave policy that the employee must satisfy. If the employee does not comply with those procedural 

requirements, the employee is no longer entitled to substitute accrued paid leave, but remains entitled to 

take unpaid FMLA leave.

When the employer has a uniformly applied policy to require a doctor’s note for each absence for all 

employees using paid leave (non-FMLA leave as well as FMLA leave) the employee who is using paid 

sick leave concurrently with unpaid FMLA leave must also provide a doctor’s note for each absence in 

order to receive the paid sick leave. However, if the employee does not provide the doctor’s note, he or 

she would still be entitled to take unpaid FMLA leave. 

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Review section 825.207 of the FMLA regulations for more information about the substitution of leave.

FMLA and Other Paid Leaves

Leave taken under a disability leave plan or as a workers’ compensation absence that also qualifies as FMLA 

leave due to the employee’s own a serious health condition may be designated by the employer as FMLA 

leave and counted against the employee’s FMLA leave entitlement. 

Because leave under a disability benefit plan or workers’ compensation program is not unpaid, the provision 

for substitution of accrued paid leave does not apply. However, employers and employees may agree, where 

state law permits, to have accrued paid leave supplement the paid plan benefits, such as in a case where a 

plan only provides replacement income for two-thirds of an employee’s salary.

Public employers, under certain conditions, may substitute compensatory time off at one and a half hours 

for each overtime hour worked in lieu of paying cash to employees who work overtime. A public employee 

may request and be permitted to use, or an employer may require that the public employee use, accrued 

compensatory time concurrently with FMLA leave, in which case the time is FMLA-protected and counts 

against the employee’s FMLA entitlement.

Review section 825.207 of the FMLA regulations for more information about how the FMLA 

interacts with other leave policies.

Effect of Unpaid Leave for Salaried Employees under the Fair Labor 

Standards Act

An employee who is exempt from minimum wage and overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act 

(FLSA) as a salaried executive, administrative, professional, or computer employee does not lose the FLSA 

exemption by receiving unpaid FMLA leave. The employer may make deductions from the employee’s salary 

for any hours taken as intermittent or reduced schedule FMLA leave within a workweek without affecting the 

exempt status of the employee. 

For employees paid according to the fluctuating workweek method of payment for overtime under the FLSA, 

the employer, during the period in which intermittent or reduced schedule FMLA leave is scheduled to be 

taken, may pay the employee on an hourly basis and pay only for the hours the employee works, including 

time and one-half the employee’s regular rate for any overtime hours worked. This change in payment to an 

hourly basis must include the entire period during which the employee is taking intermittent leave including the 

weeks in which no FMLA leave is taken.

Review section 825.206 of the FMLA regulations for more information about special circumstances 

for salaried employees.

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Maintenance of Benefits

Group Health Plan

During any FMLA leave, an employer must maintain the employee's coverage under any group health 

plan on the same basis as coverage would have been provided if the employee had been continuously 

employed during the entire leave period. All employers covered by the FMLA, including public agencies, 

are subject to this requirement. 

An employee's entitlement to benefits other than group health benefits during a period of FMLA leave 

(e.g., holiday pay) is to be determined by the employer’s established policy for providing such benefits 

when the employee is on other forms of leave (paid or unpaid, as appropriate).

What is a “Group Health Plan”?

Group health plan means any plan (including a self-insured plan) of, or 

contributed to by, an employer to provide health care (directly or otherwise) 

to employees, former employees, or the families of employees or former 

employees.

For purposes of the FMLA, the term “group health plan” does not include 

an insurance program providing health coverage under which employees 

purchase individual policies from insurers provided that:

• No contributions are made by the employer,

• Participation in the program is completely voluntary for employees,

• The sole functions of the employer with respect to the program are, 

without endorsing the program, to permit the insurer to publicize the 

program to employees, to collect premiums through payroll deductions, 

and to remit them to the insurer;

• The employer receives no consideration in the form of cash or otherwise 

in connection with the program, other than reasonable compensation, 

excluding any profit, for administrative services actually rendered in 

connection with payroll deduction; and,

• The premium charged with respect to such coverage does not increase 

in the event the employment relationship terminates.

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Employer Responsibilities

An employee is entitled to the continuation of group health insurance coverage during FMLA leave on the 

same terms as if he or she had continued to work. 

For example, if family member coverage is provided to an employee, family member 

coverage must be maintained during the FMLA leave. 

Similarly, benefit coverage during FMLA leave for medical care, surgical care, hospital care, dental care, 

eye care, mental health counseling, substance abuse treatment, etc., must be maintained during leave if 

provided in an employer's group health plan. This rule also applies to benefits provided in a supplement to 

a group health plan, whether or not provided through a flexible spending account or other component of a 

cafeteria plan.

If an employer provides a new health plan or benefits, or the health benefits or plans change while an 

employee is on FMLA leave, the employee is entitled to the new or changed plan/benefits to the same 

extent as if the employee were not on leave.

For example, if a group health plan changes so that dental care becomes covered under 

the plan, an employee on FMLA leave must be given the same opportunity as other 

employees to receive (or obtain) the dental care coverage. Any other plan changes (e.g., 

in coverage, premiums, deductibles, etc.) which apply to all employees of the workforce 

would also apply to an employee on FMLA leave.

Notice of any opportunity to change plans or benefits must also be given to an employee on FMLA leave.

For example, if the group health plan permits an employee to change from single to 

family coverage upon the birth of a child or otherwise add new family members, such a 

change in benefits must be made available while an employee is on FMLA leave. If the 

employee requests the changed coverage it must be provided by the employer.

An employee may choose not to retain group health plan coverage during FMLA leave. However, when 

an employee returns from leave, the employee is entitled to be reinstated on the same terms as prior 

to taking the leave, including family or dependent coverages, without any qualifying period, physical 

examination, exclusion of pre-existing conditions, etc. 

Except as required by the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986 (COBRA) and for "key 

employees," an employer’s obligation to maintain health benefits during leave ceases only if and when:

• The employment relationship would have terminated if the employee had not taken FMLA leave 

(e.g., if the employee’s position is eliminated as part of a non-discriminatory reduction in force and 

the employee would not have been transferred to another position), 

• The employee informs the employer of his or her intent not to return to work,

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• The employee fails to return from leave, or

• The employee continues on leave after exhausting his or her FMLA leave entitlement in the 

12-month period.

Review section 825.209 of the FMLA regulations for more information about maintenance 

of employee benefits and sections 825.217 -825.219 of the FMLA regulations for more 

information about key employees. 

Multi-Employer Health Plans

A multi-employer health plan is a plan to which more than one employer is required to contribute, and 

which is maintained pursuant to one or more collective bargaining agreements between employee 

organization(s) and the employers. An employer under a multi-employer plan must continue to make 

contributions on behalf of an employee using FMLA leave as though the employee had not taken leave 

(unless the plan contains an explicit FMLA provision for maintaining coverage, such as through pooled 

contributions by all employers party to the plan).

During the duration of an employee's FMLA leave, coverage by the group health plan and benefits 

provided pursuant to the plan must be maintained at the level of coverage and benefits applicable to the 

employee at the time the leave began. An employee using FMLA leave cannot be required to pay a greater 

premium than if he or she had not taken leave.

Review section 825.211 of the FMLA regulations for more information about multi-employer 

health plans. 

Employee Responsibilities

During the FMLA leave period, an employee must continue to pay whatever share of group health 

plan premiums that the employee paid prior to FMLA leave. The employer must provide the employee 

with advance written notice of the terms and conditions under which these payments must be made. If 

premiums are raised or lowered, the employee would be required to pay the new premium rates. 

Maintenance of health insurance policies which are not a part of the employer’s group health plan are the 

sole responsibility of the employee. The employee and the insurer should make necessary arrangements 

for payment of premiums during periods of unpaid FMLA leave.

If the employee is substituting accrued paid leave for the unpaid FMLA leave, the employee's share of 

premiums must be paid by the method normally used during any paid leave, presumably as a payroll 

deduction.

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If FMLA leave is unpaid, the employer may require employees to pay their share of premium payments in 

any of the following ways:

• Payment would be due at the same time as it would be made if by payroll deduction,

• Payment would be due on the same schedule as payments are made under COBRA,

• Payment would be prepaid pursuant to a cafeteria plan at the employee's option,

• Existing rules for payment by employees on “leave without pay” may be followed, provided that such 

rules do not require prepayment of the premiums that will become due during a period of unpaid 

FMLA leave or payment of higher premiums than if the employee had not taken leave; or

• Another system voluntarily agreed to by the employer and the employee.

The employer may require that payment be made to the employer or to the insurance carrier, but no 

additional charge may be added to the employee's premium payment for administrative expenses.

Employee Failure to Pay Health Plan Premium Payment

If an employee’s premium payment is more than 30 days late, an employer may drop the employee’s 

health insurance coverage unless the employer has a policy of allowing a longer grace period. 

In order to drop insurance coverage for an employee whose premium payment is late, an employer 

must provide written notice to the employee that the payment has not been received, and that his or her 

insurance coverage will end at a specified date at least 15 days after the date of the written notice unless 

payment is received by that date. This notice must be mailed to the employee at least 15 days before 

coverage is to cease.

Even when an employer ceases health insurance coverage due to an employee’s failure to pay his or 

her premium payments, all other obligations under the FMLA would continue, including the obligation to 

reinstate the employee upon return from leave to their original position or to an equivalent position, with 

equivalent pay, benefits, terms, and conditions of employment. Equivalent benefits include the same 

level of group health insurance benefits as prior to the leave without any qualifying period, physical 

examination, and the exclusion of pre-existing conditions. If an employer terminates an employee’s health 

insurance in accordance with the FMLA and the employer fails to restore the employee's health insurance 

upon the employee's return, the employer may be liable for:

• Benefits lost by reason of the violation,

• Actual monetary losses sustained as a direct result of the violation, and

• Appropriate equitable relief tailored to the harm suffered.

DID YOU KNOW?

If the employer chooses to maintain health benefits during the leave by paying an employee’s 

share of premiums during the employee’s unpaid FMLA leave, at the conclusion of leave, the 

employer is entitled to recover only the costs incurred for paying the employee’s share of any 

premiums whether or not the employee returns to work.

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Review section 825.212 of the FMLA regulations for more information about an employee’s 

failure to pay health premium payments.

When an Employee Fails to Return to Work 

The employer may recover from an employee its share of health plan premiums paid during the 

employee’s unpaid FMLA leave if the employee fails to return to work after his or her FMLA leave 

entitlement has been exhausted or expires, unless the reason the employee does not return is due to:

• The continuation, recurrence, or onset of a serious health condition of the employee or the 

employee's family member, or a serious injury or illness of a covered servicemember that would 

otherwise entitle the employee to leave under FMLA; or 

• Other circumstances beyond the employee's control.

An employer may require supporting medical certification to confirm the continuation, recurrence, or onset 

of the employee’s or the employee’s family member’s serious health condition. If the employee does not 

provide such certification in a timely manner (within 30 days of the employer’s request) and the reason for 

not returning to work does not meet the test of other circumstances beyond the employee’s control, the 

employer may recover all of the health benefit premiums it paid during the period of unpaid FMLA leave.

Other circumstances beyond the employee's control that prevent an employee from returning to work after 

FMLA leave are necessarily broad. They include such situations as:

• Where a parent chooses to stay home with a newborn child who has a serious health condition,

• An employee's spouse is unexpectedly transferred to a job location more than 75 miles from the 

employee's worksite,

• A relative or individual other than a covered family member has a serious health condition and the 

employee is needed to provide care,

• The employee is laid off while on leave, or 

• The employee is a key employee who decides not to return to work upon being notified of the 

employer’s intention to deny restoration because of substantial and grievous economic injury to its 

operations and is not reinstated. 

Circumstances beyond the employee's control would not include a situation where an employee desires to 

remain with a parent in a distant city even though the parent no longer requires the employee's care, or a 

parent chooses not to return to work to stay home with a well, newborn child.

Under some circumstances, the employer may elect to maintain other benefits (for example, life insurance, 

disability insurance, etc.) by paying the employee's share of premiums during periods of unpaid FMLA 

leave. At the conclusion of the leave, the employer is entitled to recover only the costs incurred for paying 

the employee's share of any premiums, regardless of whether the employee returns to work.

When paid leave is substituted for FMLA leave, the employer may not recover its share of health insurance 

premiums or other non-health benefit premiums for the period covered by paid leave. Additionally, recovery 

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of health insurance premiums does not apply to paid leave provided under a plan covering temporary 

disabilities, including workers' compensation.

When an employee fails to return to work, any health and non-health benefit premiums that the FMLA 

permits the employer to recover are a debt owed by the non-returning employee. The existence of this 

debt does not alter an employer’s responsibilities for health benefit coverage and, under a self-insurance 

plan, payment of claims incurred during the period of FMLA leave.

To the extent recovery is allowed, the employer may recover the costs through deduction from any sums 

due to the employee, provided such deductions do not otherwise violate applicable federal or state wage 

payment or other laws. Alternatively, legal action may be initiated against the employee to recover such costs.

An employee who returns to work for at least 30 calendar days is considered to have "returned" to work 

for the purposes of the FMLA. In addition, an employee who transfers directly from taking FMLA leave to 

retirement, or retires during the first 30 days after returning to work is considered to have returned to work.

Review section 825.213 of the FMLA regulations for more information about when an employee 

fails to return to work and an employer’s recovery of benefits costs.

Restoration

When an employee returns from FMLA leave, he or she must be restored to the same job that the employee 

held when the leave began or to an "equivalent job." The employee is not guaranteed the actual job he or 

she held prior to the leave. An “equivalent job” means a job that is virtually identical to the original job in 

terms of pay, benefits, and other employment terms and conditions (including shift and location). 

Equivalent pay includes the same or equivalent pay premiums, such as a shift differential, and the same 

opportunity for overtime premium pay as the job held prior to FMLA leave. An employee is entitled to any 

unconditional pay increases that occurred while he or she was on FMLA leave, such as cost of living 

increases. In addition, an employer must grant pay increases conditioned upon seniority, length of service, 

or work performed if employees taking the same type of leave (i.e., paid or unpaid leave) for non-FMLA 

reasons receive the increases. Equivalent pay also includes any unconditional bonuses or payments. If 

a bonus is conditioned on achieving a specified goal, such as hours worked or products sold, and the 

employee does not meet the goal due to FMLA leave, payment of the bonus is not required, unless the 

employer pays it to employees taking the same type of leave for a non-FMLA reason. If the employer 

pays the bonus to such employees taking leave for a non-FMLA reason, it must also pay the bonus to an 

employee taking FMLA leave. 

For example, if an employee is substituting accrued paid sick leave for unpaid FMLA 

leave and other employees on paid sick leave are entitled to the bonus, then the employee 

taking FMLA-protected leave concurrently with sick leave must also receive the bonus. 

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Any benefits an employee accrues prior to a period of FMLA leave must be available to the employee 

when he or she returns from leave. These benefits provided to employees must be resumed in the same 

manner and at the same level as when the leave began, subject to any changes in benefit levels affecting 

the entire workforce. An employee returning from FMLA leave cannot be required to requalify for any 

benefits the employee enjoyed before the leave began. 

DID YOU KNOW?

An employer may offer the employee a light duty position; however, the FMLA does not require 

the employee to accept the light duty position rather than take FMLA leave. The employee may 

decline the light duty position and continue on FMLA-protected leave until able to return to the 

same or equivalent job he or she left or until his or her FMLA leave entitlement is exhausted. 

When an employee voluntarily accepts a light duty assignment rather than taking FMLA leave, the 

time the employee works in the light duty assignment does not count as FMLA leave. Additionally, 

the employee has the right to be restored to the same or an equivalent position that the employee 

held at the time the employee’s FMLA leave commenced, provided that the employee is able to 

perform the essential functions of the position. However, an employee’s right to restoration while 

in a light duty assignment expires at the end of the 12-month leave year that the employer uses to 

calculate FMLA leave.

If an employee has used his or her full 12 workweeks of FMLA leave in a 12-month period and then 

voluntarily accepts a light duty position because the employee is unable to resume working in his or 

her original position, the employee no longer has a right under the FMLA to restoration.

Review sections 825.214 and 825.215 of the FMLA regulations for more information about the 

right to reinstatement and section 825.220(d) for more information about light duty assignments.

Limitations on an Employee’s Right to Return to Work

An employee on FMLA leave is not protected from actions that would have affected him or her if the 

employee was not on FMLA leave. 

For example, if a shift has been eliminated, or overtime has been decreased, an employee 

would not be entitled to return to work that shift or the original overtime hours. If an 

employee is laid off during the period of FMLA leave, the employer must be able to show 

that the employee would have been laid off during the FMLA leave period. 

A covered employer may also deny restoration to a “key employee” if necessary to prevent substantial and 

grievous economic injury to its operations. A key employee is a salaried FMLA-eligible employee who is 

among the highest paid 10% of all employees, both eligible and not eligible, within 75 miles of the worksite.

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Review section 825.216 of the FMLA regulations for more information about limitations on an 

employee’s right to reinstatement and section 825.219 for more information about the rights of key 

employees. 

Recordkeeping Requirements and Other Laws

Recordkeeping Requirements

Covered employers subject to the FMLA are required to make, keep, and preserve certain records. 

An employer need not retain the records in any particular form; an employer may maintain the records 

electronically or in any other computer format, as long as all of the required information is included. 

A covered employer must keep records for no less than three years. Employers are not required to submit 

records to the Department of Labor unless specifically requested by a Department official. Employers must 

make records available for inspection, copying, and transcription by representatives of the Department 

upon request. 

Content of Records

Covered employers who employ FMLA-eligible employees must maintain records that include the following:

• Basic payroll and identifying employee data, including:

- Name, address, and occupation,

- Rate or basis of pay and terms of compensation,

- Daily and weekly hours worked each pay period,

- Additions to and deductions from wages, and

- Total compensation paid.

• Dates FMLA leave is taken (which must be designated in the records as FMLA leave), 

• Hours of FMLA leave used if leave is taken in increments of less than a day, 

• Copies of FMLA notices provided by an employee to the employer and by the employer to its 

employees concerning the FMLA (including any written request for leave from the employee as well 

as any required notice provided to the employee concerning FMLA leave),

• Any documents, including electronic records, describing employee benefits or employer policies and 

practices regarding the taking of paid or unpaid leave; 

• Premium payments for employee benefits, and

• Records of any dispute between the employer and an employee regarding the designation of leave as 

FMLA leave, such as emails or other written statements regarding a disagreement on the designation 

of the employee’s FMLA leave request. 

Review section 825.500 of the FMLA regulations for more information about the content of 

records required under the FMLA.

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Covered employers with FMLA-eligible employees who are not subject to the FLSA’s recordkeeping 

regulations for purposes of minimum wage or overtime compliance do not need to keep a record of actual 

hours worked provided that:

• Eligibility for FMLA leave is presumed for any employee who has been employed for at least 12 

months, and 

• With respect to employees who take FMLA leave intermittently or on a reduced schedule, the 

employer and employee agree on the employee’s normal schedule or average hours worked each 

week and reduce that agreement to a written record maintained in the manner required for other 

FMLA-related records. 

Covered employers with no eligible employees need only maintain the basic payroll records and identifying 

employee data.

Confidentiality of Records

Covered employers are required to maintain records and documents relating to FMLA medical 

certifications and recertifications of employees or their family members as confidential medical records. 

Such records are to be maintained in separate files from the usual personnel files. An employer must 

maintain records in conformance with the confidentiality requirements of the Americans with Disabilities 

Act (ADA), as amended, if applicable, and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, if applicable. 

Supervisors and managers may be informed of necessary restrictions on work duties and necessary 

accommodations. First aid and safety personnel may be informed, as appropriate, if the employee’s 

condition might require emergency treatment. Government officials investigating compliance with the 

FMLA (or other pertinent law) shall be provided relevant information upon request.

Review section 825.500(g) of the FMLA regulations for more information about the 

confidentiality of records.

Airline Flight Crew Employees

There are additional recordkeeping requirements for covered employers of airline flight crew employees. 

Covered employers of airline flight crew employees must meet the general FMLA recordkeeping 

requirements. In addition, they are required to maintain records and documents containing information 

specifying the applicable monthly guarantee for each category of employee, including copies of any 

relevant collective bargaining agreements or employer policy documents. They must also maintain records 

of hours worked and hours paid for those employees.

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Review section 825.803 of the FMLA regulations for more information about the recordkeeping 

requirements for employers of airline flight crew employees.

Interaction with Other Federal and State Laws, and an 

Employer’s Policies

The FMLA may apply in addition to or along with other federal laws, state laws, an employer’s policies, or 

a collective bargaining agreement. 

The purpose of the FMLA is to make leave available to eligible employees and not to limit already existing 

rights and protections. If an employer is found in violation of both the FMLA and a state or federal antidiscrimination law, it may be subject to remedies under either or both statutes. Double relief may not 

be awarded for the same loss. However, when remedies overlap, a claimant may be allowed to utilize 

whichever avenue of relief is desired. 

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

The ADA is a civil rights law that prohibits employers from discriminating against qualified individuals 

with disabilities in job application procedures, hiring, firing, advancement, compensation, job training, 

and other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment. If an employee is a qualified individual with 

a disability within the meaning of the ADA, the ADA requires his or her employer to make reasonable 

accommodations, barring undue hardship.

Leave provided as an accommodation under the ADA may run concurrently with FMLA-protected leave. 

However, the FMLA’s leave provisions are very different from the ADA’s reasonable accommodation 

obligations. For example, “disability” under the ADA and “serious health condition” under the FMLA are 

different concepts and must be analyzed separately. An employer must provide leave under whichever 

statutory provision provides the employee with greater rights and protection.

Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA)

The PDA forbids employment discrimination based on pregnancy, including by requiring employers to 

provide the same benefits for women who are pregnant as are provided to other employees with shortterm disabilities. Unlike the FMLA, the PDA does not require employees to be employed for a certain 

period of time to be protected. An employee employed for less than 12 months by the employer (and, 

therefore, not an “eligible” employee under FMLA) may not be denied maternity leave if the employer 

normally provides short-term disability benefits to employees with the same tenure who are experiencing 

other short-term disabilities. 

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Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA)

The COBRA provides for employees who would lose health care coverage because of reduced work 

hours or job termination to continue group health coverage for themselves and their families for limited 

periods of time. Such coverage may become applicable when it becomes known that an employee is not 

returning to employment and ceases to be entitled to FMLA leave.

Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA)

The USERRA requires that returning servicemembers are entitled to receive all rights and benefits of 

employment that they would have obtained if they had been continuously employed.

Under the USERRA, the months and hours the returning servicemember would have worked during the 

USERRA-covered absence must be combined with the servicemember’s months employed and the hours 

actually worked to determine FMLA eligibility.

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule

The HIPAA Privacy Rule governs the privacy of individually-identifiable health information. HIPAA places 

restrictions on the use and disclosure of an individual’s protected health information by covered entities. 

The requirements of HIPAA must be satisfied for a HIPAA-covered health care provider to share 

individually-identifiable health information with an employer. 

Review section 825.702 of the FMLA regulations for more information about the FMLA’s 

interaction with federal anti-discrimination and other laws.

Workers’ Compensation

An employee’s workers’ compensation absence may be due to an on-the-job injury or illness that also 

qualifies as a serious health condition under the FMLA. In this scenario, the workers’ compensation 

absence and FMLA leave may run concurrently. Although an employer may offer the employee a light duty 

position under workers’ compensation rules, the FMLA does not require the employee to accept the light 

duty position. The employee may decline the light duty position and continue on FMLA-protected leave 

until able to return to the same or equivalent job he or she left. If the employee does not accept the light 

duty position, however, he or she may lose workers’ compensation benefits. 

Review sections 825.207(e) of the FMLA regulations for more information about the FMLA’s 

interaction with workers’ compensation.

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Interaction with State Family and Medical Leave Laws

State or local governments may have family and medical leave laws that provide different or more 

expansive rights than the FMLA. Nothing in the FMLA supersedes any provision of state or local law that 

provides greater family or medical leave rights than those provided by the FMLA. 

Employees who are eligible for the FMLA are not required to indicate whether the leave they are taking 

is FMLA leave or leave provided under state law. Employers must comply with the applicable provisions 

under both laws.

If an employee’s absence qualifies for FMLA leave and leave under state law, the leave counts against the 

employee’s entitlement under both laws. If leave qualifies under state law but not the FMLA, it does not 

count against the employee’s FMLA entitlement.

For example, if a state law provides 6 weeks of leave to care for a seriously ill parent-in-law, and the leave 

was used for that purpose, the employee is still entitled to the full federal FMLA leave entitlement because 

the leave used was provided for a purpose not protected by the FMLA.

The Wage and Hour Division does not enforce state family and medical leave laws and states do not 

enforce the federal FMLA.

Review section 825.701 of the FMLA regulations for more information about and examples of 

the FMLA’s interaction with state laws.

Interaction with an Employer’s Policies

Employers may adopt, retain, or amend leave policies, including policies that provide more generous 

leave, as long as they comply with the FMLA. The terms of any employment practice, policy, benefit 

program, or plan, including a collective bargaining agreement (CBA), may not reduce or deny FMLA 

benefits and protections. Employers must ensure that they provide FMLA-eligible employees with the 

benefits and protections afforded them under the FMLA. 

Review section 825.700 of the FMLA regulations for more information about the FMLA’s 

interaction with an employer’s policies.

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The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 71

Employers are prohibited from interfering with, restraining, or denying the exercise of, or the attempt to 

exercise, any FMLA right.

Any violations of the FMLA or the Department’s regulations constitute interfering with, restraining, or 

denying the exercise of rights provided by the FMLA. Examples include:

• Refusing to authorize FMLA leave, or

• Discouraging an employee from using such leave 

Interference also includes manipulation to avoid responsibilities under the FMLA. Examples include:

• Transferring employees from one worksite to another for the purpose of keeping a worksite below 

the 50-employee threshold for employee eligibility under the Act,

• Changing the essential functions of the job in order to preclude the taking of leave, or

• Manipulating an employee’s work hours to avoid employee eligibility under the FMLA.

Employers are prohibited from discriminating or retaliating against an employee or prospective employee 

for having exercised or attempting to exercise any FMLA right. Examples include:

• Using the taking of FMLA leave as a negative factor in employment actions, such as hiring, 

promotions, or disciplinary actions;

• Counting FMLA leave under “no fault” attendance policies, or

• Failing to provide benefits to an employee on unpaid FMLA leave if the employer provides those 

benefits to employees who use other types of unpaid leave.

Employers are prohibited from discharging or in any other way discriminating against any person, whether 

or not an employee, for opposing or complaining about any unlawful practice under the FMLA. 

All persons, whether or not employers, are prohibited from discharging or in any other way discriminating 

against any person, whether or not an employee, because that person has:

• Filed any charge, has instituted, or caused to be instituted, any proceeding under or related to the 

FMLA;

• Given, or is about to give, any information in connection with an inquiry or proceeding relating to any 

right under the FMLA; or

• Testified, or is about to testify, in any inquiry or proceeding relating to a right under the FMLA.

To contact the nearest Wage and Hour Division office, visit dol.gov/whd/america2.htm

Review section 825.220 of the FMLA regulations for more information about prohibited acts 

under the FMLA.

FMLA PROHIBITIONS

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72 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

12-months of employment, 16

12-month leave year, 36, 51, 65

Calendar year, 51

Fixed 12-month periods, 51

12-month period measured forward, 44, 51

12-month period measured backward, 51

1,250 hours of service, 17

Special rule for airline flight crew employees, 19

50 employees within 75 miles, 17

Telework / Flexi-place arrangements, 17

Worksite, 17, 18

Absence to receive multiple treatments, 25, 26

Adult son or daughter, 24, 42

Airline flight crew employee, 57

1,250 hours of service, 19

Calculation of leave, 55

Recordkeeping requirements, 66

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 24, 67, 68

Annual medical certification, 36

Authentication, 34, 35, 40, 46

Bonuses, 64

Calculating FMLA leave, 55

Airline flight crew employees, 57

FMLA and other paid leaves, 58

Holidays and FMLA leave, 17, 55

Intermittent leave, 55

Reduced schedule leave, 55

Substitution of paid leave, 57

Unpaid leave for salaried employees, 58

Certification, 28

Annual medical certification, 36

Authentication, 34, 35, 40, 46

Certification for qualifying exigency leave, 40

Certification for military caregiver leave, 46

Circumstances when an employer may require certification, 29

Clarification, 34, 35, 40

Complete and sufficient medical certification, 30, 32

Failure to submit, 33

Fitness-for-duty certification, 49

Incomplete or insufficient medical certification, 33

Medical certification, 29

Medical certification from abroad, 34

Medical certification notice and timing, 29

Recertification, 35

Second and third opinions, 35

Chronic conditions, 25, 26

Clarification, 34, 35, 40, 46

Collective bargaining agreements (CBA), 68, 70

Complete and sufficient medical certification, 30, 32

Conditions requiring multiple treatments, 25, 26

Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), 60, 62, 69

Contingency operation, 37

Continuing treatment by a health care provider, 25, 26

Incapacity plus treatment, 26

Pregnancy, 23, 26, 68

Chronic conditions, 26

INDEX
The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 73

Permanent long-term conditions, 26

Absence to receive multiple treatments, 26

Covered active duty, 23, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 54

Covered employer, 9

Covered servicemember, 23, 37, 41, 42, 46, 53, 57

Current servicemember, 41, 43

Veteran servicemember, 40, 41, 43

Deployment, 37, 38, 40

Designation Notice, 47

Contents of the Designation Notice, 48

Employer’s obligation, 47

Fitness, 49

Retroactive designation, 50

Documenting the family relationship, 25

Eligible employee, 16

Eligibility Notice, 20

Contents of the Eligibility Notice, 20

Employer’s obligation, 20

Employee, 9

Employee’s Notice, 14, 15

Content, 14

Timing of leave that is foreseeable, 14

Timing of leave that is unforeseeable, 15

Federal government, 10

Fitness-for-duty certification, 49

General notice, 12, 13

Posting requirement, 12

Providing general notice to employees, 13

Group health plan, 59 

Employer responsibilities, 60

Employee responsibilities, 61

Employee failure to pay health plan premium payment, 62

Employer recovery of benefit costs, 63

When an employee fails to return to work, 63

Health care provider, 29 

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule, 34, 69

Holidays and FMLA leave, 17, 55

Immediate family members, 24

Adult son or daughter, 24, 42

Documenting the family relationship, 25

In loco parentis, 25

Parent, 24, 41

Spouse, 24, 41

Son or daughter, 24, 41

Incapable of self-care, 25, 26

Incapacity plus treatment, 25, 26

Incomplete or insufficient medical certification, 33

Increments of FMLA Leave certification, 55, 56

In loco parentis, 25

Inpatient care, 25, 26

Interference, 20, 33, 48, 71

Integrated employers, 11

Interaction with other federal and state laws, and an employer’s policies, 68 

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 24, 68

Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA), 68

Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), 69

INDEX
74 The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule, 69

Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA), 68

Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Act (USERRA), 16, 17, 69

Workers’ compensation, 69

Intermittent leave, 31, 32, 48, 52, 55, 56

Joint Employers, 11

Key Employee, 21, 60, 63, 65

Light duty positions, 65, 69

Military family leave, 24, 28, 29, 37, 40, 46

Qualifying exigency leave, 37, 38, 39, 40

Military caregiver leave, 41

Military caregiver leave, 23, 24, 37, 41, 43, 46, 52, 53, 57

A “single 12-month period”, 41, 44

Certification for military caregiver leave, 46

Covered servicemember, 41

Qualifying family members who can take military caregiver leave, 42

Serious injury or illness, 23, 37, 41, 43, 46, 52, 53, 57

Multi-employer health plans, 61

Employee responsibilities, 61

Employee failure to pay health plan premium payment, 62

Employer recovery of benefit costs, 63

When an employee fails to return to work, 63

Next of kin, 23, 37, 41, 42, 43, 53

Parent, 24

Parent of a covered servicemember, 42

Permanent long-term conditions, 26

Posting requirement, 12

Pregnancy, 26

Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA), 68

Private sector employer, 9

Prohibitions, 71

Public agency, 9, 10, 18, 19

Qualifying exigency, 24, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41

Certification for qualifying exigency leave, 40, 41

Deployment, 37

Qualifying exigencies categories, 38

Regular Armed Forces, 37

Reserve components of the Armed Forces, 37

Recordkeeping requirements, 66 

Airline flight crew employees, 67

Confidentiality of records, 67

Content of records, 66

Recertification, 35, 40, 46

Reduced leave schedule, 31, 52, 55

Regular Armed Forces, 37

Reserve components of the Armed Forces, 37

Restoration, 21, 49, 64, 65

Limitation on an employee’s right to return to work, 65

Retroactive designation, 50

Rights and Responsibilities Notice, 21, 22, 29, 57

Contents of Rights and Responsibilities Notice, 21

Schools, 10

Coverage, 10

Employee eligibility, 18

Intermittent or reduced schedule leave, 31, 32, 48, 52, 55, 56

Second and third opinions, 35, 40, 46

INDEX
The Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act 75

Serious health condition, 25

Inpatient care, 25, 26, 27

Continuing treatment, 25, 26

Serious injury or illness, 43

Son or daughter, 24, 42

Son or daughter on covered active duty or call to covered active duty, 38

Spouse, 24, 42

Spouses working for the same employer, 53, 54

Substitution of paid leave, 57

FMLA and other paid leaves, 58

Workers’ compensation, 48, 58

Successor employer, 12

Transfer to an alternative position, 53

Treatment, 25, 26

Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), 16, 17, 69

Unpaid leave for salaried employees, 58

Veteran, 41, 43 

Workers’ compensation, 48, 58, 69

Workers’ compensation and light duty positions, 65, 69

INDEX
WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

WH 1421