Washington State Bereavement Leave Laws and Requirements

Washington State bereavement leave laws do not require private employers to give you paid time off after a death in the family, but several other protections can apply depending on who you lost and where you work. The state’s Paid Family and Medical Leave program pays up to seven days after the death of a child. State government employees receive five paid bereavement days. And if grief becomes a diagnosable medical condition, both federal FMLA and Washington PFML can cover weeks of additional leave. What you’re entitled to depends on your employer, your tenure, and your relationship to the person who died.

Private Employers Are Not Required to Offer Bereavement Leave

Washington’s Department of Labor and Industries is direct on this point: the state does not require private employers to provide bereavement leave.¹ Whether you get paid time off, and how much, depends entirely on your employer’s policy or your union contract.

Most private employers offer something voluntarily. Typical policies provide three to five days for the death of an immediate family member, list the qualifying relationships (usually spouse, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, grandchild), and require notice as soon as reasonably possible. Some employers extend the benefit to in-laws, step-relatives, or close friends; others don’t. Unionized workplaces often have more generous terms written into the collective bargaining agreement.²

Because these policies are voluntary, enforcement is limited. L&I doesn’t investigate bereavement disputes the way it handles wage claims. If your employer promises bereavement leave in writing and then denies it, your recourse is through internal HR or, in a union shop, the grievance process.

Paid Family Leave for the Death of a Child

This is the protection most workers don’t know about. Washington’s Paid Family and Medical Leave program provides up to seven calendar days of paid leave after the death of a child, and it covers most workers in the state regardless of employer size.³ The benefit pays up to 90 percent of your weekly wages, capped at $1,647 per week in 2026.⁴p>

Who Qualifies

You need at least 820 hours of work in Washington during the previous year.⁵ Beyond that, at the time of the child’s death you must meet one of these conditions:

You would have qualified for medical leave related to the birth of your child.
You would have qualified for family leave to bond with your child during the first 12 months after birth.
You had a child under 18 placed in your home or adopted a child under 18 and qualified for bonding leave within the first 12 months.

You don’t have to be the birth parent. The statute defines “child” broadly: biological, adopted, foster, and stepchildren all count, as do children for whom you serve as a legal guardian, de facto parent, or stand in loco parentis, regardless of age or dependency status.⁶

One boundary worth naming: this benefit covers only the death of a child. It does not apply to the loss of a spouse, parent, sibling, or any other family member.³

How It Works

The seven days begin the day after the child’s death. Unlike other PFML claims, there is no waiting week before payments start. The time counts as family leave and draws from your available balance for the claim year. When you apply through the Employment Security Department, you provide the date of death and either supporting documentation or a signed attestation.³

State Government Employees Get Five Paid Days

If you work for a Washington state agency covered by the civil service rules, you’re entitled to five days of paid bereavement leave for the death of a family member or household member. This entitlement took effect July 1, 2025, replacing the previous three-day standard.⁷ The same five days apply after the loss of a pregnancy, including in surrogacy situations.

State employees covered by a union contract follow their collective bargaining agreement rather than the WAC, and the number of days or list of qualifying relationships may differ.²

Federal Employees Working in Washington

Federal civilian employees have their own rules. You can use up to 104 hours (13 days) of sick leave per year for bereavement purposes, including arranging and attending a family member’s funeral.⁸ Your agency may advance another 104 hours if the situation requires it.

Federal employees are also entitled to two workweeks of paid parental bereavement leave after the death of a qualifying son or daughter. The child must be under 18, or 18 and older and incapable of self-care because of a disability. You need to meet FMLA eligibility requirements at the time of the death, but this leave is administered separately from FMLA and does not reduce your FMLA entitlement. It must be used within 12 months of the death.⁹

When Grief Becomes a Medical Condition

Losing someone can trigger depression, anxiety, or other mental health conditions serious enough to keep you from working. When that happens, additional leave may be available under FMLA or Washington PFML even if the death itself would not qualify for bereavement-specific benefits.

FMLA Leave for Grief-Related Conditions

FMLA entitles eligible employees to up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for a serious health condition.¹⁰ A grief-related mental health condition qualifies as serious if it requires inpatient care (an overnight stay in a hospital or treatment center) or involves continuing treatment by a health care provider. Continuing treatment means either incapacitation for more than three consecutive days with ongoing appointments or prescriptions, or a chronic condition like depression that requires treatment at least twice a year.¹¹

To use FMLA, you need to have worked for a covered employer (private employers with 50 or more employees within 75 miles, or any government agency) for at least 12 months, and logged at least 1,250 hours in the past year.¹⁰ The leave is unpaid, but your employer must maintain your health insurance and restore you to the same or an equivalent position when you come back.¹²

Washington PFML for Grief-Related Conditions

If grief leaves you unable to work and a health care provider certifies the condition, you may also qualify for Washington PFML medical leave. The benefit is the same as under any PFML claim: up to 90 percent of your weekly wages, capped at $1,647 per week in 2026, with the 820-hours-worked threshold.⁴ PFML pays regardless of employer size, so employees at small companies can still get wage replacement even when FMLA job protection isn’t available.

Job Protection While You’re Out

Getting paid matters, and so does knowing your job will be there when you return. Washington’s job protection rules changed in 2026.

For PFML leave, your employer must restore you to the same or an equivalent position if the employer has 25 or more employees and you have worked there for at least 180 calendar days. The previous requirements of 50 employees and 12 months of tenure were lowered to these thresholds in 2026, and the minimum hours-worked requirement was eliminated.¹³ Restoration covers the same job title, pay, benefits, and working conditions. Employers cannot terminate, demote, or penalize you for taking approved leave.

Employers may also choose to count FMLA job-protected time against your PFML job protection, which is typically 16 weeks per year. If an employer does this, they must give written notice explaining how the leave is being counted. The coordination is optional for employers, not mandatory.¹³

If you work for a small employer with fewer than 25 employees, PFML job protection doesn’t apply, though you still receive wage replacement. FMLA job protection requires 50 or more employees within 75 miles.¹⁰ Employees at the smallest companies are in the tightest spot: PFML payments are available, but no statute guarantees the job will be held.

Notice and Documentation

Whichever leave you use, notify your employer as soon as you reasonably can. A phone call or email to your supervisor or HR is usually enough. Most employers will ask about your relationship to the deceased and your expected return date.

For employer-provided bereavement leave, documentation requirements vary. Common requests include an obituary, funeral program, or death certificate. If a death certificate isn’t available yet, employers often accept an obituary or memorial service announcement in the meantime.

For PFML child loss leave, you file a claim through the Employment Security Department and provide the date of death along with documentation or a signed attestation.³ For FMLA leave based on a grief-related condition, your employer can require medical certification from your health care provider confirming the diagnosis and the expected duration of incapacity.

Taxes on Paid Bereavement Leave

Paid bereavement leave from an employer is treated like your regular wages. It appears on your W-2 and is subject to federal income tax withholding, Social Security, and Medicare. The tax code has no special exclusion for bereavement pay. PFML benefits are also subject to federal income tax, though Washington has no state income tax to add on top.

1
Washington State Department of Labor and Industries. Holiday, Vacation and Bereavement Leave
2
Human Resource Services, Washington State University. Effective July 1, 2025: Washington State Expands Bereavement Leave Benefits
3
Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. What Is Family Leave for the Loss of a Child?
4
Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. How Paid Leave Works
5
Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. Get Ready to Apply
6
Washington State Legislature. RCW 50A.05.010 – Definitions
7
Washington State Legislature. WAC 357-31-250
8
U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Fact Sheet: Sick Leave for Family Care or Bereavement Purposes
9
U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Handbook on Flexibilities for Childbirth, Adoption, and Foster Care
10
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #28: The Family and Medical Leave Act
11
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #28O: Mental Health Conditions and the FMLA
12
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #28A: Employee Protections Under the Family and Medical Leave Act
13
Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. Job Protection Requirements for Employers