Yes. New Jersey does have paid family leave, through a state program called Family Leave Insurance (FLI). It pays up to 85% of your average weekly wage, capped at $1,119 per week in 2026, for up to 12 weeks while you bond with a new child, care for a seriously ill family member, or deal with domestic or sexual violence.1State of New Jersey. FAQ: Family Leave Insurance The money comes from employee payroll deductions, not from your employer, and the state cuts the check. One important catch: FLI replaces your wages, but it does not guarantee your job will be waiting when you return. That protection comes from a separate law.
What FLI Pays and for How Long
Your weekly benefit is 85% of your average weekly wage, up to the annual cap. In 2026 the maximum is $1,119 per week.2Department of Labor and Workforce Development. NJ Department of Labor and Workforce Development Announces New Benefit Rates for 2026 Earn $1,000 a week and your benefit is $850. Earn $1,500 a week and the cap kicks in, so your benefit stops at $1,119 instead of the calculated $1,275.
How much time you can draw depends on how you structure the leave:1State of New Jersey. FAQ: Family Leave Insurance
- Taken in one continuous stretch, up to 12 weeks of benefits within a 12-month period.
- Taken intermittently — a day here, a week there — up to 56 individual days (the equivalent of eight weeks) within a 12-month period.
Unlike the state’s Temporary Disability Insurance, FLI has no waiting week. Benefits are payable from your first day of leave.3State of New Jersey. The Waiting Week for Temporary Disability, Explained You cannot collect FLI at the same time as Temporary Disability, unemployment compensation, or full pay from your employer through sick or vacation time.4Justia. New Jersey Code 43:21-39.1
Who Qualifies
Eligibility is based on what you earned during a “base year” — generally the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you file. If you don’t qualify on that window, the state also looks at two alternatives: the four most recent completed quarters, or the current quarter plus the three before it.5Cornell Law Institute. NJ Admin Code 12:17-5.2 – Alternative Base Years
For 2026, you need to clear one of two earnings thresholds during your base year:6State of New Jersey. Family Leave Insurance
- At least $310 per week in 20 or more calendar weeks, or
- A combined total of at least $15,500 across the four base-year quarters.
Most private-sector employees in New Jersey are covered automatically through regular payroll contributions. Public-sector workers may be covered if their government employer has opted into the program or if coverage was negotiated through a collective bargaining agreement. Part-time workers qualify as long as they meet the same earnings thresholds.
What You Can Take Leave For
FLI covers three categories of family situations:1State of New Jersey. FAQ: Family Leave Insurance
- Bonding with a newborn, newly adopted child, or newly placed foster child. The leave must be used within the first 12 months after the birth or placement.
- Caring for a family member with a serious health condition, documented by a healthcare provider.
- Handling matters tied to domestic violence or a sexually violent offense against you or a family member.
“Family member” is defined broadly. It covers the expected list — spouses, children, parents, siblings, grandparents, in-laws — and also domestic partners, civil union partners, anyone related by blood, and anyone who has a relationship with you that is the equivalent of a family bond.7NJ Attorney General’s Office. New Jersey Family Leave Act Frequently Asked Questions You do not have to live with the person for them to count.
FLI Is a Check, Not Job Protection
This trips a lot of people up. Receiving FLI benefits does not require your employer to hold your position open while you are out.1State of New Jersey. FAQ: Family Leave Insurance Job protection comes from different laws with their own eligibility rules — chiefly the New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA) and the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
The NJFLA currently applies to employers with 30 or more employees worldwide and provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave within a 24-month period.8NJ Attorney General’s Office. New Jersey Family Leave Act Starting July 17, 2026, that threshold drops to 15 or more employees, pulling many more workplaces under the law. To qualify, you must have worked for the employer for at least 12 months and logged at least 1,000 hours during that time.7NJ Attorney General’s Office. New Jersey Family Leave Act Frequently Asked Questions
Even at a workplace too small for the NJFLA, your employer still cannot retaliate against you for filing an FLI claim or taking approved leave. If they do, you can pursue private legal action.9State of New Jersey. Job Protection Information The practical point: if your employer has fewer than 15 employees (or fewer than 30, before July 2026), you may receive the wage replacement without any guarantee your exact position will be waiting on your return. FMLA protection, where it applies, is a separate step you handle directly with your employer.
Taxes on Your Benefits
FLI benefits are subject to federal income tax but exempt from New Jersey state income tax.1State of New Jersey. FAQ: Family Leave Insurance You can elect on your application to have 10% of each payment withheld for federal taxes. If you skip it, set money aside yourself; the IRS still expects its share, and an unexpected April bill after an already tight leave period is unpleasant. At the end of each year, the state makes a 1099-G form available online showing the total benefits paid.
How to File Your Claim
Before you start the application, gather:
- Your Social Security number
- Recent pay stubs
- Contact information for every employer you’ve worked for in the past 18 months, including part-time jobs
- For caregiving claims, a healthcare provider’s certification of the family member’s condition
- For bonding claims, proof of birth, adoption paperwork, or foster placement documentation
The application form is the FL-1, Application for Family Leave Insurance Benefits.10NJIT/Division of Temporary Disability Insurance. Application for Family Leave Insurance Benefits (FL-1) The quickest route is the state’s online My Leave Benefits portal, where you create an account, complete the application, upload documents, and get a confirmation number to track the claim.
If you’d rather use paper, fax your completed FL-1 and supporting documents to 609-984-4138, or mail them to the Division of Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance, PO Box 387, Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0387.11State of New Jersey. Division of Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance Contact Us Put your Social Security number on every page. Online claims typically move faster, but either way expect roughly two to four weeks for the state to review your application once all documents are in.
Notice to Your Employer
You’re expected to give your employer advance notice before taking leave. The required window depends on the type of leave:7NJ Attorney General’s Office. New Jersey Family Leave Act Frequently Asked Questions
- Continuous bonding leave: at least 30 days.
- Intermittent bonding leave: at least 15 days.
- Continuous caregiving leave: notice in a “reasonable and practicable” manner, with no fixed day count, since a serious illness does not always announce itself.
- Intermittent caregiving leave: at least 15 days.
In emergencies, give as much notice as circumstances allow. Missing a notice window will not automatically sink your FLI claim, but it can strain the relationship with your employer and weaken any job-protection claim you later make under the NJFLA.