Written by a parent, not a doctor. Nothing here is medical advice.

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District of Columbia program

District pay while you care for your child

DC Paid Family Leave replaces part of your pay while you care for a seriously ill family member.

What it is

DC Paid Family Leave replaces part of your pay while you care for a seriously ill family member.

DC Paid Family Leave can help replace wages during a child's treatment. It covers qualifying work for covered employers in the District. Job protection needs a separate check under District or federal leave law.

Eligibility rules
  • Employed by a covered employer: any private employer required to pay District unemployment insurance, with no size floor. The United States government and the District government are expressly excluded.
  • The work must be in the District; residence is a separate question.
What you get
  • Partial pay during eligible family leave, with the covered weeks and weekly limit confirmed for your leave dates.
  • No waiting week for claims filed on or after July 25, 2022.
Payment and filing dates
  • The wage formula replaces 90% up to its threshold and 50% above it, subject to the weekly maximum.
  • DC pays 90% of wages up to a threshold and 50% above it, capped at about $1,190 a week; the cap changes each October.
  • Backdated pay generally requires a claim within 30 calendar days of the leave event, unless a serious circumstance prevented it.
If you decide to apply
  1. Ask the DC Office of Paid Family Leave about a claim using your first day of leave.
  2. Have wage information, employer details and the clinical team's certification ready.
  3. Ask payroll how employer pay and protected leave apply to the same absence.

The Department of Employment Services, Office of Paid Family Leave · Official page ↗

Good to know

You cannot get paid leave and unemployment for the same week. Federal and DC government employees are outside this program and have their own leave.

Official sources
Ask your social worker

“If I take time off for our child, how much could DC paid family leave replace? Could you help me check the claim dates, employer pay and separate job protection before I decide?”

Why I’m asking: I want to know how much pay we could receive and whether my job and health insurance are protected.

More background and detailed requirements
Additional program information and published rules

Who does what

The three parts, side by side. The agency decides; nobody on this page does.

You

File the claim within 30 days of the first day off and get the medical certification from the team.

Your social worker

Human resources confirms the employment; the oncology team signs the certification.

The care team

A clinician certifies the child's serious health condition.

Who decides
The Department of Employment Services, Office of Paid Family Leave.
Ask HR
“Does this employer pay District unemployment insurance? I am claiming DC Paid Family Leave to care for my child, and I also need to know what job protection I have.”

How to apply

First step: Apply at dcpaidfamilyleave.dc.gov as soon as the first day off happens, and ask the team for the medical certification.

  1. Ask human resources whether your employer pays District unemployment insurance. If they do, this covers you.
  2. Apply within 30 days of the first day off so you do not lose the backdated weeks.
  3. Ask for family leave protection at the same time: this pays you but does not hold your job.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: Apply through the DC Paid Family Leave site as soon as the leave starts.

What to gather

  • Your recent pay information
  • The employer's name and details
  • A clinician's certification of your child's condition

How long: No waiting week since July 25, 2022. Apply within 30 days of the leave event for backdated pay.

Clock: Thirty calendar days after the leave starts to claim backdated pay, unless something serious stopped you.

What a yes looks like

Weekly payments from the District while you are off.

What a no looks like, and the next move

If the refusal is about the employer, ask whether it is a federal or District government employer, and ask your own benefits office what leave you have.

Watch out

  • It pays you but does not protect your job. Ask for family leave in the same conversation.
  • The law excludes the federal government and the DC government as employers. If you work for either, ask your own benefits office what you have instead.
  • Claim within 30 days of the first day off or the backdated weeks are gone.
  • The District's own two pages disagree on the cap: the calculator says $1,190, the workers page says $1,153.

If they say no, quote this: D.C. Code § 32-541.04: paid leave of 12 weeks to care for a family member with a serious health condition, with no waiting week for claims filed on or after July 25, 2022.

Dates that change this

2026-09-10: The District's own two pages disagree on the weekly cap: the benefits calculator says $1,190 and the workers page says $1,153. The calculator figure is used here. Neither page says when the figure started. (not yet confirmed against the final rule)

The numbers and the rules

The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.

What it is worth

Up to 12 weeks of District pay, 90% of wages up to a threshold and 50% above it, capped at $1,190 a week.

  • $12 — Weeks of paid leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition
  • $1,190/week — Maximum weekly payment (benefits calculator figure)
  • $90 — Share of wages replaced up to the threshold
  • $50 — Share of wages replaced above the threshold
  • $30 — Days after the leave event to claim backdated pay

Legal protection: No waiting week for claims filed on or after July 25, 2022

What it costs the family: Nothing to pay. The District runs the fund.

The eligibility facts, as published

Other
Employed by a covered employer: any private employer required to pay District unemployment insurance, with no size floor. The United States government and the District government are expressly excluded.
Residency
The work must be in the District; residence is a separate question

The trap: It pays you but does not protect your job. Job protection comes from DC family leave or federal family leave, and they run at the same time as this, not after it.

Where I read this

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