How much FMLA leave do I have left?
The Family and Medical Leave Act gives eligible employees up to 12 workweeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in a 12-month period — for the birth of a child and bonding, an adoption or foster placement, a serious health condition of your own or a close family member, or a qualifying military exigency. How much is left depends on which 12-month period your employer uses and, for intermittent leave, on how many hours you normally work.
This FMLA calculator keeps a simple log of the days or hours you take and shows how much leave is used and left under any of the four methods the regulations allow, in hours and in workweeks. With a rolling year, it also shows when used hours come back. It is information only, not legal advice; your employer keeps the official record.
How to use the FMLA Leave Calculator
- Choose the 12-month method your employer uses (it is usually in the employee handbook) and enter the hours in your normal workweek.
- Log each absence: a date and the hours, or a block of whole workweeks starting on a date.
- Set As of to today or a future date: leave dated up to that day is counted, later entries show as planned.
- Read the hours and workweeks left, the period being counted and, for a rolling year, when hours return.
- Tick the eligibility tests to check whether the FMLA covers you at all.
FMLA Leave Calculator features
Four 12-month methods
Calendar year, fixed leave year, measured forward from your first leave, and the rolling year measured backward.
Intermittent leave in hours
12 times your normal weekly hours — 480 hours for a 40-hour week, 360 for 30 hours.
Hours coming back
With the rolling method, the date each absence drops out of the 12-month window.
Eligibility check
The three tests in 29 CFR 825.110.
Saved log
Your entries stay in this browser.
The four ways to count the 12-month period
| Method (29 CFR 825.200(b)) | How it works |
|---|---|
| Calendar year | January 1 to December 31; the full 12 weeks are available again each January. |
| Fixed leave year | Any fixed 12 months, such as a fiscal year or a year starting on your work anniversary. |
| Measured forward | The 12 months start on the first day you take FMLA leave; the next period starts with the first leave after that. |
| Rolling, measured backward | Each time you take leave, the 12 months before that day are checked; time returns gradually as old absences pass 12 months. |
Intermittent and reduced-schedule leave
Leave can be taken in separate blocks or as a reduced schedule when medically necessary, and for bonding if your employer agrees. Only the time actually taken counts against the 12 weeks: someone who normally works 30 hours a week and takes 10 hours off uses one third of a week (29 CFR 825.205). If your hours vary, the weekly average over the 12 weeks before the leave is used. Employers must count intermittent leave in the smallest unit their payroll uses for other leave, and never in blocks of more than an hour.
Birth, bonding and pregnancy
Both parents can take FMLA leave for the birth and to bond with the baby, but bonding leave must end within 12 months of the birth, and spouses who work for the same employer may be limited to 12 weeks between them for birth and bonding. Leave can start before the birth for prenatal care or if you are unable to work. Plan the dates with the maternity leave calculator, and see the SMP calculator for UK maternity pay.
FMLA Leave Calculator FAQ
How many hours is 12 weeks of FMLA?
12 times your normal workweek: 480 hours for 40 hours a week, 360 hours for 30 hours a week, 300 hours for 25.
How does the FMLA rolling 12-month period work?
On any day you take leave, your employer looks back 12 months and subtracts the FMLA leave used in that window from 12 weeks. Hours come back as each past absence reaches 12 months.
Is FMLA leave paid?
No. FMLA leave is unpaid and job-protected; your employer may let you or require you to use paid leave at the same time. State paid-leave programmes are separate.
Who is eligible for FMLA?
Employees who have worked for the employer for 12 months, at least 1,250 hours in the past year, at a worksite with 50 or more employees within 75 miles.
Can I take FMLA intermittently for a newborn?
For bonding with a healthy newborn, only if your employer agrees. For a serious health condition, intermittent leave is allowed when medically necessary.