Connecticut Paid Leave Calculator: CT Paid Leave Benefits (2026)

How much does CT Paid Leave pay in Connecticut?

CT Paid Leave pays 95 percent of your base weekly earnings up to 40 times the state minimum wage ($677.60 in 2026), plus 60 percent of earnings above that, capped at 60 times the minimum wage, which is $1,016.40 a week. A worker on $1,500 a week receives about $1,016.40, 68 percent of pay. Benefits run for up to 12 weeks in a benefit year for all reasons combined. There is no waiting period. To qualify you need at least $2,325 earned in your highest quarter and a current or recent Connecticut employer. The program is funded by a 0.5 percent employee payroll deduction up to the Social Security wage base; employers pay nothing. Both figures track the state minimum wage and move every January 1. Figures effective January 1, 2026, checked September 14, 2026.

How is the Connecticut weekly benefit calculated?

CT Paid Leave pays 95 percent of your base weekly earnings up to 40 times the state minimum wage ($677.60 in 2026), plus 60 percent of earnings above that, capped at 60 times the minimum wage, which is $1,016.40 a week. The state works out your average weekly wage from the wages your employers reported for the base period, not from your current pay stub, so a recent raise or a change of hours may not be reflected yet.

Three examples with the current figures. A Connecticut worker earning $800 a week receives about $717.16, which is 90 percent of pay. At $1,500 a week the benefit is $1,016.40, or 68 percent. At $3,000 a week it is $1,016.40, because the $1,016.40 weekly maximum applies, or 34 percent. Anyone earning about $1,300 a week or more in Connecticut receives the maximum, so the share of pay replaced keeps falling as wages rise above that. There is no weekly minimum.

How many weeks does CT Paid Leave pay?

12 weeks in a 12-month period for all reasons combined, plus 2 additional weeks for a serious health condition that results in incapacity during pregnancy. The calculator caps the weeks you enter at the limit for the leave type you choose and shows the total, so you can see at a glance what 12 weeks would be worth at your wage.

Waiting period: none. The first week of an approved leave is a paid week, which is not the case in every state.

Who qualifies for CT Paid Leave?

At least $2,325 in earnings in the highest-earning quarter of the base period, and currently employed by a Connecticut employer or employed within the last 12 weeks. Employers of any size are covered.

Who pays for it: Employees pay 0.5 percent of wages up to the Social Security wage base. Employers contribute nothing to the state plan. The benefit itself comes from the state fund or an approved private plan, not from your employer's payroll, which is why it continues if you change jobs during the base period and why it is separate from any company parental or sick leave you also have.

Is your job protected while you receive CT Paid Leave?

The benefit itself carries no job protection. The Connecticut FMLA (employers with 1 or more employees, employees with 3 months of service) provides 12 weeks of protected leave that normally runs at the same time.

The state job-protection law that applies in Connecticut: Connecticut FMLA: 12 weeks in 12 months plus 2 weeks for incapacity during pregnancy, employers with 1 or more (Conn. Gen. Stat. 31-51kk ff.). The federal FMLA adds 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for employees with 12 months of service and 1,250 hours at an employer with 50 or more employees, and where both apply the paid benefit and the FMLA run at the same time rather than back to back.

When do the Connecticut figures change?

Both the 95 percent band and the cap are multiples of the Connecticut minimum wage ($16.94 an hour in 2026), so they move every January 1 when the minimum wage is indexed. The figures on this page took effect on January 1, 2026 and were checked on September 14, 2026 against the amounts published by Connecticut Paid Leave Authority. Statute: Conn. Gen. Stat. 31-49e to 31-49u.