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New Minnesota paid leave law begins in 2026
A new year brings a new paid leave law in Minnesota that could offer up to 20 weeks paid time off for families under some circumstances. FOX 9’s Corin Hoggard has the details.
(FOX 9) - Minnesota's new paid leave law is now in effect, providing residents with the opportunity to take partially paid time off for family or medical reasons.
Paid leave funding and benefits
What we know:
The program initially received an $800 million boost from the 2023 budget surplus.
Eventually, it will be funded through payroll tax deductions of 0.88% of most salaries, with employers covering at least half of that amount. For small employers, it’s a total of 0.66%, but employees may still be responsible for as much as 0.44%.
Under the law, Minnesotans can take up to 12 weeks of family or medical leave, with a maximum of 20 combined weeks per year. The wage replacement is partial, capped at the state's average weekly wage of about $1,423.
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New paid leave program begins in Minnesota
Minnesota's new paid leave program begins in 2026, offering up to 12 weeks of each family or medical leave, but no more than 20 total weeks in a year.
Types of available leave
Dig deeper:
- Medical leave — Medical providers confirm illness or injury.
- Caring leave (family) — You can be eligible to help an injured or ill person who is your spouse or domestic partner, child, parent, sibling, grandchild or grandparent, or spouse of your children (in-laws).
- Bonding leave (family) — You are eligible if you’ve had a child in the last 12 months.
- Safety leave(family) — This is for responding to sexual assault, domestic violence, or stalking of yourself or a family member.
- Military family leave(family) – This is designed for you to take time to support family members called to active duty.
Employers and employees respond
What they're saying:
"Because of this paid family leave, I'm going to be looking forward to some time with her that I otherwise wouldn't be able to spend," said Martha Polacek from Marty's Deli. "Every expense counts, but this small, shared contribution is so much less than what it would cost me to offer this kind of leave to my employees, so that's really important to me."
Fraud prevention measures
What's next:
To prevent fraud, the program includes ID verification, proof of childbirth for bonding leave, and medical documentation for other types of leave. Employers can report suspected misuse of the system.
What they're saying:
"Prevention is the most effective and the cheapest way to handle fraud. And so putting the controls in place up front is by far the most effective way," said Judy Randall, the state's legislative auditor.
You can find more information on the state’s website.
What we don't know:
The state's legislative auditor has not yet graded the program's effectiveness, but initial feedback on fraud prevention measures is positive.