New Jersey Temporary Disability
Insurance (TDI) and Family
Leave Insurance (FLI)
New Jersey Temporary Disability Insurance (NJ TDI) offers wage replacement benefits if an employee needs time off from work. NJ TDI applies if an employee is unable to work due to pregnancy and/or childbirth or due to a non-work-related injury or illness.
Employers can participate in the state-run program, or they can self-insure or fully insure a private plan.
MetLife offers self-insured and fully insured NJ TDI plans. While employers are also required to provide NJ Family Leave Insurance (FLI), MetLife does not currently offer an NJ FLI program. For more information, please visit New Jersey's website.
Benefit Overview
Mandated Coverage & Employee Eligibility
HintLeave Reason, Duration, Job Protection
HintCost of Coverage and Contributions
HintBenefit Payments
HintAll covered employers are required to offer NJ TDI benefits if they have employees working in the state of NJ.
An employee working for a covered employer is eligible for benefits if they have 20 weeks of work with earnings of at least 20 times the minimum wage ($15.49 in 2025), or $303 per week, or $15,200 within the base year. Individual employees are not allowed to opt out of the program.
Eligible employees can receive partial wage replacement, but no job protection, if they need to take time off for their own disability.
An eligible employee may receive disability benefits for up to 26 weeks after a 7-day unpaid waiting period if the employee is suffering from an accident or sickness, including organ or bone marrow donation. Employees who are disabled during their pregnancy or following childbirth may also be eligible for disability benefits.
If a disability continues more than 3 weeks, the employee will be paid retroactively for the first 7 day waiting period.
Job protection may be provided through other federal or state laws such as the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or the New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJ FLA).
Beginning January 1, 2025, an employee’s maximum contribution is 0.23% of the employee’s taxable wages, or a total of $380.42 per year. In 2025, New Jersey’s employee taxable wage base is $165,400.
Private plan insurance premiums may differ, however, state covered payroll caps apply. Employee maximum contributions for a private plan cannot be more than what they would pay for the state-run program. Employers fund the balance of the premium for insured private plans.
MetLife can also provide claim administration for self-insured private plans. Employers may collect payroll contributions up to the state’s maximums and use the funds to pay benefits. Service fees paid to support the operating costs for state approved self-insured plans are the employer’s responsibility.
Please visit the state program’s website for the latest state rates and additional state plan information.
The benefit amount an employee can receive depends on the employee’s average weekly pay and compares it to the average weekly pay for all employees in New Jersey.
In 2025, an employee can receive up to 85% of their average weekly pay, but no more than 70% of the state average weekly wage $1,545.60 or a maximum weekly benefit of $1,081.
In 2025, employees can receive a maximum weekly benefit of $1,081.
Key Dates
- Maximum weekly benefit and contribution rates are announced
Applying for a MetLife Supported Private Plan & Employer Requirements
To obtain a quote from MetLife, you or your broker must create a census of your eligible New Jersey workforce and send it to MetLife. This census template was developed for your convenience.
MetLife offers a few coverage options:
- A fully insured NJ TDI policy
- Self-insured NJ TDI administration
If fully insured, MetLife will draft a DP-1 form for each separate FEIN (required by the state of NJ) for signature by an officer of your business (President, Vice President, Secretary or Treasurer). Once they are signed by an officer of your business, MetLife will send the completed DP-1 form(s) and TDI policy and poster(s), for each separate FEIN, to the state for approval of your MetLife supported private plan.
If you are currently covered for TDI under the New Jersey state sponsored plan, the state will only allow a transfer out of the plan on a "future" quarterly basis (1/1, 4/1, 7/1 or 10/1). The completed DP-1 for a private plan must be in the hands of the state before the requested effective date when transferring out of the state plan.
If self-insured, you will need to work with your own employment counsel to define your NJ TDI plan and you will need to submit it to the state for approval. Review the state’s Self-Insured Private Plan guide for more information.
Important: If you currently have a fully insured plan with another insurance carrier, they must send a 60-day waiver letter to the State of New Jersey. The current carrier is required to provide 60 days' advance notice to the Department of Labor. The current carrier may request to "waive" this notice period, subject to state approval. This means that the current carrier relinquishes its right to retain liability with the employer for the legally mandated 60-day period, allowing MetLife to assume responsibility for the plan. MetLife will also need a copy of your current NJ TDI poster that shows the plan benefits and 'limitations'. The completed DP-1 for a private plan must be in the hands of the state before the requested effective date when transferring from another carrier.
Once approved, the state will issue a Certificate of Approval/Modification and MetLife will issue you your policy and employee notice poster.
You are required to post an employee notice (poster) in a location that is easily seen by all employees working in New Jersey.
If you have a fully insured plan, you will receive an employee notice/poster from MetLife. These notices are sent annually in January for the current year.
If you have a self-insured plan, you may obtain this notice by contacting the Division of Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance.
Your MetLife plan will automatically renew on its anniversary date.
Note: After a private plan is approved, changes can be made through the modification process. All modifications must be approved, in advance, by the state’s Private Plan Operations before taking effect. Contact MetLife to discuss changes in advance.
Taking a Leave
Filing for Benefits with MetLife
HintSupporting Claim Documentation
HintCoordination of Benefits
HintStep 1: An employee should notify their employer of the need for a leave as soon as possible.
Step 2: An employee should file a claim up to 60 days in advance of the leave. If the leave is unforeseeable, claims may be submitted up to 30 days after the leave has begun.
Step 3: MetLife will gather any additional necessary information from the employee and make a decision within 15 days or the first day of leave, whichever is later.
Step 4: If an employee’s claim is denied, an employee may appeal the claim first with MetLife. Appeal filing instructions can be found in the claim denial letter.
Employees must provide specific documents for each claim. It is important to submit paperwork to the doctor as soon as possible. It might take the doctor’s office two weeks or more to complete the paperwork. In some cases, a statement confirming the relationship between the employee and the family member may also be requested.
For an employee's own serious health condition (when an employee is sick or hurt and cannot work for an extended period):
- Certification of a Serious Health Condition form filled out by an employee and their healthcare provider, or
- A doctor’s note or Attending Physician Statement (APS) that includes the same information as the Certification of Serious Health Condition form and/or any other reasonable information or documentation necessary to adjudicate the claim.
Employees may be eligible for more than one leave for the same event.
If an employee is receiving other leave or wage replacement benefits through their employer when on NJ TDI, NJ TDI benefits may be reduced if NJ TDI plus continued employer pay exceeds regular weekly wages. However, if the employee is receiving 100% salary continuation, NJ TDI benefits are not payable.
NJ TDI can and should be taken at the same time with leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJ FLA) when applicable.
MetLife’s claims team will reach out to the employee to coordinate dates of the company leave that directly overlap with the state leave.
MetLife representatives can help review employer paid benefits that may overlap with the state leave. They can help document overlaps and preferred contact and action when the overlap happens.
Note: There may be additional leaves that MetLife does not administer. Employers may be responsible for providing additional leaves for their employees. Employers should consult their own employment attorneys to identify changes to their other employer-sponsored paid and unpaid leave plans.
Need more information?
As of February 03, 2025