You can only opt out of New York Paid Family Leave if your work schedule is too short to ever qualify for benefits. The state allows no religious, financial, or personal exemption. If you work 20 or more hours a week but will not be with your employer for 26 consecutive weeks, or you work under 20 hours a week and will not log 175 days in a 52-week period, you can file a waiver and stop the deduction. Everyone else pays in automatically.1Cornell Law Institute. New York Comp Codes R and Regs Tit 12 380-2.6 – Family Leave Waiver
Who Qualifies for a Waiver
New York regulation 12 NYCRR ยง 380-2.6 limits waiver eligibility to two categories of workers whose schedules make them ineligible to collect PFL benefits in the first place:1Cornell Law Institute. New York Comp Codes R and Regs Tit 12 380-2.6 – Family Leave Waiver
- You work a regular schedule of 20 or more hours per week but will not be employed by this employer for 26 consecutive weeks. Seasonal hires, temporary staff, and workers brought on for a defined project typically fit here.
- You work fewer than 20 hours per week and will not work 175 days within a 52-consecutive-week period for this employer.
If neither description fits you, you cannot opt out. There is no hardship exemption, no religious exemption, and no option to decline because you do not expect to use the benefit. Filing a waiver is a choice even for workers who qualify; an eligible employee who does not file one keeps paying contributions and keeps the right to benefits once eligible.1Cornell Law Institute. New York Comp Codes R and Regs Tit 12 380-2.6 – Family Leave Waiver
How to File the Waiver
The paperwork is a single page called the “Employee Opt-Out of Paid Family Leave Benefits” form, PFL-WAIVER.2New York State Workers’ Compensation Board. PFL-WAIVER – Employee Opt-Out of Paid Family Leave Benefits Your employer should give it to you, and it is also available as a PDF on the New York Paid Family Leave website.3Paid Family Leave. PFL Waiver Form
You will need your full legal name, Social Security number, your employer’s name and business address, and details about your schedule, including the average hours and days you have worked per week over the last eight weeks.2New York State Workers’ Compensation Board. PFL-WAIVER – Employee Opt-Out of Paid Family Leave Benefits Complete every field and sign it. Return the signed form to your employer, who is required to keep it on file for the duration of your employment and produce it on request from the Workers’ Compensation Board.1Cornell Law Institute. New York Comp Codes R and Regs Tit 12 380-2.6 – Family Leave Waiver
Once payroll processes the waiver, the PFL line item should drop off your next full pay cycle. Check your stubs to confirm. If deductions continue past a full pay period, raise it with payroll.
What Happens If Your Schedule Changes
A waiver is only good as long as your schedule stays below the thresholds that qualified you to file it. If your hours increase or your employment runs longer than you originally expected, the waiver is automatically revoked within eight weeks of the change that pushes you past the threshold.1Cornell Law Institute. New York Comp Codes R and Regs Tit 12 380-2.6 – Family Leave Waiver You can also revoke the waiver voluntarily at any point if you decide you want coverage.4Paid Family Leave. Cost and Deductions
Revocation is where opting out can get expensive. Your employer starts withholding PFL contributions right away, but the obligation does not begin on the revocation date. You owe back contributions all the way to your date of hire.2New York State Workers’ Compensation Board. PFL-WAIVER – Employee Opt-Out of Paid Family Leave Benefits The employer can collect that balance through payroll deductions.5Paid Family Leave. Employer Responsibilities and Resources There is no cap on how far back the lookback reaches. If you worked under a waiver for a year and your schedule changed, you owe for the full year.
You and your employer share responsibility for watching your hours. If your schedule starts creeping toward either threshold, it is worth flagging early rather than absorbing a lump-sum catch-up withholding later.
What You Would Be Giving Up
A waiver forfeits your right to collect PFL benefits for as long as it is in effect. Paid Family Leave provides up to 12 weeks of job-protected, partially paid time off in a 52-week period for bonding with a new child, caring for a close family member with a serious health condition, or handling qualifying needs tied to a family member’s active military deployment abroad.6Paid Family Leave. New York Paid Family Leave Updates for 2026 The benefit pays 67% of your average weekly wage up to a maximum of $1,228.53 per week in 2026, and your employer must hold your position or an equivalent one while you are out.7Paid Family Leave. Wage Benefits Calculator Most people who file waivers are genuine short-term workers who would never become eligible anyway, so the trade costs them nothing in practice. If there is any realistic chance you will stay long enough to qualify, think carefully before signing.
Self-Employed Workers
If you are self-employed in New York, there is nothing to opt out of. Coverage is not automatic and no PFL deduction is being taken. Participation is voluntary, and opting in requires purchasing a combined PFL and disability insurance policy from a licensed carrier; you cannot buy PFL coverage on its own.8Paid Family Leave. Self-Employed Individuals
If you already opted in and want to drop coverage, a self-employed individual without employees can cancel the policy. Reversing that decision later is harder: a future carrier may ask why you cancelled and may impose a waiting period before writing a new policy.8Paid Family Leave. Self-Employed Individuals Saving a few hundred dollars now can translate into a long gap in coverage if your circumstances change.