Paid Family and Medical Leave coverage for self-employed individuals

If you’re a self-employed individual, you can choose to participate in the Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) program.

General eligibility

As a self-employed individual, you may elect coverage under the state's Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) program. If you do so, you will be responsible for paying the full contribution rate for both family and medical leave. For 2023, the contribution rate is 0.63%. For 2024, the contribution rate is 0.88%. Once you've elected coverage, you won't be eligible for benefits until you've made the required contributions for at least 2 of your last 4 completed calendar quarters.

If you are a 1099-MISC employee for a business that does not cover contractors for PFML because 1099-MISC employees make up less than 50% of the business’s workforce, you can choose to opt-in to the PFML program. If you own a business and pay yourself through a W-2, you are an employee of that business and will be considered part of your covered workforce under PFML.

How to opt into PFML as a self-employed individual

To opt into PFML if you are self-employed, you need to do three things:

1. Complete DFML's Self-Employed Notice of Election.

2. Fill out the Self-employed or Statutorily Excluded Employers Opt-in Request Form and attach your completed Self-Employed Notice of Election to the form.

3. After you have submitted both forms, you will need to create a PFML account through the Massachusetts Department of Revenue’s MassTaxConnect system. For step by step guidance, please visit: Opt in and contribute to Paid Family and Medical Leave as a self-employed individual.

Once enrolled in the program, you'll be required to remain enrolled for at least 3 years. During this time, you'll be required to file quarterly earnings reports and submit the full quarterly contribution payments for both family and medical leave based on your earnings.

Eligibility for benefits

There are several factors to being eligible for benefits, including:

• Having met the minimum earnings requirement established annually by the Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA) during the last 4 completed calendar quarters, and at least 30 times more than how much you would be eligible to get each week from your Paid Family Medical Leave benefits

• Paying the full 0.63% (in 2023) or 0.88% (in 2024) contribution rate for both family and medical leave for at least 2 of your last 4 completed calendar quarters before claiming benefits (This rate adjusts annually)

Additional Resources

Opt in and contribute to PFML as a self-employed individual

Self-Employed Notice of Election

Your eligibility for Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML)

Date published:	August 17, 2022
Last updated:	November 1, 2023