New Jersey Maternity Leave: TDI, FLI, FMLA, and NJFLA

New Jersey maternity leave isn’t a single benefit. It’s four programs that layer together, and most eligible employees can string them into roughly 22 to 24 weeks off with pay for most of that time and a job to come back to. State Temporary Disability Insurance covers pregnancy and childbirth recovery, Family Leave Insurance pays for bonding, and two job-protection laws (one federal, one state) hold your position. In 2026, the cash benefits replace 85% of your average weekly wage up to $1,119 a week.¹

The Four Programs at a Glance

Two programs pay you. Two protect your job. They’re separate, and mixing them up is the most common mistake.

Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI) pays cash while you’re physically unable to work because of pregnancy and delivery recovery.
Family Leave Insurance (FLI) pays cash for up to 12 weeks of bonding with a new child.
Federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) protects your job for up to 12 weeks in a 12-month period, covering both your recovery and bonding time.
New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA) protects your job for up to 12 weeks in a 24-month period, but only for bonding or caregiving. It does not cover your own pregnancy or recovery.²

TDI and FLI put money in your pocket. They do not, by themselves, guarantee your employer holds your position open. That guarantee comes from FMLA and NJFLA.³

Pay During Pregnancy and Recovery: TDI

TDI starts when your doctor certifies you can no longer work because of pregnancy. Benefits are usually payable up to four weeks before your expected delivery date and six weeks after a vaginal delivery or eight weeks after a cesarean. If your doctor certifies complications, TDI can continue past those standard windows.⁴

For an uncomplicated pregnancy, expect roughly 10 to 12 total weeks of TDI benefits between the pre- and post-delivery periods.⁴ The 2026 rate is 85% of your average weekly wage, capped at $1,119 per week.¹

Pay for Bonding: FLI

Once your doctor clears you, TDI ends and you can transition to FLI. FLI provides up to 12 continuous weeks of cash benefits within a 12-month period for bonding with a newborn, adopted, or foster child, and the leave must begin before the child’s first birthday.⁵ If you received TDI, the state mails you a form with instructions for applying to FLI online.

FLI pays the same rate as TDI: 85% of your average weekly wage, capped at $1,119 per week in 2026.¹ Both parents can claim FLI to bond with the same child.

Taking FLI in Pieces

You don’t have to take FLI all at once. Intermittent leave gives you 56 individual days (eight weeks) spread across the year instead of 12 continuous weeks. Days are counted on a seven-day-week schedule, so taking a full work week uses seven days from your bank, not five.⁶

For partial weeks, you receive one-seventh of your weekly benefit per day. On a $980 weekly rate, each day pays $140.⁶ The trade-off: continuous leave gives you 84 days of benefits; intermittent gives you 56.

Job Protection: FMLA and NJFLA

FMLA covers your physical recovery from childbirth and your bonding time, for up to 12 weeks in a 12-month period. Your employer must keep your group health coverage active during FMLA leave on the same terms as if you were still working, though you still owe your share of the premium.

NJFLA gives you a separate 12 weeks of job-protected leave in a 24-month period, but only for bonding or caregiving. Because NJFLA does not cover your own pregnancy or postpartum recovery, its clock doesn’t start until you’re bonding.²

When you return, your employer must generally restore you to the same position or an equivalent one with comparable pay and benefits.⁷ One narrow FMLA exception applies to “key employees” (the highest-paid 10% of the workforce), and even then the employer must have notified you in writing of that status before your leave.⁸

Stacking FMLA and NJFLA

Because NJFLA doesn’t cover your own disability, FMLA weeks spent on childbirth recovery don’t burn NJFLA weeks. You can use FMLA during the medical recovery period, then use NJFLA for most of the bonding period, keeping job protection active for the whole stretch.

Here’s a typical sequence for a vaginal delivery:

Four weeks before delivery: TDI benefits begin; FMLA job protection starts running.
Weeks 1–6 after delivery: TDI continues during recovery; FMLA continues running. You’ve now used about 10 weeks of FMLA.
Weeks 7–8 after delivery: Your doctor clears you. FLI bonding benefits begin. FMLA covers its last two weeks, then NJFLA takes over.
Weeks 9–18 after delivery: FLI continues paying; NJFLA provides job protection for the remaining bonding weeks.

That’s about 22 weeks total with pay and job protection throughout. A cesarean adds roughly two weeks of TDI recovery, pushing the total closer to 24 weeks. Complications certified by your doctor can extend TDI further.⁴

Note the trap: if the leave reason is covered by both laws (bonding qualifies under both), the weeks count against both at once.² Running both simultaneously during bonding wastes weeks of protection. The sequencing above starts FMLA during the disability period, when NJFLA isn’t in play.

Who Qualifies

Each program has its own eligibility rules, and you may qualify for some but not others.

TDI and FLI (Cash Benefits)

For 2026, you must have earned at least $310 per week during 20 or more base weeks, or a combined total of at least $15,500 during your base year. The base year is generally the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before your claim.¹ Employer size doesn’t matter. Workers at a five-person company qualify on the same terms as those at large employers.

FMLA (Federal Job Protection)

You need at least 12 months with your employer, at least 1,250 hours worked in the previous 12 months, and an employer with 50 or more employees within a 75-mile radius.

NJFLA (State Job Protection)

You need at least 12 months with your employer, at least 1,000 hours in the preceding 12 months, and an employer with 30 or more employees. State and local government employees are covered regardless of agency size.⁹

If Your Employer Is Too Small for FMLA or NJFLA

Under 50 employees, no FMLA. Under 30, no NJFLA either. That’s a real gap in guaranteed job restoration, but you’re not without protection.

TDI and FLI pay based on your earnings, not your employer’s headcount, so cash benefits still flow. And the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination applies to every employer in the state regardless of size. It requires reasonable accommodations for pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions unless doing so would cause the employer undue hardship, and it prohibits firing or penalizing someone because of pregnancy.¹⁰ Your employer can’t treat a pregnancy-related absence worse than any other temporary disability.

How to Apply and When

Applications for TDI and FLI are filed online through the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development. TDI requires medical certification from your provider confirming you can’t work.

Deadlines

You have 30 days after your first day of disability to file your TDI claim. Filing late can reduce or deny benefits, and you’ll need to explain the delay.¹¹ The same 30-day window applies to FLI after your family leave begins.¹²

You can start drafting an FLI application up to 60 days before your leave. You then have 14 days to confirm the claim, and 14 days after leave starts to certify and file it.⁵ Starting early is worth doing. Paperwork is easier before the baby arrives.

Notice to Your Employer

For FMLA, give at least 30 days’ advance notice when the leave is foreseeable, as it usually is for an expected delivery. If circumstances change and 30 days isn’t practical, notify your employer as soon as possible.¹³ NJFLA carries a similar expectation.

Taxes and Health Premiums

FLI benefits are subject to federal income tax but are not taxed by New Jersey. No federal tax is withheld unless you elect a 10% deduction when you apply.⁵ If you skip withholding, set money aside. Benefits are taxable in the year the state issues them, not when the leave occurred, so a payment issued in January 2026 for a December 2025 leave goes on your 2026 return.¹⁴

On health insurance: FMLA requires your employer to maintain your coverage during leave, but you still owe your share of the premium. If your leave is unpaid or your benefits don’t fully cover the premium, your employer may require you to arrange payment directly. Ask HR before your leave starts how premiums will be handled, and get the arrangement in writing. Unpaid premiums can accumulate and may be treated as a debt after you return.

1
Department of Labor & Workforce Development. NJ Department of Labor and Workforce Development Announces New Benefit Rates for 2026
2
New Jersey Attorney General. New Jersey Family Leave Act Frequently Asked Questions
3
Division of Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance. Job Protection Information
4
Division of Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance. Maternity Coverage
5
Division of Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance. Family Leave Insurance
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Division of Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance. Taking Family Leave in Parts
7
NJ.gov. Job-Protected Family Leave
8
eCFR. 29 CFR 825.219 – Rights of a Key Employee
9
New Jersey Attorney General. New Jersey Family Leave Act
10
New Jersey Attorney General. Guidance on Workplace Accommodations for Pregnant, Postpartum Workers
11
Division of Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance. FAQ – Temporary Disability Insurance
12
NJ.gov. Important Information About Family Leave Insurance – Your Rights and Responsibilities as a Claimant
13
eCFR. 29 CFR 825.302 – Employee Notice Requirements for Foreseeable FMLA Leave
14
Division of Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance. Do You Need to Download a 1099-G?