Disability Insurance Elective Coverage (DIEC)
We offer an optional Disability Insurance Elective Coverage (DIEC) program for people who don’t pay into State Disability Insurance (SDI) but want to be covered by Disability Insurance (DI) and Paid Family Leave (PFL).
DIEC protects small business owners, entrepreneurs, independent contractors, and self-employed people who make up a large part of companies doing business in California.
DI provides benefits to eligible DIEC participants when they are unable to work and lose wages due to their own non-work-related illness, injury, pregnancy, or childbirth.
PFL provides benefits to eligible DIEC participants when they need to take time off from work to:
- Care for a seriously ill child, parent, parent-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or registered domestic partner.
- Bond with a new child entering the family through birth, adoption, or foster care placement.
- Participate in a qualifying event because of a family member’s (spouse, registered domestic partner, parent, or child) military deployment to a foreign country.
Am I Eligible for DIEC?
Any self-employed person, independent contractor, or general partner who meets the requirements may apply for DIEC. It is not required that all active general partners be included in the application.
A general partnership can include married co-owners who both actively manage the business. Limited partners and corporate officers are not eligible.
You can find more details on DIEC eligibility, including:
For More Information
- Disability Insurance Elective Coverage Program (DIEC) (DE 8714CC) (PDF)
- Paid Family Leave (DE 8714CF) (PDF)
- Elective Coverage for Employers and Self-Employed Individuals (DE 231EC) (PDF)
- Instructions for Reporting Wages and Contributions for Employers Who Have Elected Unemployment and State Disability Insurance Coverage Under Section 708(a) of the California Unemployment Insurance Code (CUIC) (DE 3F) (PDF)
How to Apply
See if you qualify for DIEC and learn how to apply.
You may apply for the DIEC program by completing the proper application and submitting it via mail to the address on the form.
- Application for Disability Insurance Elective Coverage (DE 1378DI) (PDF)
- Application for Unemployment Insurance, Disability Insurance, and Paid Family Leave Elective Coverage Under Section 708(A) of the Unemployment Insurance Code (DE 1378A) (PDF)
Additional Resources
Disability Insurance and Paid Family Leave Benefits
Find DI Information for You
Additional Resources
Can’t find what you are looking for? View these DI and PFL resources for more information.