The District of Columbia allows employees to take time off for eligible medical or family-related reasons with the program DC Paid Family Leave (DCPFL). Because the program is 100% employer-funded, DC business owners and managers must determine how much they need to contribute and pay the amount to the Department of Employment Services (DOES).
What you’ll learn
What you’ll learn
Key takeaways for DC employers
- In 2026, the employer contribution rate for the DC paid family leave is 0.75% of the total quarterly wages of each employee
- Every DC employer in the private sector must contribute to the program, which pays employee wages when workers are out for family, prenatal, medical, or parental leave
- Each type of DC’s paid family leave has its own eligibility requirements that employees must meet
- Since the DCPFL program is 100% employer-funded, many use payroll software to automate their quarterly contributions and prevent incorrect tax deductions from employee paychecks
To help you understand paid family leave requirements, this guide shares the 2026 DCPFL contribution rate and which employers are covered. You’ll also get more details on the types of leave employees can take under the program.
What are some misconceptions employers have about DC paid family leave?
To help break down the real-world impact of the DCPFL program, we spoke with Edgar Ndjatou, a Washington, DC–based HR and employment law expert and the founder of Officium. Because of his dual background in employment law and HR strategy, Edgar sees firsthand where employers get confused.
According to Edgar, the biggest misconception is that businesses are responsible for directly paying employees while they are on leave, or that the program operates like a standard, employer-sponsored PTO plan.
“In reality, the program is administered by the DC Department of Employment Services and funded through employer payroll taxes, while employees apply directly to the District for benefits.”
— Edgar Ndjatou, Owner/Principal Officium, LLC
Who is covered by the district’s paid leave program?
In the District of Columbia, any business that pays unemployment insurance taxes for its employees must contribute to the paid family leave program. In short, all private-sector employers in DC must participate in the DCPFL program. It also covers any employee who primarily works in DC, meaning they spend no more than half their working time in another jurisdiction. If an employee splits their work time between a state and the US capital, they’re still covered as long as most of their work is in DC.
What about those who are self-employed?
For self-employed individuals (SEIs), paid family leave in DC is voluntary. SEIs can join or leave the program during the open enrollment period, which runs from November through December each year. If you’re self-employed and didn’t join the DCPFL program the first time you were eligible, you cannot leave the program for three years after joining. However, you can opt out at any time, even outside the open enrollment period, in any of the following circumstances:
- You relocate your business outside DC and won’t be earning self-employment income in the district within the following 52 weeks.
- You become an employee of another business and will no longer be earning self-employment wages within the next 52 weeks.
- You expect more than 50% of your self-employment work time to be outside DC.
- You don’t expect to earn any income within the next 52 weeks.
Paying into paid leave works a little differently for those in the self-employed space. These individuals contribute 0.75% of their total gross income from all businesses they work for, at least 50% of the time in DC. Contributions must be paid quarterly, and SEIs can handle everything through the online portal.
Meanwhile, nonprofits are required to participate in the DCPFL program if the district has them pay unemployment insurance tax.
As an employer, knowing whether you’re covered under DC’s paid leave program is the first step toward compliance. The next is identifying how much you need to contribute to the program on your employees’ behalf.
Understanding employer contribution rates and calculations
Under DC’s paid family leave, employers fund the program entirely through payroll contributions. The 2026 contribution rate is 0.75% of each covered employee’s total wages per quarter. That means employers calculate DCPFL contributions based on each employee’s earnings over the three months and pay the taxes directly into the program.
For example, if a worker earns $5,000 fixed wages per month,, here’s how to calculate the employer’s DCPFL contribution in a particular quarter:
- Total quarterly wages: $5,000 × 3 = $15,000
- Contribution rate: 0.75%
- Employer contribution amount: 0.75/100 × $15,000 = $112.50
Because contributions are made quarterly, businesses in the US capital pay DCPFL taxes four times a year. Payments are due on the last day of the month following each quarter.
The Office of Paid Family Leave (OPFL) under the Department of Employment Services administers DCPFL. Employers get online accounts and pay contributions through the Employer Self Service Portal (ESSP).
Once you start contributing to the program, your eligible employees can receive wages when they take different types of paid family leave.
Types of employee leave and benefit duration
In the district, employees may be eligible for DCPFL benefits when they take any of four kinds of leave:
- Prenatal leave
- Parental leave
- Family leave
- Medical leave
Each type has its own qualifying event and a limit on how long an employee can receive benefits within a year.
1. Prenatal leave
Prenatal leave is only available to pregnant employees. To qualify for prenatal leave benefits, a worker must have a pregnancy-related medical reason. Qualifying events include the following::
- The employee needs to attend a routine prenatal checkup.
- The worker requires medical treatment related to the pregnancy.
- The employee must visit a doctor to diagnose a pregnancy-related condition.
- A physician has placed the employee on pregnancy-related bed rest.
A pregnant employee can take prenatal leave for up to two weeks before the baby is born.
2. Parental leave
The purpose of DCPFL is to allow employees to bond with a new child, including biological, adopted, and foster children. An employee qualifies for parental leave within the first year after any of the following occurs:
- The employee’s biological child is born.
- A child is placed with the employee for foster care.
- The employee adopts a child.
- The worker legally assumes parental responsibility for a child.
Within a year, eligible employees can take up to 12 weeks of parental leave.
Prenatal leave
Up to two weeks
Exclusively for pregnant employees. Covers pregnancy-related medical reasons, including prenatal checkups, treatments, and doctor-ordered bed rest.
Parental leave
Up to 12 weeks
To bond with a new child within the first year. Covers the birth of a biological child, foster care placement, adoption, or assuming legal parental responsibility.
Family leave
Up to 12 weeks
To care for a sick family member. The family member must be experiencing a serious health condition and require care or companionship.
Medical leave
Up to 12 weeks
For the employee’s own serious health condition. Covers physical impairments that prevent working, or time away required to seek medical treatment.
3. Family leave
In the DCPFL program, an employee is eligible for paid family leave if both of the following apply:
- A family member is diagnosed with or is experiencing a serious health condition.
- The family member needs care or companionship from the employee.
- Eligible employees can take up to 12 weeks to care for a sick family member.
4. Medical leave
DC employees become eligible for medical leave if they have a serious health condition that prevents them from working, either due to physical impairment or because they’re seeking treatment. Those who qualify can take up to 12 weeks of personal medical leave.
Good to know
Employees can take up to two weeks of prenatal leave in a year in addition to 12 weeks of parental or family leave. For workers who take both prenatal and medical leave, the combined total duration can’t exceed 12 weeks in a year because the two can be used for the same qualifying event.
How to manage DC paid family leave in your payroll system
If you use payroll software to manage DCPFL taxes, you should make sure the system is set up to handle them correctly with little to no effort on your part.
1. Provide your tax credentials and contribution rate
Enter your DC tax ID and paid family leave contribution rate (0.75% in 2026). Set this rate as an employer-only tax. Therefore, it is calculated on wages but not deducted from employee paychecks.
2. Grant the necessary access
If you’re using a payroll provider, you’ll need to give them the correct permissions to act on your behalf in the DC Office of Tax and Revenue. This typically involves:
With TPA and POA in place, your provider can handle filings and payments for you.
3. File the quarterly wage reports and pay contributions
DC requires employers to submit wage reports and pay DCPFL contributions by the last day of the month after every quarter through the DOES Employer Self-Service Portal. If you’ve granted TPA and POA in the previous step, your payroll provider can take care of these filings and payments accurately and on time.
Keep in mind
If you operate in multiple locations, paid family leave by state can vary significantly. It’s likely your payroll setup for DC will differ from other jurisdictions. For example, Washington State payroll tax rates are different from DC’s, so you’ll use different numbers when setting up your payroll system.
Notice and recordkeeping requirements for compliance
The district requires employers to download the DCPFL notice, print it, and post it in a conspicuous place where everyone at work can easily see it, such as the breakroom. Businesses must also provide employees with a paper or electronic DCPFL notice in three circumstances:
- At the time of hiring
- At least once a year
- Any time an employee requests leave for which they can receive DCPFL benefits
Besides notice requirements, DC employers must keep wage records, including:
- Employee name and Social Security number
- Employee wage for each pay period (e.g., average weekly wage)
- Method of payment
- The start and end dates of each pay period
To learn more about payroll and regulatory requirements for DC employers, check out our District of Columbia compliance guide.
Coordinating leave with other labor laws and staffing needs
When an employee takes DCPFL, employers must plan for temporary coverage to avoid workflow disruptions. The planning may include reassigning tasks, hiring temporary staff, or adjusting schedules.
It’s also important to understand that DCPFL itself doesn’t provide job protection. However, it is often in effect at the same time as other laws that offer job protection, such as the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or DC Family and Medical Leave Act (DCFMLA). Employers should review DCFMLA vs. DCPFL and how they overlap with FMLA to stay compliant while maintaining business continuity.
Coordinating leave and your employer responsibilities
Even though employees apply for benefits directly through the district, employers have additional obligations. Employers are responsible for paying the required payroll tax (without deducting it from employee paychecks), maintaining accurate records, ensuring employees are informed of their rights, and protecting them from retaliation.
Beyond those basics, employers must carefully map out how DCPFL interacts with their own internal policies. Depending on your policies, DCPFL may run concurrently with DC FMLA, federal FMLA protections, employer-provided sick leave, PTO, or short-term disability benefits. Because these laws overlap, Edgar stresses the importance of clearly mapping out how your internal benefits interact with the district’s program.
“Employers should carefully coordinate DC Paid Family Leave with their own leave programs—including sick leave, PTO, disability coverage, and job-protected leave under DC FMLA—because the laws and benefits may overlap and run concurrently in certain situations.”
— Edgar Ndjatou, HR Consultant and Fair Workplace Advocate
Maintaining compliance through 2026 and beyond
To ensure compliance with the DCPFL program throughout 2026, employers have to contribute 0.75% of each covered employee’s quarterly wages. They also must file quarterly wage reports and submit contributions on time through the DOES Employer Self-Service Portal.
Beyond these ongoing requirements, it’s a good idea to regularly review your setup and track labor law changes. Each year, double-check that your business is properly registered with the DOES Office of Paid Family Leave and confirm whether there are any DCPFL rate updates.
Most importantly, accurately calculate and track DCPFL contributions. Reliable payroll providers can do that on your behalf.
Are DC paid family leave benefits taxable?
“A common question during tax season is how these benefits are treated. DCPFL benefits are generally considered taxable income for federal tax purposes, and employees receiving benefits typically receive a Form 1099-G reporting those payments.”
— Edgar Ndjatou, Owner/Principal Officium, LLC
Furthermore, coordinating DCPFL with employer-sponsored benefits such as PTO can create additional tax and payroll considerations. Edgar encourages employers to work closely with payroll or tax professionals to ensure proper administration. Learn how automated payroll tax management can save you time to focus on growing your business anywhere in the US.
Bottom line: Due diligence on DC paid family leave pays off
Paid family and medical leave offers peace of mind to employees who need time away from work without worrying about their next paycheck. DC’s program is part of a growing national trend, making this coverage the law. For employers, understanding your payroll tax obligations and how employees access these benefits is about more than just compliance — it can also offer an advantage for attracting and supporting top talent.
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Jon Davis is the Sr. Content Marketing Manager at OnPay. He has over 15 years of experience writing for small and growing businesses. Jon lives and works in Atlanta.