How to Apply for FMLA in Connecticut and CT Paid Leave

To apply for FMLA in Connecticut, you file in two places: with your employer, for job protection, and with the Connecticut Paid Leave Authority, for wage replacement of up to $1,016.40 per week.¹ The two systems have different eligibility rules, different paperwork, and different deadlines, and getting benefits usually means completing both.

Two Applications, One Leave

Federal FMLA and the Connecticut Family and Medical Leave Act (CTFMLA) protect your job. Neither pays you. The Connecticut Paid Family and Medical Leave program (CTPFML) is what pays you, and it’s a separate claim filed with a separate agency.²

When your leave qualifies under both federal and state law, the two job-protection periods run at the same time, so you’re not stacking 12 weeks on top of 12.³ But the paid leave application is always its own filing, whether or not federal FMLA also covers you.

Check Which Programs Cover You

Before you start paperwork, figure out which of the three programs you qualify for. You might qualify for all three, or just for the state pieces.

Federal FMLA requires 12 months of employment with your current employer, 1,250 hours in the previous 12 months, and an employer with 50 or more employees within 75 miles of your worksite.⁴
CTFMLA requires three months of employment, and applies to any Connecticut employer with at least one worker.
CTPFML requires that you earned at least $2,325 in the highest quarter of your base period (the first four of the five most recently completed calendar quarters), and that you’re currently employed by a covered employer or were within the 12 weeks before your leave began.⁵

If you work for a small Connecticut employer, don’t stop at the federal rules. You can be too small for federal FMLA and still fully covered by CTFMLA and CTPFML. Connecticut’s family-member definition is also broader than the federal one, reaching siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, parents-in-law, and people whose relationship to you is the equivalent of family.³ Organ and bone marrow donation also qualify under CTFMLA even though they don’t under federal law.⁶ Pregnancy-related incapacity can add up to two weeks on top of the standard 12.²

Step 1: Notify Your Employer

Start with your employer. If the reason for your leave is foreseeable — a scheduled surgery, an expected due date, a planned adoption — give at least 30 days’ notice.⁷ If it isn’t foreseeable, give notice as soon as you reasonably can.⁴

You don’t have to use the words “FMLA” or “CTFMLA.” Your employer just needs enough information to recognize the leave might qualify: the reason, when it starts, and roughly how long you’ll be out. Saying to your supervisor “I’m having surgery next month and I expect to be out about six weeks” is enough to trigger the process.

Once you’ve given notice, your employer has five business days to send you an eligibility notice telling you whether you qualify and spelling out your rights and responsibilities.⁸ If they don’t send it, that doesn’t cost you your leave rights.

For planned medical treatment, you’re also expected to make a reasonable effort to schedule it so it doesn’t unnecessarily disrupt your employer’s operations, as long as your doctor agrees.⁷

Step 2: Get Your Medical Certification

Your employer can require a medical certification from your healthcare provider. The Department of Labor publishes optional forms — WH-380-E for your own serious health condition and WH-380-F for a family member’s — and your employer may accept those or hand you an internal form. Either way, they can’t ask for more information than federal regulations allow.⁹

The certification needs to state the approximate start date and expected duration of the condition, enough medical facts to support the need for leave, and either that you can’t perform your job functions (for your own condition) or that your family member needs care. Your doctor does not have to give a specific diagnosis. Expect to pay roughly $25 to $75 out of pocket for the provider to fill out the paperwork.

Your employer must keep the certification confidential and store it separately from your regular personnel file. Supervisors can be told you need time off or have work restrictions, but not your medical details.¹⁰

Step 3: File Your CT Paid Leave Claim

Wage replacement is a separate application filed with the CT Paid Leave Authority. You can file through the online portal or by mail; the portal lets you upload documents, track status, and gives you a timestamp on your submission.¹

Attach documentation that matches the reason for your leave: medical certification, a birth certificate, adoption or foster placement paperwork, or military orders.¹ The dates and details on your state application should match what you gave your employer. Inconsistencies between the two are a common reason a claim gets pulled for extra review.

What Happens After You File

Once your employer has enough information to make a determination, they have five business days to issue a designation notice. That notice tells you whether the leave is approved, how much time it will count against your FMLA entitlement, and whether the employer is requiring you to use paid time off during the leave.⁸

The CT Paid Leave Authority reviews your benefits claim separately. They may ask for additional documentation or clarification before issuing an approval or denial.

How Much CT Paid Leave Pays

Your weekly benefit is based on your average weekly wage, calculated by adding your two highest-earning quarters in the base period and dividing by 26.¹ The formula pays:

95% of your average weekly wage if that wage is $677.60 or less (40 times Connecticut’s 2026 minimum wage of $16.94).
95% of $677.60 plus 60% of the amount above $677.60 if you earn more than that.
No more than $1,016.40 per week, the program cap (60 times the state minimum wage).

Because the thresholds are tied to the minimum wage, they adjust when the minimum wage changes.

Taking Leave Intermittently

You don’t have to take the leave in one block. If your condition requires it, you can take it in smaller pieces: a few hours for weekly treatments, a day at a time for flare-ups, or a reduced schedule during recovery. Intermittent leave has to be medically necessary and supported by your certification.¹¹

You only give notice once for intermittent leave, but update your employer as soon as scheduled dates change or new dates come up. Where planned treatment is involved, work with your employer on scheduling to the extent your doctor allows.

Coordinating With Other Pay

You cannot receive CT Paid Leave at the same time as workers’ compensation, unemployment, or other state or federal wage-replacement benefits.¹² You can combine CT Paid Leave with employer-provided benefits like accrued PTO or short-term disability, but the combined total can’t exceed 100% of your regular pay.

Some employers require you to run PTO concurrently with FMLA. If your employer also offers short-term disability, ask HR how the two coordinate before your leave starts, so your first paycheck during leave isn’t a surprise.

If Your Claim Is Denied

If the CT Paid Leave Authority denies your benefits claim, you have 21 calendar days from the date on the denial to file an appeal. A mailed appeal has to be postmarked by that 21st day. Late appeals are accepted only for good cause.¹³ Don’t sit on a denial letter — that window is tight.

If your employer denies leave you’re entitled to, retaliates against you for taking it, or refuses to restore your position, you can file a complaint with the Connecticut Department of Labor or bring an action in Superior Court under CTFMLA.¹⁴ For federal FMLA violations, complaints go to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.

1
Connecticut Paid Leave. Before You Apply
2
Connecticut Paid Leave. How CT Paid Leave Works
3
CT.gov. FMLA FAQs
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC Ch. 28 – Family and Medical Leave
5
Connecticut Paid Leave. Coverage and Eligibility
6
CT.gov. Family and Medical Leave Entitlements Manual
7
CT.gov. Connecticut General Statute Section 31-51ll
8
eCFR. 29 CFR 825.300 – Employer Notice Requirements
9
eCFR. 29 CFR 825.306 – Content of Medical Certification for Leave Taken Because of a Serious Health Condition
10
U.S. Department of Labor. FMLA Frequently Asked Questions
11
eCFR. 29 CFR 825.302 – Employee Notice Requirements for Foreseeable FMLA Leave
12
Connecticut Paid Leave. Guide for Workers
13
CT.gov. CT Paid Leave Appeals FAQs
14
CT.gov. Connecticut Family and Medical Leave Act