FMLA Eligibility Calculator
Check all four federal FMLA eligibility tests — covered employer, 12 months of service, 1,250 hours worked, and 50 employees within 75 miles — with pass/fail reasons for each. Includes a 1,250-hour estimator and a 12-month-period (rolling vs. calendar) helper.
Eligibility calculator
1,250-hour estimator
A sanity check when you are waiting on the time records. Records control: eligibility is decided on hours actually worked per FLSA principles, not on this estimate.
Entitlement helper: the 12-month period (29 CFR 825.200)
Eligible employees get up to 12 workweeks of leave in a 12-month period (26 for military caregiver leave). Employers choose ONE of four ways to define that period and must apply it uniformly. Pick the method to see the period that applies to a leave starting on the date entered above.
The four tests for FMLA eligibility
The Family and Medical Leave Act gives job-protected, unpaid leave to employees who clear all of these, measured as of the day leave would start (29 CFR 825.110(d)):
- Covered employer. Private employers with 50 or more employees for each working day in 20 or more calendar workweeks in the current or preceding calendar year; all public agencies; all public and private elementary and secondary schools (825.104, 825.108, 825.600). Employees of a non-covered employer have no FMLA rights, full stop.
- 12 months of employment. Need not be consecutive. Any week on the payroll counts, including leave. Employment before a break in service of 7 or more years does not count unless the break was for USERRA-covered military service or there was a written agreement or intent to rehire (825.110(b)).
- 1,250 hours of service in the 12 months immediately before the leave begins. “Hours of service” means hours actually worked under FLSA principles — not paid vacation, sick leave, holidays or other paid time off. Hours that would have been worked but for USERRA military service are credited (825.110(c)). Airline flight crews use a different test: 60% of the applicable monthly guarantee and at least 504 hours (825.801).
- 50 employees within 75 miles of the employee’s worksite, counted when the employee gives notice of the need for leave. Surface miles via public roads. Teleworkers are counted at the office they report to (825.110(a)(3), (e); 825.111).
Worked example with real numbers
Priya works 30 hours a week as a scheduler for a home-health agency with 140 employees across four offices. She was hired February 10, 2025 and needs leave for surgery starting March 2, 2026. Her timecards show 1,310 hours actually worked between March 2, 2025 and March 1, 2026 (she also took 60 hours of paid vacation, which do not count). 58 employees work at or within 75 road-miles of her office.
| Test | Numbers | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Covered employer (825.104) | 140 employees all year ≥ 50 for 20+ weeks | Pass |
| 12 months (825.110(a)(1)) | Feb 10, 2025 → Mar 2, 2026 = 12 full months (plus 20 days) | Pass |
| 1,250 hours (825.110(a)(2)) | 1,310 worked ≥ 1,250 (vacation excluded) | Pass |
| 50 within 75 miles (825.110(a)(3)) | 58 ≥ 50 | Pass |
| Eligible? | All four pass | Yes |
Change one number. If Priya’s records had shown 1,240 hours worked, she would not be eligible — even though adding her 60 vacation hours would reach 1,300. Paid time off does not count toward the 1,250. Conversely, if the agency had never kept FLSA time records for her, the burden would fall on the employer to prove she did not work 1,250 hours (825.110(c)(3)). Click Load example above to see the calculator reproduce this.
The four ways to define the 12-month period
29 CFR 825.200(b) lets an employer choose any one of these, provided it is applied consistently to all employees. If the employer has not chosen (or did not tell employees), the method most favorable to the employee applies to that leave, and the employer must give 60 days’ notice before switching methods (825.200(d)).
| Method | How it works | Practical effect |
|---|---|---|
| Calendar year 825.200(b)(1) | Jan 1 – Dec 31. | Easy to track. Allows “stacking”: 12 weeks in Oct–Dec followed by 12 more in Jan–Mar. |
| Fixed 12-month leave year 825.200(b)(2) | Any fixed year: fiscal year, a year required by state law, or the employee’s anniversary year. | Same stacking issue as the calendar year; anniversary years mean a different window for every employee. |
| Measured forward 825.200(b)(3) | 12 months beginning the first day an employee takes FMLA leave; the next period starts the next time leave is taken after that period ends. | Per-employee clocks; stacking still possible at the boundary. |
| Rolling backward 825.200(b)(4) | On any day leave is taken, look back 12 months; available leave = 12 weeks minus leave used in that look-back. | The only method that prevents 24 consecutive weeks. Most protective of the employer; hardest to compute by hand because the balance changes daily as old leave “rolls off”. |
Common mistakes
Counting paid time off toward 1,250 hours
Vacation, sick, holiday and PTO hours are paid but not worked. They do not count. Neither do unpaid leave periods, even if the employee was “on the books” (though those weeks still count toward the 12 months test).
Testing the 12 months as of the request date instead of the leave date
Both the 12-month and 1,250-hour tests are measured as of the date leave starts. An employee hired 11½ months ago who requests leave starting in three weeks will be eligible on day one of the leave (825.110(d)).
Confusing the two headcounts
The employer test (50 employees anywhere, 20 workweeks, this or last calendar year) is about the company. The worksite test (50 within 75 miles) is about the employee. A 600-person company with a 12-person satellite office 200 miles from everything else is a covered employer whose satellite employees are not eligible.
Measuring the 75 miles as the crow flies
It is surface miles over public roads and waterways by the shortest route (825.111(b)). This matters for sites separated by water or mountains.
Denying based on a close estimate
If the time records are missing or unreliable, the employer bears the burden of proving the employee did not meet 1,250 hours. “We think it was about 1,200” is not a defense. Pull the records.
Forgetting state leave laws
Many states (California, New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Connecticut and others) have family-leave or paid-leave laws with lower employer-size thresholds, shorter service requirements, or broader family definitions. An employee ineligible under the FMLA may be fully protected under state law.
The regulation
“An eligible employee is an employee of a covered employer who: (1) Has been employed by the employer for at least 12 months; (2) Has been employed for at least 1,250 hours of service during the 12-month period immediately preceding the commencement of the leave; and (3) Is employed at a worksite where 50 or more employees are employed by the employer within 75 miles of that worksite.”29 CFR § 825.110(a), Eligible employee — read on eCFR
“An employer is permitted to choose any one of the following methods for determining the 12-month period in which the 12 weeks of leave entitlement … occurs: (1) The calendar year; (2) Any fixed 12-month leave year, such as a fiscal year, a year required by State law, or a year starting on an employee’s anniversary date; (3) The 12-month period measured forward from the date any employee’s first FMLA leave … begins; or, (4) A ‘rolling’ 12-month period measured backward from the date an employee uses any FMLA leave …”29 CFR § 825.200(b), Amount of leave — read on eCFR
Further reading: 29 CFR Part 825 (the full FMLA regulations), DOL Fact Sheet #28: The Family and Medical Leave Act, Fact Sheet #28A, and the WHD FMLA page.
Frequently asked questions
How many hours do you need to qualify for FMLA?
At least 1,250 hours of service in the 12 months immediately before the leave starts (29 CFR 825.110(a)(2)). That is roughly 24 hours a week for 52 weeks. Only hours actually worked count; paid vacation, sick leave and holidays do not.
Does PTO or paid sick leave count toward the 1,250 hours for FMLA?
No. The 1,250-hour test uses FLSA principles for hours worked, and paid time that is not worked does not count (825.110(c)). The one major exception is time the employee would have worked but for military service covered by USERRA, which is credited.
How is the 12 months of employment for FMLA calculated?
The employee must have been employed by the employer for a total of at least 12 months as of the date leave begins. The months need not be consecutive, and any week in which the employee was on the payroll (including on leave) counts. Employment before a break in service of seven years or more is generally not counted, unless the break was for USERRA military service or there was a written agreement to rehire (825.110(b)).
What does "50 employees within 75 miles" mean?
When the employee gives notice of the need for leave, the employer must employ at least 50 people at the employee’s worksite plus other worksites within 75 surface miles (by road, not straight-line). Employees who work from home are counted at the office they report to and receive assignments from (825.110(a)(3), 825.111).
What is the rolling 12-month method for FMLA?
Under the rolling backward method in 825.200(b)(4), each time an employee takes FMLA leave the employer looks back 12 months from that date and subtracts any FMLA leave used in that window from the 12-week entitlement. As days of leave taken more than 12 months ago fall out of the window, they become available again. It is the only method that prevents an employee from stacking 24 consecutive weeks across two leave years.
Can an employer change its 12-month method?
Yes, but it must give at least 60 days’ notice to all employees, and during the transition employees keep the full benefit of 12 weeks under whichever method gives the greater benefit (825.200(d)(1)). If an employer never selected a method, the method most beneficial to the employee applies.
What if the employee is not eligible for FMLA?
The employer has no FMLA obligation, but it may still have duties under the Americans with Disabilities Act (leave as a reasonable accommodation), the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, state family-leave or paid-leave laws, workers’ compensation, or its own policies. Many states cover employers with far fewer than 50 employees.
Is a part-time employee eligible for FMLA?
Yes, if they meet all four tests. Part-time status is not disqualifying, but the 1,250-hour requirement is harder to meet; an employee working 20 hours a week for a full year reaches only about 1,040 hours. The 12-week entitlement is also prorated for part-time schedules (825.205(b)).
About the calculations
Covered employer: pass if you select “Yes” or “Public agency / school” (29 CFR 825.104, 825.108, 825.600). Twelve months: whole calendar months from the start date to the leave date (a partial month is dropped), minus any break months you enter, compared with 12 (825.110(a)(1), (b)). The tool does not itself apply the 7-year break rule; enter a post-break start date if it applies. Hours: your entry compared with 1,250 (825.110(a)(2), (c)); no adjustment for paid time off is made, so exclude it yourself. Worksite: your entry compared with 50 (825.110(a)(3), 825.111). The estimator computes average weekly hours × (weeks employed − unpaid weeks) − paid non-working hours and is advisory only. The period helper applies 825.200(b): calendar year of the leave date; fixed year containing the leave date from the month/day you supply; forward periods chained in 12-month steps from the first leave date you supply; rolling = 12 months ending on the leave date. It does not track actual leave usage. Flight crew (825.801), joint employment (825.106), successor-in-interest (825.107) and integrated-employer (825.104(c)) questions are out of scope.