Starting January 1, 2026, MN Paid Leave will offer payments and job protections so people can take time off work to care for themselves or their loved ones.
MN Paid Leave Information:
Self-Employed Opt-In Information:
Minnesota Paid Leave important dates:
November 10, 2025: if privately funding, request DEED approval of equivalent plan substitutions to ensure they are in place when the program launches.
December 1, 2025: provide required notices to employees.
December 31, 2025: update your employee handbook to clarify leave policies.
December 31, 2025: gather list of self-employed workers opting into program.
January 1, 2026: payroll deductions begin for employers and employees. Small employers can apply for assistance grants.
April 30, 2026: first quarterly premiums are due from employers to state.
Set up your accounts
As an employer, you will need an employer account and an administrator.
Go to uimn.org to register for an employer account.
Designate a Paid Leave administrator: https://uimn.org/employers/paid-leave/paid-leave-admin-assignment.jsp.
Go to paidleave.mn.gov to create your Paid Leave administrator account.
Report gross wages quarterly for employees participating in the program.
Notify your employees
You must notify your employees about MN Paid Leave by December 1, 2025.
Required: hang the workplace poster https://mn.gov/deed/assets/paid-leave-mandatory-employer-poster-acc_tcm1045-700342.pdf.
Required: notify individual employees. A sample notification can be downloaded.
All FICA employees must participate in the MN Paid Leave program.
SECA employees (self-employed) can opt in for program.
If they choose to opt in, they must participate for two years.
Prepare your workplace
Decide how to split premiums: employers must cover at least 50% of premium costs but can choose to cover more. Calculate premiums: premiums webpage.
Set up a clear notification process for employees before they apply to Paid Leave.
Decide whether to allow supplemental payments.
Set up the MN Paid Leave payroll deductions in your payroll software.
Update your Employee Handbook to include clear policies for leave types:
Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESST)
MN Paid Leave
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
MN Pregnancy and Parenting Leave (MPL)
Intermittent Leave
Employees may qualify for multiples leave types. Therefore, it is highly recommended that employers require that MN Paid Leave to run concurrently with FMLA and/or MPL when leave is taken for same purpose.
Ensure that your handbook policies and employee communications clearly state that leaves are to run concurrently. This clarifies that employees are unable to stack leave types on top of each other.
Partner with an employment attorney as needed.
Self-Employed Opt-In Information
Coverage for religious workers depends on their federal tax status. If a religious worker is taxed under SECA, they are considered self-employed and would be excluded from Paid Leave but could opt in for coverage. In order to be a self-employed individual, an owner must derive at least 5.3% of the statewide average annual wage through net earnings from self-employment. This means they must earn at least $3,900 through their self-employment.
If someone decides to opt in to MNPL, they have to be covered by the program for a minimum of 104 calendar weeks or two years. They also could cancel their coverage, but they still have to pay those contributions for the full two years.
Self-employed individual who opts in for coverage must provide (1) the amount of the individual's net earnings from self-employment, if any, from the most recent taxable year and all tax documents necessary to prove the accuracy of the amounts reported, and (2) any other documentation the commissioner requires. A self-employed individual who is covered must annually provide the amount of the individual's net earnings from self-employment within 30 days of filing a federal income tax return.
Independent contractors and self-employed individuals are responsible for paying the entire 0.88% of the premium rate because they will be paying for both the employer and employee contributions.
Self-employed individuals who decide to opt in will need to create a Paid Leave Only account on the UI website. This is where they will pay premiums and report their net earnings annually. They will also want to designate themselves as the Paid Leave Administrator (in the employer account in the UI system) so that they can log into the Paid Leave Portal to manage their leave determinations.
If you need assistance in clarifying these steps, please contact Jolene Peterman, Treasurer/Business Manager.