The DE 2525XFA is California’s Paid Family Leave supplemental claim certification, the form the Employment Development Department sends you when your initial PFL caregiving benefits are ending but the family member you’re caring for still needs you. You complete the claimant’s section, the care recipient’s treating medical provider completes the certification, and you return the form to EDD within 20 days of the date printed on it to claim any remaining weeks within your 12-month benefit window.1Employment Development Department. Paid Family Leave – Continue or Stop Your Benefits
When the DE 2525XFA Is the Right Form
Four things need to be true. You filed a PFL caregiving claim. Your initial benefit period is ending. You still have unused weeks within your 12-month claim window. And the family member you’re caring for still needs your help. EDD mails the form to you automatically along with your Notice of Final Payment so you can request continued benefits without starting over with a new claim.2Employment Development Department. Paid Family Leave – Manage Benefits
PFL provides up to eight weeks of benefits within any 12-month period. The DE 2525XFA lets you use weeks you didn’t claim initially; it cannot push you past that eight-week ceiling.3Employment Development Department. Calculating Paid Family Leave Benefit Payment Amounts When your extension is approved, payments resume at the same weekly amount already set for your claim.
A few near-neighbor situations use different forms. If you’re a new mother moving from a pregnancy-related Disability Insurance claim to bonding leave, EDD sends the DE 2501FP, which starts a new bonding claim.4Employment Development Department. Paid Family Leave Claim Process If you’re trying to extend a bonding claim, you use the DE 2504RE or file a new DE 2501F. The DE 2525XFA is only for extending a caregiving claim.1Employment Development Department. Paid Family Leave – Continue or Stop Your Benefits
What to Have Ready Before You Start
Pull these together before you sit down with the form:
- Your Social Security Number and your 10-digit EDD Customer Account Number, which appears on EDD correspondence.
- The care recipient’s full name and your relationship to them (spouse, parent, child, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, or domestic partner).
- Your anticipated return-to-work date.
- Contact information for the care recipient’s treating medical provider, since they need to complete the second half.
If EDD delivered the form electronically, you can access it through SDI Online. If you lost the paper copy, request a replacement through AskEDD or call 1-877-238-4373.1Employment Development Department. Paid Family Leave – Continue or Stop Your Benefits
Completing the Claimant’s Section
Verify your name, address, and contact details so EDD can reach you if something needs correcting. In the PFL Claimant’s Certification, select the box that matches your claim type. Enter the additional days or weeks you’re requesting and your anticipated return-to-work date.
Recheck your Social Security Number and EDD Customer Account Number before you hand the form off. Transposed digits are one of the most common reasons for processing delays. Once your section is complete, give the form to the care recipient’s treating provider for the physician’s certification.1Employment Development Department. Paid Family Leave – Continue or Stop Your Benefits
The Medical Provider’s Certification
The second half is completed by a licensed health professional treating the person you’re caring for. The provider describes the family member’s current medical condition and estimates how much longer your care is needed. That estimate is what EDD uses to set the new end date for your benefits.5California Legislative Information. California Unemployment Insurance Code 2708
The certification has to come from someone who qualifies under California law. Under Unemployment Insurance Code Section 2708, a “physician” includes any doctor holding an M.D. or D.O. degree, along with psychologists, acupuncturists, optometrists, dentists, podiatrists, and chiropractors licensed in California.6California Legislative Information. California Labor Code 3209.3 “Practitioner” separately covers nurse practitioners (after a physical exam and physician collaboration), physician assistants under physician supervision, and midwives or nurse-midwives for pregnancy-related conditions.5California Legislative Information. California Unemployment Insurance Code 2708
Missing provider signatures and blank fields in this section are the most common causes of delay, so confirm the provider has signed and dated before the form leaves their office.
Submitting the Form
You have two options. If the care recipient’s provider participates in EDD’s electronic system, you can complete your portion in SDI Online and the provider can submit the certification directly.7Employment Development Department. SDI Online
For paper submissions, make a photocopy of the signed form and mail it to:
Employment Development Department
P.O. Box 989315
West Sacramento, CA 95798-93158Employment Development Department. How to File a Paid Family Leave Claim by Mail
Return the form within 20 days of the date printed on it. Miss that window and your benefits will stop on the date originally estimated in your initial claim.1Employment Development Department. Paid Family Leave – Continue or Stop Your Benefits
After You Submit
EDD takes about 14 days to process a properly completed claim once the medical certification arrives.9Employment Development Department. It’s Now Easier to Check Your Disability or Paid Family Leave Claim Status Watch SDI Online or your mail for updates. If EDD posts a request for more information, respond right away to avoid a gap in payments.
If the extension is approved, payments continue at your existing weekly benefit amount without interruption, provided you filed before your prior benefits ran out.10Employment Development Department. Paid Family Leave Benefits and Payments FAQs
Two Things the Form Does Not Do
PFL is wage replacement. It does not require your employer to hold your job open. Job protection comes from separate laws: the California Family Rights Act and the federal Family and Medical Leave Act. CFRA covers employees who have worked for the employer at least 12 months and 1,250 hours where the employer has five or more employees, and it provides up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave per year.11California Civil Rights Department. Family Care and Medical Leave: Quick Reference Guide FMLA applies to employers with 50 or more employees within a 75-mile radius. Confirm your job protection separately; extending PFL benefits does not extend a right to reinstatement.
PFL benefits are also taxable federal income. EDD reports the amount paid during the tax year on Form 1099-G, sent by late January.12Employment Development Department. Tax Information (Form 1099G) California does not tax PFL at the state level. EDD does not automatically withhold federal tax from your payments.
Overpayment Risk
If you end up receiving benefits you weren’t entitled to, whether because a medical estimate overstated the need, your circumstances changed and you didn’t report the change, or dates were entered incorrectly, EDD classifies the excess as an overpayment and will require repayment. Honest mistakes create a straightforward repayment obligation. If EDD finds you intentionally provided false information, the overpayment is treated as fraud, which carries a 30 percent penalty on top of the amount owed and can disqualify you from benefits for up to 23 weeks. Unpaid overpayments can eventually become court judgments with added interest and costs.13Employment Development Department. Unemployment Overpayments and Penalties Report any change in the care recipient’s condition or your return-to-work plans to EDD as soon as it happens.