Minnesota Paid Leave Starts January 1, 2026 — Are You Ready?

The Minnesota Paid Leave (MPL) law, enacted in May 2023 and updated in May 2024, makes paid family and medical leave coverage available to Minnesota workers beginning January 1, 2026. The new law is managed and administered by the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED). The law will provide leave entitlements, job protections and benefit payments from the state to individuals who need time off to care for themselves or their family members. While many employers have experience dealing with similar leaves under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Minnesota’s Parenting Leave Law, the MPL law creates new obligations and challenges for employers with Minnesota-based employees.

Fast Facts

• Employers must either opt into the state plan or use an approved equivalent plan.
• Under the state plan, the premium rate of 0.88% is applied on wages up to the Social Security cap (currently $176,100).
• Premiums are shared between employers and employees; however, employers may choose to pay more than their required portion for some or all employees.
• Employees can receive up to 12 weeks of medical leave and up to 12 weeks of family leave, capped at a total of 20 weeks in a single benefit year.
• Employees may be eligible for up to 90% of their regular wages (depending on wage level), up to a maximum of $1,372 per week (based on 2024 data).

Important Considerations for Employers

As January 1, 2026, approaches, employers must make several decisions, each of which involve multiple considerations, including:

• Whether to opt into the state’s MPL program or submit an equivalent plan.
• Whether the employer will allow employees to supplement their MPL with other paid leave benefits (i.e., “top off” MPL benefits with earned accrued sick and safe time, vacation, paid time off, or short-term disability benefits).
• How to modify existing policies to comply with MPL rules for how employees can take intermittent leave, and the minimum increment of time an employee can use when taking MPL.
• How the State’s MPL program will affect employees that took short-term disability and/or paid parental leave in 2025 and will become eligible for MPL benefits in 2026.
  • For example, if an employee welcomes a child in 2025 and takes short-term disability or paid parental leave, the employee may still be eligible for the maximum amount of protected leave starting January 1, 2026 (this may include both bonding and medical leave, if certified by a medical provider). See Minnesota Paid Leave for Birth and Bonding.

Steps to Prepare for the State’s MPL Program

Employers may need to:

• Create an account on the Unemployment Insurance system on the Paid Leave Employer Portal.
• Designate at least one (or more) paid leave administrators.
• Coordinate and revise policies and procedures to account for leave taken under the MPL program (i.e., review attendance policies, paid parental leave policies, and policies providing for FMLA leave, Minnesota’s Parenting Leave, and Earned Sick and Safe Time to determine whether references to MPL should be added).
• Post required workplace poster and provide employees with the required notice by December 1, 2025.
• Continue to provide quarterly wage reports (this is required even if using an equivalent plan).

Key Dates for Employers

• November 10, 2025 — Recommended date by the DEED to submit an equivalent plan for approval before the law’s effective date.
• December 1, 2025 — Provide employees individualized notice of their rights and benefits under the MPL law. Additionally, employers must hang a workplace poster. Both the individual employee sample notice and poster can be found below (under “State MPL Program Resources”).
• January 1, 2026 — The MPL law’s effective date; benefits become available to employees. Payroll deductions start for current employees.
• April 30, 2026 — First quarterly payment due to the DEED.

State MPL Program Resources

DEED has provided and continues to update resources on its website for employers to implement the Paid Leave program:

• Unemployment Insurance & Paid Leave Accounts
• Employer FAQs
• Premium Rate Calculator
• Public Engagement Events
• Required Workplace Poster
• Required Workplace Poster (Equivalent Plan) (New as of October 1, 2025)
• Required Employee Notice (New as of October 1, 2025)
• Required Employee Notice (Equivalent Plan) (New as of October 1, 2025)
• Equivalent Plan Guide
• Equivalent Plan Self-Insurance Guide

For More Information

Save the date for a pop-up webinar, “Getting Ready for Paid Leave in Minnesota” on October 22, 2025, at noon ET, where we will discuss high-level guidance for employers getting ready for the Minnesota Paid Leave program, along with nuanced considerations about the broad implications of MPL.

For further information, you may contact the authors.