Minnesota Paid Leave: 0.88% of wages in 2026
In effectChecked November 9, 2026Run by Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), Paid Leave Division
Short answer
Minnesota Paid Leave is funded by a premium of 0.88% of each employee’s wages, up to the Social Security wage base, in both 2026 and 2027, reported and paid every quarter to the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED). Employers must pay at least half and may deduct up to 0.44% from employees; qualifying employers with 30 or fewer employees pay 0.66% in total. Premiums and benefits both started January 1, 2026.
Next date: January 1, 2027: The 2027 premium rate takes effect: 0.88% of wages, unchanged from 2026, and 0.66% for qualifying small employers.
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What changed recently
· Took effect
Minnesota Paid Leave maximum weekly benefit rises to $1,475.09
Minnesota Paid Leave’s maximum weekly benefit rose from $1,423 to $1,475.09 on October 25, 2026, following the state’s average weekly wage. A worker who first applied before that date keeps the $1,423 maximum for one year from that first application.
· Rate announced
Minnesota Paid Leave premium stays at 0.88% for 2027
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) kept the 2027 Paid Leave premium at 0.88% of wages, the same as 2026. Employers pay at least half and may deduct up to half from employees, on wages up to the Social Security wage base ($192,300 in 2027). Qualifying employers with 30 or fewer employees pay a lower total rate.
- Premium, share of wages
- 0.88%
- Most you may deduct from employees
- 0.44%
- Employer pays at least
- 0.44%
- Wages subject to premium, per employee
- $184,500
- 2027 premium
- 0.88%
Qualifying employers with 30 or fewer employees pay 0.66% in total: at least 0.22% from the employer and up to 0.44% from employees.
Minnesota Paid Leave premium calculator
In 2026, Minnesota Paid Leave premiums are 0.88% of each employee’s wages up to $184,500 a year. With 31 or more employees, employers may deduct up to 0.44% from pay and must cover the rest (at least 0.44%).
- Total premium a year
- $330.00
- Most you may deduct from employees
- $220.00
- Employer pays at least
- $110.00
Standard rates applied: 31 or more employees.
Small-employer rule applied: 30 or fewer employees. Qualifying employers with 30 or fewer employees pay 0.66% in total: at least 0.22% from the employer and up to 0.44% from employees. Not tested here: the employer’s average wage must be at or below 150% of the state’s average wage; if it’s higher, the standard rates apply.
Assumes the full employee share is deducted. Employer size is tested on the number you enter here; each program counts employees its own way, and the page explains how.
Minnesota Paid Leave deadlines
· Paid leave
Fourth-quarter 2026 wage detail report and premium payment due
January 31 falls on a Sunday, so the due date moves to Monday, February 1.
· Paid leave
Deadline for the state to set the 2028 premium rate
By law the rate can’t exceed 1.1% of taxable wages.
· Paid leave
Second-quarter 2027 wage detail report and premium payment due
July 31 falls on a Saturday, so the due date moves to Monday, August 2.
· Paid leave
Third-quarter 2027 wage detail report and premium payment due
October 31 falls on a Sunday, so the due date moves to Monday, November 1.
· Paid leave
First-quarter 2028 wage detail report and premium payment due
April 30 falls on a Sunday, so the due date moves to Monday, May 1.
Dates already passed (5)
- : Third-quarter 2026 wage detail report and premium payment due. October 31 fell on a Saturday, so the due date moved to the next business day.
- : The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) announces the 2027 premium rate: 0.88%, unchanged from 2026.
- : First quarterly premium payment due, for January to March 2026 wages.
- : Premiums begin on wages paid from January 1, 2026. Employers may start deducting the employee share from paychecks.
- : Workers can receive Paid Leave payments and job protections.
What employers have to do
- Register for an employer account in the joint Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Paid Leave employer system at ui.mn.gov so you can file your first quarterly wage detail report by its due date. If some of your workers are covered by Paid Leave but not by unemployment insurance, their wages go on a separate Paid Leave-only account.
- Give each employee the state’s written Paid Leave notice within 30 days of hire, and post the workplace notice where employees can see it (Minn. Stat. 268B.26).
- Deduct no more than 0.44% of each employee’s wages for the employee share, and pay at least the employer minimum yourself: 0.44%, or 0.22% if you qualify for the small-employer rate.
- File the quarterly wage detail report (each employee’s name, wages and hours worked) and pay the premium electronically by the last day of the month after each quarter ends: April 30, July 31, October 31 and January 31, or the next business day when that date falls on a weekend or holiday (Minn. Stat. 645.151). File a zero-wage report for any quarter with no payroll.
- Name one or more Paid Leave Administrators in your employer account so someone at the business can review employee leave applications on the Paid Leave website.
Handling Minnesota Paid Leave in payroll
The free route: register directly with the state
You can register and report on your own through Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), Paid Leave Division. You’ll still need your payroll to figure the premium on each paycheck and withhold any employee share.
Payroll systems with a help document covering Minnesota Paid Leave
| System | What the documentation says | Link |
|---|---|---|
| Gusto | Minnesota tax article explains entering the Paid Leave rate (standard or small-employer) in Gusto and authorizing Gusto as third-party agent so it can file and pay Paid Leave premiums. Read their help doc, Nov 8, 2026 | See plans for Gusto |
| OnPay | Help article explains Minnesota Paid Leave setup in OnPay: the state unemployment insurance account number covers Paid Leave too, and employers exempt from state unemployment tax enter a Paid Leave Only number, without which OnPay cannot submit their quarterly wage reports. Read their help doc, Nov 8, 2026 | See plans for OnPay |
| Patriot Software | Help article says Patriot calculates Minnesota Paid Leave for all payroll accounts and collects, remits and files premiums for Full Service customers who have completed their tax filing setup. Read their help doc, Nov 8, 2026 | See plans for Patriot Software |
| QuickBooks Payroll | Help article explains setting up Minnesota Paid Leave premiums in QuickBooks Workforce and Desktop Payroll, including Paid Leave Only accounts and the small-employer rate. Read their help doc, Nov 7, 2026 | See plans for QuickBooks Payroll |
| Square Payroll | Minnesota tax article explains Paid Leave contribution and exemption settings in Square Payroll and says Square recalculated 2026 PFML filings when it reset pick-up settings. Read their help doc, Nov 7, 2026 | See plans for Square Payroll |
Listed alphabetically. We may earn a commission from these links; it never decides who’s listed.
How Minnesota Paid Leave works
The premium is 0.88% of each employee’s wages up to the Social Security wage base ($184,500 in 2026, $192,300 in 2027). The employer pays at least half, 0.44%, and may deduct the rest, up to 0.44%, from the employee’s pay, or choose to pay more of it, up to all. Deductions can’t push an employee’s pay below the minimum wage. For qualifying small employers the total is 0.66%: the employer pays at least 0.22% and employees can be charged up to 0.44%.
At 0.88% in 2026 and 2027, the premium on an employee earning $50,000 a year is $440. The employer pays at least $220 and may deduct up to $220 from the employee. A qualifying small employer owes $330 in total on the same pay, of which the employer pays at least $110. Small employers can also apply for grants of up to $3,000 per leave, and up to $6,000 a year, to hire a temporary worker or raise another worker’s pay while an employee is on leave; the state funds $5 million in grants a year until that year’s money runs out (Minn. Stat. 268B.29).
Up to 12 weeks for a worker’s own serious health condition and up to 12 weeks of family leave (bonding with a new child, caring for a family member, safety leave, or a family member’s military deployment) in a benefit year, with a combined limit of 20 weeks. Job protection starts 90 days after the date of hire. Payments replace a share of pay on a sliding scale: 90% of wages up to half the state’s average weekly wage, 66% of the next band up to the full state average, and 55% above it. The maximum weekly benefit equals the state’s average weekly wage. Minnesota Paid Leave lists it as $1,475.09 a week under the benefit rate that took effect October 25, 2026, up from $1,423. The rate depends on when a worker first applied: a worker who first applied before October 25, 2026 keeps the $1,423 maximum for one year from that first application. For the current figure, use the state’s payment estimator.
Questions employers ask
Who has to follow Minnesota Paid Leave?
Every employer with at least one employee in covered employment in Minnesota (Minn. Stat. 268B.01, subd. 18), including part-time, temporary and agricultural workers, most seasonal workers and owner-officers who draw a salary. An employee is covered if they did at least half of their work in the prior year in Minnesota, or, if they didn’t work half the year in any one state, if they live in Minnesota. Independent contractors and self-employed people aren’t covered but can opt in. Federal government and railroad employees aren’t covered.
Is there a small-employer rule?
Employers with 30 or fewer employees whose average wage is at or below 150% of the state’s average wage pay a reduced premium equal to 75% of the standard rate: 0.66% of wages in 2026 and 2027. Employees can still be charged up to 0.44%, and the employer pays at least 0.22% and can’t deduct its own share from pay. The count is the most employees reported in any quarter of the four quarters ending September 30 of the year before; a new employer uses its own estimate, which is rechecked against the wage reports it files (Minn. Stat. 268B.14, subds. 5a to 5c).
What happens if an employer doesn’t comply?
A late quarterly wage detail report brings a fee of $10 per employee, at least $250, and the fee doubles if the report still hasn’t arrived 30 days after the state’s demand (Minn. Stat. 268B.12, subd. 3). Missing or wrong employee details can cost $25 per employee, and leaving an employee off the report can cost 2% of that employee’s wages (subd. 4). Late premiums carry interest of 1% a month (Minn. Stat. 268B.15, subd. 5). Failing to give employees the required notice can bring a civil penalty of $50 per employee for a first violation and $300 per employee after that (Minn. Stat. 268B.26). An employer’s failure to pay premiums doesn’t take away an employee’s right to benefits (Minn. Stat. 268B.14, subd. 9).
Can employers use a private plan instead?
Allowed. Minnesota calls them equivalent plans: insurance from a carrier approved by the Minnesota Department of Commerce, or a self-insured plan backed by a surety bond equal to a year of premiums. A plan can cover family leave, medical leave or both, must give employees at least the same benefits and protections as the state plan, can’t charge employees more, and must stay in place for at least a year. The approval fee is $250 for employers with fewer than 50 employees, $500 for 50 to 499 and $1,000 for 500 or more, paid at application and each time the plan is amended. Employers with an approved plan still file quarterly wage detail reports and can’t receive small-employer grants. Requests are made through the Paid Leave Administrator account (Minn. Stat. 268B.10).
Everything employers in Minnesota must do ·Paid leave in every state
Sources
- Minn. Stat. ch. 268B
- Paid Leave Premium Rate Unchanged for 2027 (press release, July 31, 2026), Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (read Nov 8, 2026)
- Paid Leave confirms premium rate, remains on track for launch in 2026 (0.88% rate; first payment due April 30, 2026), Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (read Nov 7, 2026)
- Paid Leave Updates, February 2025 (premium split, wage cap, small-employer rate, who is covered), Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (read Nov 7, 2026)
- Paid Leave Update, presentation to the House Workforce, Labor, and Economic Development Committee, February 24, 2026 (launch date, maximum weekly benefit, small-employer rule), Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (hosted by the Minnesota House of Representatives) (read Nov 7, 2026)
- Quarterly UI and Paid Leave wage detail report and payment due dates, Minnesota Unemployment Insurance Program (DEED) (read Nov 8, 2026)
- Minn. Stat. 645.151, Timely delivery or filing (a filing or payment due on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday is timely on the next business day), Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes (read Nov 8, 2026)
- Employer accounts: when to register for a joint UI/Paid Leave or Paid Leave-only account, Minnesota Unemployment Insurance Program (DEED) (read Nov 8, 2026)
- Account types: Joint UI/Paid Leave account vs. Paid Leave-only account, Minnesota Unemployment Insurance Program (DEED) (read Nov 7, 2026)
- Designate a Paid Leave Administrator, Minnesota Unemployment Insurance Program (DEED) (read Nov 7, 2026)
- Minn. Stat. 268B.14, Premiums (rate setting by July 31, 1.1% ceiling, 50% employer share, wage cap, small-employer rate), Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes (read Nov 8, 2026)
- Minn. Stat. chapter 268B, full text (benefits 268B.04, private plans 268B.10, wage reporting 268B.12, interest 268B.15, notices 268B.26, grants 268B.29), Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes (read Nov 7, 2026)
- Cost-of-Living Increase and Other Determinations for 2027 (contribution and benefit base: $192,300 for 2027, $184,500 for 2026), FR Doc. 2026-21796, Social Security Administration (Federal Register) (read Nov 7, 2026)
- Estimate your payments (2026 and 2027 benefit rates, change on October 25), Minnesota Paid Leave (read Nov 9, 2026)