Colorado parental leave runs through the state’s Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) program, which pays most new parents up to 12 weeks of wage-replacement benefits after a birth, adoption, or foster placement. The maximum weekly benefit in 2026 is $1,381.45, and payments start on the first day of approved leave with no waiting period.1Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). What to Expect From Your First FAMLI Payment Both you and your employer fund the program through small payroll premiums, and you apply through an online portal called My FAMLI+.
Who Qualifies for Paid Parental Leave
Almost every private-sector worker in Colorado is covered. To qualify for benefits, you must have earned at least $2,500 in wages subject to FAMLI premiums during your base period, which is the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before your leave begins.2Justia Law. Colorado Code Title 8 Article 70 – Section 8-70-103 Workers with a shorter employment history fall under an alternative calculation using their four highest-earning completed quarters.
Local governments are the only employers permitted to opt out, and only after a formal vote by their governing body. If yours has opted out, you can still self-elect coverage through the My FAMLI+ Employer portal under a three-year commitment. Self-employed workers and independent contractors can opt in on the same terms.3Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Local Governments Federal employees are not covered by the state program; they fall under separate federal leave systems.
If Your Employer Has a Private Plan
Some employers run their own paid leave plan in place of the state program. An approved private plan must cover all employees, match the state program’s leave duration, provide at least the same wage replacement, and impose no extra conditions. Your paycheck deduction cannot exceed the state premium rate either.4Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Private Plans Practically, your leave should feel the same, but the claim goes through your employer’s plan rather than the state.
How Much You’ll Be Paid
FAMLI uses a sliding scale tied to the state average weekly wage, which is $1,534.94 for the 2025–2026 period. The first $735.67 of your average weekly wage is replaced at 90%. Anything above that is replaced at 50%, up to the $1,381.45 weekly cap.5Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Premium and Benefits Calculator These figures may be updated by mid-2026 when the state recalculates its average weekly wage.
Lower-wage workers get the highest replacement rate. A worker earning $600 per week would receive about $540. Someone earning $1,500 per week would receive roughly $1,044. The FAMLI website’s calculator will run your actual wages.
You pay for the program too. The 2026 premium rate is 0.88% of your wages, split evenly with your employer at 0.44% each.6Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Employers On a $60,000 salary, that’s about $264 a year from your paycheck.
Taxes on Your Benefits
FAMLI benefits are exempt from Colorado state income tax. Federal treatment is unsettled: the IRS has issued guidance suggesting taxability depends on several factors, and the FAMLI Division cannot advise on federal taxes. You can choose to have 10% withheld for the IRS from each payment, and you can toggle that on or off through your My FAMLI+ dashboard. The state issues a 1099-G to anyone who received at least $10 in benefits during the tax year.7Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Individuals and Families FAQs If your household files jointly and the extra income could shift your bracket, a tax advisor is worth consulting before leave begins.
How Long You Can Take
You can take up to 12 weeks of paid bonding leave per benefit year after a birth, adoption, or foster placement.8Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Welcome to the Division of Family and Medical Leave Insurance Each parent qualifies independently, so two parents can each take the full 12 weeks. The leave must be used within the first 12 months after the child arrives.9Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Parental (Bonding) Leave
If pregnancy or childbirth causes health complications, a licensed health care provider can certify an additional four weeks, bringing the total to 16 weeks in a benefit year.8Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Welcome to the Division of Family and Medical Leave Insurance Only the parent who gave birth and experienced the complication qualifies for the extension.
Splitting Up Your Leave
The full 12 weeks doesn’t have to come as one continuous stretch. You can take it as separate blocks, as intermittent leave, or as a reduced work schedule.10Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). How FAMLI Leave Can Be Used A common pattern for bonding: four weeks right after birth, back to work for a stretch, then the remaining eight weeks before the child’s first birthday. Each block is a separate claim, though later blocks can be linked to the original for faster processing.
A reduced schedule works well for a gradual return, say dropping from five days to three days a week for several months. One catch with intermittent leave: your claim won’t pay wage replacement unless you accumulate at least eight hours of leave per claim period.10Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). How FAMLI Leave Can Be Used
How FAMLI Works With PTO and Disability
Your employer cannot force you to burn through PTO or sick time before or during FAMLI leave. You can choose to use PTO to top up your FAMLI payments, but only under a written agreement with your employer, and the combined total cannot exceed your average weekly wage.11Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). FAMLI and Other Types of Leave
Short-term disability is more complicated. Some policies require FAMLI to be exhausted first, some count FAMLI payments toward their own benefit obligations, and some do neither. Any of these restrictions applies only if your employer gives you written notice of it.11Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). FAMLI and Other Types of Leave Read your disability policy before leave starts so you can plan your finances around the actual payout schedule.
How to Apply
Timing matters. You can open a claim up to 30 days before a planned absence, such as a scheduled birth or adoption date. If leave has already started, you have 30 days from the first day out. Claims filed 31 to 90 days late may still be considered with good cause. After 90 days, the window closes.7Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Individuals and Families FAQs Filing early is safer, since processing times shift with claim volume.
Before you start, gather your Social Security Number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, your contact information, and a valid government-issued photo ID.12Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). My FAMLI+ For bonding leave, you’ll also upload proof that a child arrived: a birth certificate, hospital report of live birth, or legal placement papers for adoption or foster care. If the birth was outside a hospital, secondary evidence such as a baptismal record or court-ordered custody agreement can work.
Applications go through the My FAMLI+ portal. Create a secure account, verify your identity, and work through the screens to enter your personal information, employment details, and leave dates, then upload your documents. After submission you get a claim number for tracking, and you can log back in to respond to requests for more information. The state aims to process claims within roughly two weeks.
Job Protection and Health Insurance
If you’ve worked for your current employer for at least 180 days before your leave begins, you have the right to return to the same position or an equivalent role at the same pay and benefits.13Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Job Protection and Retaliation That threshold is lower than the one-year requirement under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, so more Colorado workers get job protection here than under federal law.
Your employer must continue your health insurance during leave, though you remain responsible for your share of the premiums. One exception: if your local government employer opted out and you self-elected coverage, that employer is not required to maintain your health insurance.14Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Employer FAQs
The FAMLI Act also prohibits your employer from firing, demoting, cutting your hours, or otherwise retaliating against you for taking leave or filing a claim. Complaints go to the Job Protection and Retaliation Investigations Unit within the FAMLI Division.13Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Job Protection and Retaliation
If Your Claim Is Denied
Your first move is a reconsideration request through the Claims tab in My FAMLI+. You have 49 days from the date on your determination letter to file it, and that window can be extended by up to another 49 days if you show good cause.15Legal Information Institute. 7 CCR 1107-3.11 – Benefits Determinations and Reconsiderations Mark that deadline on a calendar the day the letter arrives.
Reconsideration is mandatory before a formal appeal. If reconsideration still goes against you, file an appeal through the My FAMLI+ portal, where a separate appeals account lets you track progress, communicate with the hearing officer, and submit additional documents.16Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI). Appeals