This information is from Washington’s State Employment Security Department
Premiums, collected from employees and employers through quarterly reporting, fund the Paid Leave program. By law, ESD recalculates the Paid Leave premium rate annually in October. The adjusted premium rate is based on premiums contributed and benefits paid during the previous year.
Paid Leave premium rate increases to 1.13% of each employee’s gross wages
- Employers will pay 28.57% of the total premium, and employees will pay 71.43%. For comparison, the current (2025) premium rate is 0.92% with employers paying 28.48% of the total premium and employees paying 71.52%.
- Businesses classified by the Employment Security Department as having fewer than 50 employees for the 2026 calendar year are not required to pay the employer portion of the premium. However, you must still collect the employee premium or pay employees’ premiums on their behalf.
Next steps
- Notify your employees the new withholding rate applies to wages paid on or after Jan. 1, 2026.
- Starting Jan. 1, 2026, withhold at the new premium rate each pay period from your employees’ total gross wages, not including tips. Once an employee meets the Social Security cap, stop collecting premiums but continue to report their wages. The Social Security cap for the 2026 calendar year will increase to $184,500.
- First quarter premiums using the new rate are due by the end of April 2026. Remember: You cannot retroactively withhold premiums from employees.
Employer resources
ESD will update employer resources online by the end of November. Look for the newest versions of our employer guides, the 2026 mandatory poster, and paystub insert on the Employer Roles and Responsibilities page at paidleave.wa.gov/employer-roles-responsibilities.
ESD will post more information at paidleave.wa.gov/updates about these upcoming changes:
- Job protection: Enhances job protection for employees taking Paid Leave from employers with 25 or more employees.
- Health care benefits: Clarifies when employers need to maintain health care benefits for employees taking job-protected Paid Leave.
- Paid Leave and FMLA concurrence: Provides information to help employers manage job protection when an employee is eligible for both Paid Leave and FMLA.
- Weekly claim minimums: Reduces, from 8 hours to 4 hours, the minimum amount of time an employee must miss in a week to be eligible for Paid Leave.
- Small business assistance grants: Expands Paid Leave’s grant program to help small employers with costs related to employees on leave.
Stay tuned
ESD will share monthly updates in the Employment Security Employer Newsletter. View their archive of past newsletters and sign up for future editions at: esd.wa.gov/employer-newsletter-archive.
Questions? Contact AGC’s Michele Willms.