Maryland maternity leave and paid family leave

Maryland Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) pays up to 12 weeks to bond with your baby. The legal maximum for your own health condition is 12 weeks, and medical and family leave together are capped at 24 weeks a year.

When benefits start in January 2028: 90% of your average weekly wage up to 65% of the state average weekly wage, plus 50% of wages above that; min $50, max $1,000/week through Dec. 31, 2028, CPI-adjusted after that. No benefits are paid in 2026.

Yes, in the FAMLI law: when leave ends, your employer must restore you to an equivalent position, and during leave can fire you only for cause. The only exception is if denying restoration is needed to prevent 'substantial and grievous economic injury' to the employer, the employer gives notice, and you then choose not to return. There is no separate job-tenure test beyond FAMLI's 680-hour eligibility rule. FAMLI runs at the same time as federal FMLA when both apply.

Once benefits start, you'll need to have worked at least 680 hours in a Maryland-based job in the 4 reported calendar quarters before you apply or your leave begins (hours can come from more than one employer). There is no minimum earnings test. Covers employees of employers of any size; employers with fewer than 15 employees don't pay the employer share. Federal employees aren't covered. Self-employed Marylanders will be able to opt in later.

The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) gives eligible workers up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in a 12-month period for a birth and to care for the newborn, or for their own serious health condition, including pregnancy complications and recovery from childbirth. Health coverage continues during leave, and you return to the same or an equivalent job.