Paid Family Leave Claim Process

To qualify for PFL benefits, you must:

• Be unable to do your regular work.
• Have lost wages because you need to:
  • Care for a seriously ill family member.
  • Bond with a new child.
  • Support a family member in the US armed forces who is deploying to a foreign country. For details, visit Paid Family Leave – Military Assist.

• Be employed or actively looking for work when your family leave starts.
• Have earned at least $300 in your base period with State Disability Insurance withheld (shown as CASDI on your paystub). Learn more at Calculating Paid Family Leave Benefit Payment Amounts.
• Provide any required supporting documents.

If you are unsure if you are eligible to receive PFL benefits, apply. We will let you know if you meet eligibility requirements. Learn more about how we determine eligibility.

• Note: Citizenship and immigration status do not affect eligibility.

San Francisco workers: If you work in San Francisco, your employer may need to pay you extra wages while you are receiving PFL benefits. This may apply when you take PFL bonding with a new child joining your family through:

• Childbirth
• Adoption
• Foster care placement

For more information, read the Paid Parental Leave Ordinance.

You have two options to file for PFL benefits:

• Online through myEDD and SDI Online (recommended)
• By mailing your Claim for Paid Family Leave (PFL) Benefits (DE 2501F)

For more information, review:

• How to File a PFL Claim in SDI Online
• How to file a PFL Claim by Mail

Your Claim Start Date

Your family leave starts on the first day you are unable to do your regular work because you need to take time for family leave. You don't need to use that day as your claim start date.

Before you apply:

• Your claim start date determines your base period and benefit rate.
• You can’t change your start date or base period once a valid claim is established.

If you have questions about your claim start date, call 1-877-238-4373 before filing.

To avoid delays, loss of benefits, or denial of your claim, file your claim:

• No earlier than the first day your family leave starts.
• No later than 41 days after your family leave starts to avoid losing benefits.
• Bonding claim benefits must be used within 12 months after the child's date of the birth or date they entered the family through foster or adoption.

You will need to choose your payment option when you file your claim:

• Direct deposit (SDI Online claims only)
• Debit card (mailed to you)
• Check (mailed to you)

File a Bonding Claim

Mothers Transitioning from a Disability Insurance (DI) – Pregnancy-Related Claim to PFL

We will send you a Claim for Paid Family Leave (PFL) Benefits – New Mother (DE 2501FP) to start bonding when:

• You have recovered from your baby's delivery.
• We have sent your final DI payment.
  • If you filed your DI pregnancy claim using SDI Online, we will send a link for the DE 2501FP to your SDI Online
  • If you filed using a paper claim form, we will mail the DE 2501FP to you in a separate envelope.

Complete all portions of the DE 2501FP. Submit the form no later than 41 days from the date you wish to begin your bonding claim.

All Other New Parents

To file a PFL Bonding claim online:

• Log into your myEDD account and select SDI Online.
• Select New Claim and Paid Family Leave Bonding.
• Complete and submit sections one through five of the SDI Online application
• Upload the Proof of Relationship documentation. (Review Step 3 for more information.)

To file a PFL Bonding claim by mail:

• Complete Part A – Statement of Claimant (page 1) and Part B – Bonding Certificate (page 3).
• Include the Proof of Relationship documents.
• Mail the completed claim form and proof of relationship with the provided envelope to us.

File a Care Claim

To file a PFL Care claim online:

• Log into your myEDD account and select SDI Online.
• Select New Claim and Paid Family Leave Care.
• Complete and submit sections one through five of the SDI Online application.
• There will be a link on your confirmation page for the Claim for Paid Family Leave (PFL) Care Benefits (DE 2501FC). Download and print the form. 
• Have the care recipient complete and sign Part C – Statement of Care Recipient (page 1).
• Have the care recipient’s physician or practitioner complete and sign the medical certification. This is Part D – Physician/Practitioner’s Certificate (page 3).
• Then upload Parts C and D to your SDI Online claim. (Review Step 3 for more information.)

To file a PFL Care claim by mail with form Claim for Paid Family Leave Benefits (DE 2501F):

• Complete Part A – Statement of Claimant (page 1).
• Have the care recipient complete and sign Part C - Statement of Care Recipient (page 3).
• The care recipient’s licensed health professional must complete Part D - Physician/Practitioner’s Certification (page 4).
• Mail all completed, signed portions of the claim form to us in the envelope provided.

File a Military Assist Claim

To file an assist claim online:

• Log into your myEDD account and select SDI Online.
• Select New Claim and Paid Family Leave Military Assist.
• Complete and submit sections one through six of the SDI Online application.
• Submit the supporting documentation. (Review Step 3 for more information.)

To submit a Claim for Paid Family Leave Benefits (DE 2501F) military assist claim by mail:

• Complete Part A - Statement of Claimant (page 1).
• Complete Part E – Military Assist Certification (page 5).
• Complete Qualifying Event for Leave (page 6) – Documentation.

• Mail all completed, signed portions of the claim form to us in the envelope provided.

To complete your PFL Bonding claim, care claim, and military assist claim, you must submit additional documents. If you submitted your claim through SDI Online, you may scan and upload them to your claim or mail paper copies.

To upload your documents to SDI:

1. Scan and save the documents as PDFs, JPGs, TIFs, or TIFFs to your computer.
2. Select New Claim from your SDI Online Home page main menu.
3. Select one of these:
   • Submit Electronic Paid Family Leave Bonding Attachment.
   • Submit Electronic Paid Family Leave Care Attachment. 
   • Submit Paid Family Leave Military Assist Attachment.
4. Select Browse and attach your documents.
5. Select Submit to complete the process.

If you choose to mail your attachments instead of uploading:

• Use the address provided under Mail on your Confirmation Information.
• Mail them in the envelope provided with your paper claim form.

You must complete the application and send all the supporting documents so we can process your claim.

Documents for Bonding Claims

New Mothers

If you are a mother transitioning from a pregnancy-related disability claim, no additional documents are needed.

All Other New Parents

Mothers without a pregnancy-related disability claim, new fathers, foster or adoptive parents must:

• Complete sections one through five of the SDI Online bonding application.
• Provide a Proof of Relationship document.

Examples of this document include:

• Child’s Birth Certificate
• Child’s Hospital Birth Certificate
• Declaration of Paternity (CS-909)
• Foster Care Placement Record (SOC-815)
• Official letter from the foster care agency
• Adoptive Placement Agreement (AD-907)
• Independent Adoption Placement Agreement (AD-924)
• Other evidence of relationship

Documents for Care Claims

Supporting care claim documentation may include:

• Part C - Statement of Care Recipient, signed by the care recipient or their authorized representative.
• Part D - Physician/Practitioner’s Certification completed and signed by the care recipient’s licensed health professional. They may submit the certification using SDI Online (only if you filed online), or you can have them complete and sign the paper form. 

It is your duty to confirm all forms you submit to us are complete and signed. This includes the physician/practitioner medical certification.

On your confirmation screen you will find a link to a PDF copy of the Claim for Paid Family Leave (PFL) Care Benefits (DE 2501FC) form. Print this PDF and have it filled out entirely and signed by all parties. You can also print the DE 2501FC from Paid Family Leave Forms and Publications.

Documents for Military Assist Claims

Supporting military documentation may include:

• Covered active duty orders.
• Letter of an impending call or order to covered active duty.
• Documentation of military leave for the military member's rest and recuperation. This must have the signature of the approving authority.

Documentation for the qualifying event, which may include:

• A copy of a meeting announcement for informational briefings sponsored by the military.
• A copy of a bill for services for the handling of legal or financial affairs. A letter with detailed information for the meeting with a third party. It should include the reason for the meeting, location, and contact information.

Once we receive your completed claim application, we will determine your eligibility. You can expect this process to take up to 14 days. A completed claim means:

• Your claim form is completely filled out.
• You provided all extra documents needed for your claim type.
• All documents are signed as needed.

After we get your completed claim application, we send you the Notice of Computation (DE 429DF). This has your potential weekly benefit amount based on the wages in your base period. 

Note: This notice does NOT confirm your eligibility to receive PFL benefits.

If You are Eligible for Benefits

If you are eligible, we will send you an Electronic Benefit Payment Notification (DE 2500E). This has information about your first benefit payment.

If We Can't Determine Your Eligibility

We'll contact you by phone or mail for more information. We may also need to contact your employer or your care recipient's licensed health professional.

If You are Not Eligible for Benefits

We will send you:

• A Notice of Paid Family Leave Determination (DE 2514)
• An appeal form (DE 1000A)

You can appeal any decision within 30 days by completing the DE 1000A online or by mail. For more information, visit Appeals.

If you would like to stop or continue your benefits, please visit Paid Family Leave — Stop or Continue Your Benefits.