How to Apply for Washington state Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML)
A step-by-step guide to applying for paid leave benefits under the state of Washington
You may qualify for Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML)
As of January 1, 2020, the Paid Family and Medical Leave benefit, or PFML as we call it for short, became available to employees who work within Washington state. Those who have worked at least 820 hours or more (about 16 hours per week) in the “qualifying period” and experience a “qualifying event” have access to Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML). A qualifying period may vary but is often the last 4 to 5 quarters preceding the start of your leave of absence. We will discuss the qualifying events below.
If you have missed work because of family or personal medical reasons, paid family or medical leave may be available to you under the state of Washington. A “qualifying event” under the PFML may include:
- Medical Leave: To care for yourself while you are experiencing a serious health condition, be it physical or mental health
- Parental Leave: To care for and bond with a child younger than 18 following birth or placement
- Certain military-connected events
- Family Leave: To care for a family member experiencing a serious health condition. Family members may include: Spouses and domestic partners; Children (biological, adopted, foster, stepchildren, and in-laws); Siblings; Parents and/or legal guardians, including in-laws; Grandparents, including in-laws; Grandchildren; Someone who has an expectation to rely on you for care, regardless if you live together or not.
Please note: The state of Washington may require documentation about your relationship to the person you are providing care for or certification of the medical need for a leave of absence.
This state benefit provides 12–16 weeks of paid leave to care for your health or that of a family member and runs concurrently with the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), in most instances. In some extenuating circumstances, paid leave may last up to 22 weeks. I have seen this mostly for maternity leaves where there have been complications after birth, and the state provided the birthing parents additional bonding time once the medical leave had ended.
You can also take paid leave under PFML as a consecutive block of time, intermittently or on a reduced schedule, much like FMLA.
A Paid Family and Medical Leave Benefit Guide is available for download at www.paidleave.wa.gov/benefit-guide. This guide provides the most current and detailed information on how to apply for benefits and submit weekly claims. Happy Absence has also provided a step-by-step guide below on how to apply for these benefits.
Important Information to ask your employer before you apply
Your employer’s UBI number. This number will identify you as an employee with your company in Washington’s PFML system when you apply.
- To find this number, contact your closest approximation of a Human Resources representative, or review any leave of absence policies or postings your company has available.
- Sometimes, your employment information is already in the state’s PFML system. You may feel like taking a risk and going through the steps of the application to see if this auto-generates for you. If it does not, refer to the tip above.
Does your employer offer supplemental benefits?
- “Supplemental benefits” means paid time off or another payment you would receive from your employer that makes up the difference between your regular wage and the benefit you receive from the state. The total of pay from your employer and any outside benefits should not exceed 100% of your regular pay.
- This will vary with each company. Check with your employer whether they consider paid time off as a supplemental benefit.
- You should not report supplemental benefits on weekly claims, and these should not reduce your benefits received from the state.
Important Note: Except during the waiting week, you cannot use employer-provided paid time off at the same time as PFML, unless the employer offers a “supplemental” benefit.
Have These on Hand Before You Apply
To apply, you will need to provide documents that prove your identity and your eligibility for leave. You will need:
- Proof of identification
- This can include a driver’s license, passport, utility bills, and more. You can find a complete list of acceptable documents on the WA Paid Leave website here.
- Documentation to support your need for leave
- Documentation depends on the type of leave you are applying for. You will want to refer to the Paid Leave Certifications page as they have varying certification types based on the reason for your leave of absence.
- A Secure Access Washington (SAW) account
- To log in to your SAW account from the Paid Family and Medical Leave website, select Log In → Worker Log In → Click to log in. This will take you to the login page for SAW. You can elect to log in from here, or if you do not have a SAW account, you can click the green SIGN UP! Button to create a new account.
Fun fact: You can estimate your weekly payments online at https://paidleave.wa.gov/estimate-your-weekly-pay. If you need any help with calculating your estimated weekly pay, or how much of your supplemental benefits you may need to bring yourself up to full pay, we recommend working with your payroll or Human Resources departments.
Applying for WA Paid Family and Medical Leave
For the state of Washington’s Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) benefits, you will want to apply online at www.paidleave.wa.gov. Follow steps above to log in or create your Secure Access Washington (SAW) Account.
- Login under your SAW account and select the “Add a New Service” button.
- Under ‘I would like to browse a list of services by name’, you will scroll down to ‘Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML)’ and click the green Apply button. This will add the service to your SAW account dashboard to begin the application process.
- Under your SAW homepage, you should now have the Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) service available. Select the green Access Now button, then click Continue.
- You will be taken to a ‘Create An Account’ page. Create an account under ‘Benefit Account’ to file for PFML benefits.
- Follow instructions on screen to provide your information. Once complete, select Next. (If needed, you may need to verify your address.)
- Confirm your information is entered correctly, and if so, select Submit. If not, return to the previous page to update your information.
- Once you submit your information, you will land on a ‘Benefit Account Creation Confirmation’ page.
a. Make sure to copy your Customer ID number as this will verify your identify throughout the life of your Paid Family and/or Medical Leave claim.
b. Happy Absence Tip: If you are sending emails or faxes to the Paid Leave Care Team, remember to enter your Customer ID number in the subject line or on your fax cover sheet. This will assist the Paid Leave Care team in locating your claim and responding to your inquiries in a timely fashion. - Follow prompts for verifying your employer’s information on the next page. If correct, select Next.
a. To find your employer’s UBI number, contact your closest approximation of a Human Resources representative, or review any leave of absence policies and/or postings your company has available.
b. Sometimes, your information is readily available within the state’s PFML system. You may feel like taking a risk and going through the steps of the application to see if this auto-generates for you. If it does not, refer to the tip above. - Follow prompts to enter the information of the leave you are requesting. Select Next when complete.
- Upload your documents. To upload, select your document type, then choose File. Select the file you want to upload, then click Upload.
a. Documents to upload will include a proof of identity document and your medical certification form (or other needed documentation for the type of leave you are requesting)
b. You will receive a confirmation message when your document has uploaded successfully.
c. If you do not have documents to upload currently, select cancel to save your application as a draft. You can return to this step later once you have the documents to upload. - Once your documents have uploaded, you will then select Next to move onto the next page.
- Verify the information you submitted is correct. Make adjustments as needed or select Next.
- Follow on-screen directions to enter your payment information.
a. The state has two options for payment distribution: direct deposit to a bank account, or via a debit card they will send via USPS mail. - Once complete, select Next to submit your application.
a. You will receive a confirmation with your Claim ID number. This will be your Customer ID number followed by the leave number (ex: a Customer ID may look like X1X1XX1X1X. Once you file for your first leave of absence, your claim number would be X1X1XX1X1X-1. Your second claim number would be X1X1XX1X1X-2, and so forth…)
Washington state processing times will vary. On average, applications seem to be processed within 1–2 weeks, absent extenuating circumstances. Once approved, you will receive a status update from the state and will then be able to file your weekly claims.
If you have questions regarding the status of your claim, please reach out to the Washington state Paid Leave Care Team directly at 833–717–2273 or email paidleave@esd.wa.gov. The state only shares claim specifics with the claimant, so you will need to reach out directly to the Paid Leave Care team for status updates.
Submitting Your Weekly Claim
Once your claim is approved, you will submit a weekly claim for each week that you miss work. You can file a weekly claim after each week, beginning Sundays at 12:00AM Pacific Time. If you have missed filing a weekly claim, you can request up to four weeks of payments at once.
Important Note: The first week of your approved leave under PFML is called your “waiting week” and you will not be paid for that week. During this time, you may use paid time off under PTO, Paid Sick Leave (PSL) or you may elect to take this time unpaid. This does not apply to leave for parental bonding with a new child, medical leave taken during the “postnatal period” and leaves for military exigency.
If you applied for PFML benefits online, you may choose to file weekly claims online or over the phone.
To File Your Weekly Claim Online
- Log in to your Paid Leave account via your SecureAccessWashington (SAW) account (go to www.paidleave.wa.gov/login)
- Locate the Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) service and select the green Access Now button, then select Continue. This will bring up your Benefit Account Homepage.
- You may access the Weekly Claims via two options:
a. Under ‘Start Weekly Payment’ on your Benefit Account Homepage, for the most current week of benefits.
b. Under ‘My Claim(s)’ by selecting the corresponding claim you need to submit a weekly report for. - Click the ‘Start a Weekly Claim’ button to get started.
- Follow on-screen prompts to enter your information for the week and then click Submit.
A tutorial video about filing your weekly claims can be found on the Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) website at www.paidleave.wa.gov/after-you-apply.
If you applied for PFML benefits using a paper application or would like to file your weekly claims via phone, you will need to call the Paid Leave Care Team at 833–717–2273 to file your claim. The care team is available by phone Monday through Friday between 8:30AM and 4:30PM Pacific time.
Should you have any changes to your paid leave needs, please refer to your Paid Leave Care Team at 833–717–2273 or paidleave@esd.wa.gov and your WA Paid Family and Medical Leave Benefit Guide at www.paidleave.wa.gov/benefit-guide.
Happy Absence is not affiliated with the state of Washington or the Paid Family and Medical Leave program, and cannot provide assistance on claim-based inquiries as it would require an inside look at their systems and confidential information. I’m happy to assist wherever I can with general questions and concerns, however! Sometimes it’s hard to get a hold of someone, either with the state or within your organization. Happy Absence is here to provide an additional resource in your times of need.
Even if you don’t have questions, I’d love to hear your thoughts! What are your experiences with the Washington State Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) program? If you are not based in Washington, does your state have a paid leave program? If not, how has that affected you? Please leave a comment below, or visit our Contact Page at www.happyabsence.com/contact should you need an extra resource in your pocket.
Until next time, take care of yourselves and remember: No one is a number — including you. You deserve to know what benefits are available to you, and how to best use them.
DISCLAIMER: This blog post is for educational purposes only. It is not meant to provide specific legal or professional advice. It does not create an attorney/legal-client relationship. In addition to federal laws, state laws vary from state to state, and this post should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state.
