How to submit FMLA paperwork and medical certification when you need FMLA medical or disability-related leave.
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The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) allows you to take unpaid time off work for a serious health condition, but you can’t just spring the fact that you’re taking leave on your boss. In your absence, your employer may need to reassign tasks or even hire additional staff to cover your workload. That takes time, which is why the FMLA requires that you provide notice to your employer when requesting leave.
The FMLA has certain notice and paperwork procedures that you’ll need to follow before you can assert your right to medical leave (and reinstatement when you return to work after your leave is up). While crossing your T’s and dotting your I’s might not sound like the most urgent matter when you’re busy dealing with a medical problem, it’s important to get the paperwork processed correctly so that you can make sure your FMLA rights are legally protected.
FMLA Paperwork You’ll Need to Take Leave
You don’t need to fill out a specific form in order to take FMLA leave, although your employer may have forms that they want you to use for this purpose. You can give your notice of FMLA leave by letter, email, fax, phone, or in person. There’s no legal requirement that you have to put your notice in writing, but it’s good practice to have written proof of your request and when you made it so that you can avoid any misunderstandings later.
Generally, you must personally submit any FMLA request paperwork your employer requires. This can include a medical certification from your doctor for planned medical procedures like a scheduled surgery or childbirth. But if you can’t fill out the forms (because you’re unconscious, for instance), a relative or other spokesperson can do it for you.
How to Give Notice For FMLA Leave
Depending on the nature of your FMLA leave, there are two sets of rules for giving notice under the FMLA. One set of rules is for leave that is foreseeable (predictable or expected), and the other is for unforeseeable (unexpected or unpredictable) leave.
Taking FMLA Leave for a Foreseeable Reason
If you know you’ll need leave at a certain time—say, for a round of chemotherapy— you must give your employer notice at least 30 days in advance. (29 C.F.R.§ 825.302 (2026).) But even if you know you’ll need FMLA leave, the timing of your leave might change for reasons that are out of your control. In that case, you’re required to give as much notice as is practical if you can't provide your employer with the exact dates that you’ll be off work.
For example, you can give less than 30 days’ notice if you have an operation scheduled in several months but your condition suddenly worsens and you need surgery right away. Or, if you know you’re going to need leave because you’re on a heart transplant list but you aren’t sure when the organ will be ready, you can give less than 30 days. Pretty much any time your circumstances have changed to the point where they affect your medical treatment dates can be a valid reason for giving less than 30 days’ notice.
📅 FMLA Leave Notice Rules
Taking FMLA Leave for an Unforeseeable Reason
If you suddenly need FMLA leave—for example, you’re injured in a car accident—the 30-day notice rule doesn’t apply. Instead, you must give notice as soon as possible, typically the same day or the next work day after you learn that you need time off. (29 C.F.R.§ 825.303 (2026).)
FMLA Medical Certification Requirements
Your employer can ask you to provide medical certification before you take FMLA leave. (29 U.S.C. §2613 (2026).) A medical certification is a form or letter from your doctor that gives some information about your health condition (or the health of your family member, if you’re requesting leave to care for them), including when you’re expected to be able to return to work.
What a Medical Certification Can Include
You don’t have to share your diagnosis with your employer, but your FMLA medical certification must include some specific information, like:
- whether you’re taking time off for yourself or to care for a family member
- information about the health care provider (including contact information)
- when the medical condition began and how long it’s expected to last
- whether you need continuous leave or intermittent leave, and
- when you expect to return to work (or when your intermittent leave will end).
Continuous leave means that you’re taking all 12 weeks of your FMLA leave at once, while intermittent leave means that you can take those 12 weeks in intervals where you might be working in between periods of leave.
How to Get and Complete the Medical Certification Paperwork
If you request leave and your employer wants you to submit a medical certification before you take time off, they should tell you so and give you a copy of the form they want you to complete. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) provides two forms that your employer can use, one for your own serious health condition and another for a family member’s condition, but your employer may already have their own forms.
Complete your section of the form and then get your doctor or health care provider to fill out the rest. You’ll need to return the form to your employer within 15 days unless it isn't practical to do so. For example, if your doctor is on vacation or loses your paperwork despite your best efforts, you should have more time.
What Happens After You Submit the FMLA Paperwork?
Once you notify your employer that you’re requesting FMLA leave, your employer is required to provide you with a written “Notice of Eligibility & Rights and Responsibilities” (DOL Form WH-381) within five business days of your initial request. This notice tells you whether you’re eligible for FMLA (the Act only applies to businesses over a certain size and for employees who’ve worked enough hours in the past year to qualify for leave) and outlines your legal rights and responsibilities under the FMLA.
If your employer requested a medical certification, after you’ve turned in that paperwork—typically to your supervisor, benefits administrator, or human resources (HR) department—your employer can request additional information if the certification is incomplete. You’ll then have seven calendar days to provide the missing information.
Your employer will send you a “designation notice” within five business days once they have all the medical information they need to determine whether or not you qualify for FMLA leave.
Your FMLA Designation Notice Explained
The FMLA designation notice (DOL Form WH-382) tells you whether your employer approved your request for leave and, if so, how your leave will count against your total FMLA entitlement (you can take up to 12 weeks unpaid every year). The designation notice will also tell you whether any paid benefits you have, such as vacation time, sick leave, and short-term or long-term disability insurance, must be taken along with your FMLA leave. Any conditions on returning to work after your leave has ended, such as a fitness-for-duty certification, should also be discussed in the designation notice.
If your designation notice says that you’ll need to take any accrued paid leave benefits at the same time as your FMLA leave, you must follow all of your employer's rules regarding when and how you must give notice to take those benefits. For example, if your employer's vacation policy requires employees to give two weeks' notice before taking time off, you’ll need to give that much notice. (For medical emergencies, you’ll need to give as much notice as you can.)
When to Talk to an FMLA Lawyer
Most FMLA leave requests can be handled smoothly as long as you do your part and provide the proper notice and documentation. But when you run into a problem with your employer, an employment lawyer can help you assert your rights and negotiate the time off you need. It makes sense to talk to a lawyer if:
- your employer is challenging your right to take time off
- you believe your employer has improperly denied your request for FMLA leave, or
- your employer retaliates when you return to work after FMLA leave (by demoting you or cutting your hours, for instance).
If your employer won't meet its legal obligations, a lawyer can help you assess your options and come up with the best strategy going forward, whether that’s trying to settle your claims or filing a lawsuit in court. For more information, see our article on when to get a disability discrimination attorney.
