The “CA OASDI” line on a California pay stub is a mislabeling. OASDI is the federal Social Security tax, but the deduction sitting on your check under that name (or the more accurate “CASDI”) funds California State Disability Insurance, a state-only program. For 2026, the CA OASDI tax, properly called SDI, withholds 1.3% of every dollar you earn, with no wage cap, and the money pays for short-term wage replacement when illness, injury, pregnancy, or family caregiving keeps you off the job.
What the Deduction Actually Buys You
Two benefits sit under the SDI umbrella. Disability Insurance replaces part of your wages when a non-work-related illness, injury, pregnancy, or surgery prevents you from working. Paid Family Leave covers time off to bond with a new child, care for a seriously ill family member, or manage responsibilities tied to a family member’s overseas military deployment.
Eligibility is not demanding. You need at least $300 in wages during your base period, which is roughly the 12 months of earnings from 5 to 18 months before your claim starts, and those wages must have had SDI withheld.1Employment Development Department. Disability Insurance Benefit Payment Amounts Anyone steadily employed in California generally clears that bar.
Disability Insurance benefits can run up to 52 weeks. Paid Family Leave runs up to eight weeks within any 12-month period.2Employment Development Department. Paid Family Leave Neither one replaces your full paycheck. They’re partial income while a temporary interruption plays out.
How Much You Get in 2026
Your weekly benefit is calculated from your highest-earning quarter during the base period. For claims starting on or after January 1, 2025, and continuing through 2026, SB 951 raised the wage replacement rates. Lower-wage earners now receive 90% of their average weekly wages during that peak quarter, and higher-wage earners receive 70%.3Employment Development Department. January 2026 Disability Insurance (DI) Fund Forecast The prior range was 60 to 70%.
The maximum weekly benefit for claims beginning in 2026 is $1,765.4Employment Development Department. Disability Insurance and Paid Family Leave Weekly Benefit Amounts The minimum is $50. You don’t pick a benefit level; your earnings history places you on the scale. The EDD publishes a lookup chart that converts quarterly earnings to an exact weekly amount.
What the CA OASDI Tax Costs You in 2026
California SDI is funded entirely by employees. Your employer withholds the money and remits it, but contributes none of its own.5Employment Development Department. Employer Requirements
The 2026 withholding rate is 1.3% of all wages, with no upper limit on the earnings subject to it.6Employment Development Department. Contribution Rates, Withholding Schedules, and Meals and Lodging Values The rate has climbed steadily: 0.9% in 2023, 1.1% in 2024, 1.2% in 2025, and 1.3% in 2026.
The other big shift is the missing ceiling. Before January 1, 2024, only wages up to a set threshold ($153,164 in 2023) were subject to SDI.7Employment Development Department. January 2025 Disability Insurance (DI) Fund Forecast SB 951 removed that cap.8Employment Development Department. Contribution Rates and Benefit Amounts Every dollar now gets the 1.3%, no matter how high your salary climbs.
In practice: an employee earning $200,000 in 2026 pays $2,600 into SDI. At $500,000, the annual cost is $6,500. Under the pre-2024 wage ceiling, both would have paid roughly the same capped amount.
Why It’s Not the Same as Federal OASDI
The name collision is the whole reason people get confused. Federal FICA taxes include Social Security (the true OASDI) and Medicare, and they’re split between employer and employee: 6.2% each for Social Security on wages up to $184,500 in 2026, and 1.45% each for Medicare with no cap.9Internal Revenue Service. 2026 Publication 15-A California SDI is paid entirely by you at 1.3%, with no employer match and no wage cap.
The benefits are also aimed at very different problems. Federal Social Security funds retirement income, survivor benefits, and long-term disability that can last decades. California SDI covers weeks or a handful of months while you recover from surgery, bond with a newborn, or care for a sick parent. Federal Social Security withholding also stops once you cross $184,500 in a year;10Social Security Administration. Contribution and Benefit Base California SDI keeps taking 1.3% until your last paycheck of the year.
SDI Does Not Protect Your Job
One thing the deduction does not buy you is the right to your job back. The EDD states directly that “Disability Insurance and Paid Family Leave provide wage replacement benefits only; they do not provide job protection.”11Employment Development Department. Family and Medical Leave Act and California Family Rights Act FAQs
Job protection is a separate legal question. The federal Family and Medical Leave Act gives eligible employees at covered employers up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year.12U.S. Department of Labor. FMLA Frequently Asked Questions The California Family Rights Act provides similar state-level protection. When you qualify under FMLA or CFRA, SDI or PFL functions as your paycheck during the protected leave. But the wage replacement and the job protection are two independent legal mechanisms, and being approved for one does not automatically mean the other applies. Confirm your FMLA or CFRA eligibility with HR before you assume the position is waiting.
How Your Benefits Are Taxed
California does not tax Disability Insurance or Paid Family Leave benefits at the state level. Federal treatment splits by benefit type.
Disability Insurance payments funded through SDI withholding are treated as sick pay by the IRS and must be included in your federal gross income.13Internal Revenue Service. Life Insurance and Disability Insurance Proceeds Your employer reports the amounts on your W-2.
Paid Family Leave benefits are also federally taxable. The EDD issues Form 1099-G in January of the following year so you can report the income on your federal return.14EDD – CA.gov. Paid Family Leave Benefits and Payments FAQs Federal tax is not withheld automatically from PFL payments, so consider requesting voluntary withholding or setting money aside for the bill.
If You’re Self-Employed
Self-employed workers don’t see SDI come out of their income automatically, but the EDD’s Elective Coverage program lets you opt in. Enrollment gives you access to the same Disability Insurance benefits as employees, which matters if an injury would otherwise leave you with no income.
The rules have some teeth. Coverage must remain in effect for at least two full calendar years. You can’t enroll if you’re already unable to work. You need to show self-employment is your primary, year-round occupation, with net profit of at least $4,600 annually or $1,150 per quarter on IRS Schedule SE.15Employment Development Department. Elective Coverage for Employers and Self-Employed Individuals Seasonal businesses do not qualify, and any outstanding unpaid EDD contributions disqualify you. Enrollment is done through Form DE 1378DI. Cancellation requires a written request submitted by January 31, effective January 1 of the year filed, and only after the two-year minimum has run.