Colorado Maternity Leave Laws: FAMLI Benefits and Job Protection

Colorado’s maternity leave laws combine paid benefits with job protection from two different sources. The state’s Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) program pays up to 12 weeks of partial wages to bond with a new child, with a maximum weekly benefit of $1,381.45 for the 2025–2026 benefit year, and protects your job after just 180 days with your employer. Federal FMLA adds a second layer of unpaid, job-protected leave if you meet its stricter eligibility rules. Colorado law also requires accommodations during pregnancy and break time to nurse after you return.

How Much Paid Leave You Get and What It Pays

FAMLI gives you up to 12 weeks of paid leave to bond with a new child by birth, adoption, or foster placement. If a healthcare provider certifies that you have a serious health condition from pregnancy or childbirth, you can add another four weeks, for a total of 16.¹

To qualify, you need at least $2,500 in Colorado wages during your base period, which is the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before your claim.² The benefit follows you as a worker, so changing jobs within the state does not reset your eligibility.

Benefits are calculated on a sliding scale tied to Colorado’s average weekly wage. For the 2025–2026 benefit year, the state AWW is $1,534.94. The first $735.67 of your own average weekly wage is replaced at 90%, and anything above that is replaced at 50%, up to the $1,381.45 weekly cap.³ Lower-wage workers replace a larger share of their income. Someone earning $700 per week would receive roughly $630.

Job Protection During and After Leave

FAMLI provides its own job protection separate from federal law. If you have worked for your current employer for at least 180 days before leave begins, you have the right to return to the same position, or an equivalent one with the same pay and benefits.⁴ There is no minimum employer size, which matters if you work for a small business.

Your employer must continue your health insurance during FAMLI leave on the same terms as if you were still working. You keep paying your share of the premium.⁴

Retaliation is illegal. Your employer cannot fire, demote, suspend, or discipline you for filing a claim, taking leave, or discussing FAMLI rights with coworkers. FAMLI leave also cannot be counted as an absence that leads to discipline or termination.⁴

How Federal FMLA Fits In

The federal Family and Medical Leave Act provides up to 12 workweeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year for the birth or placement of a child.⁵ The eligibility bar is higher than FAMLI: 12 months of employment, at least 1,250 hours worked in the prior year, and a worksite where the employer has 50 or more employees within a 75-mile radius.⁶

When you return from FMLA leave, your employer must restore you to the same or an equivalent position with the same pay, benefits, and working conditions, and must maintain your group health coverage during leave.⁷

If you qualify for both, the two run at the same time rather than back-to-back. FAMLI supplies the paycheck; FMLA adds a second layer of job protection. The combined leave period does not exceed the maximum allowed under either program unless your employer offers more through company policy or a collective bargaining agreement. Where the two really diverge is coverage. Many workers at smaller companies qualify for FAMLI benefits and job protection even though FMLA does not apply to them.

Rights While Still Pregnant and After Returning

Before you get to leave, Colorado law requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for health conditions related to pregnancy and recovery from childbirth, unless doing so would cause undue hardship. That can mean more frequent restroom and water breaks, modified seating, lighter duty, temporary transfers, or schedule changes. Your employer and you are expected to work through an interactive process to find something workable. Importantly, your employer cannot force you to take leave if a reasonable accommodation would let you keep working.⁸

After you return, Colorado requires employers to provide break time to express breast milk for up to two years after your child’s birth. The employer must make reasonable efforts to provide a private space near your work area that is not a bathroom stall. The break time can be unpaid, or you can use existing paid breaks and meal periods. If your employer violates the law, you must go through nonbinding mediation before filing a lawsuit.⁹

Filing a FAMLI Claim

All FAMLI claims go through the My FAMLI+ online portal. You can open a claim up to 30 days before a planned absence, such as a scheduled delivery date, or within 30 days after your first day of leave. Claims filed 31 to 90 days after leave started are considered only if you can show good cause for the delay.¹⁰

Bonding claims do not require a healthcare provider certification. You upload proof of birth or placement showing the child’s birth or placement date. Acceptable documents include a birth certificate, a hospital verification-of-birth worksheet, birth or recovery care records from a medical facility, or adoption or foster placement paperwork.¹¹

If your leave involves a pregnancy-related health condition, you need a Serious Health Condition certification from a licensed healthcare provider that specifies the medical need for leave, expected recovery timeline, and, for intermittent leave, hours needed per reporting period.¹²

The application also asks for your name, date of birth, Social Security Number or ITIN, gender identity, and employer information. You choose direct deposit or a state-issued prepaid debit card. Once approved, benefits pay biweekly.¹³ Report any change in your leave status or return-to-work date through the portal to avoid overpayment.

If Your Employer Uses a Private Plan

Colorado employers can apply to use an approved private plan instead of the state program, as long as the plan matches or exceeds FAMLI: at least the same duration, the same or better wage replacement, no larger employee paycheck deduction, and the same confidentiality and employee-rights protections.¹⁴ If your employer uses a private plan, you may file through a private insurer instead of My FAMLI+. Your rights to benefits and job protection are the same. Ask HR before you need to file so you know which process applies.

Taxes on FAMLI Benefits

Colorado does not tax FAMLI benefits at the state level. Federal treatment is less clear. The FAMLI Division issues IRS Form 1099-G to anyone who received at least $10 in benefits during the tax year, with the amount reported in Box 1. Whether the benefits are subject to federal income tax depends on your situation, and IRS guidance leaves some ambiguity. You can elect to have 10% of each payment withheld for the IRS if you want to avoid a surprise bill. Talk to a tax advisor if you are unsure.¹⁰

Self-Employed Workers

FAMLI coverage is optional if you are self-employed. You opt in through the My FAMLI+ Employer portal by submitting your most recent federal tax transcript. Self-employed participants pay only the employee share of the premium, 0.44% of gross self-employment income, and must commit to paying premiums for at least three years.¹⁵

Benefits are available after you have reported and paid premiums for at least one quarter. You also need to submit updated tax documents each year by December 1 to stay eligible. Late paperwork can trigger fines and delay benefits.¹⁵

If Your Claim Is Denied

You cannot go straight to a formal appeal. First request a reconsideration through the My FAMLI+ portal. If reconsideration does not resolve the issue, file a formal appeal by uploading either the reconsideration notice or the letter of determination.¹⁶ The appeal runs through a separate portal and asks for contact details, the reason for appeal, and the party you are appealing against, typically the FAMLI Division.

1
Justia. Colorado Code 8-13.3-501 – Short Title
2
Colorado Department of Labor and Employment. Colorado Code 8-13.3-501 et seq. – Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance Act
3
Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Premium and Benefits Calculator
4
Justia. Colorado Code 8-13.3-509
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 U.S.C. 2612 – Leave Requirement
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 U.S.C. 2611 – Definitions
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 U.S.C. 2614 – Employment and Benefits Protection
8
Justia. Colorado Code 24-34-402.3 – Prohibition of Discrimination – Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Related Conditions
9
Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Colorado Code 8-13.5-104 – Workplace Accommodations for Nursing Mothers Act
10
Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Individuals and Families FAQs
11
Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Parental (Bonding) Leave
12
Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). How FAMLI Leave Can Be Used
13
Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). My FAMLI+ User Guide – Filing a Claim
14
Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Private Plans
15
Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Opting In to FAMLI – Self-Employed Individuals
16
Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). My FAMLI+ User Guide – Appeals