How New Jersey TDI & FLI works out your benefit
New Jersey divides your base-year earnings by your number of base weeks — weeks in which you earned at least $310 in 2026 ($319 in 2027). The base year is normally the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before your leave; if you do not qualify on it, the state tries two alternate base years built from more recent quarters.
The weekly rate is 85% of that average, capped at 70% of the statewide average weekly wage and rounded down to the whole dollar. Disability (TDI) and family leave (FLI) claims share the same rate and the same cap: $1,119 for 2026 claims, $1,158 for 2027.
TDI starts on the eighth day. The first 7 days are a waiting week, but New Jersey pays it back once benefits have been payable for three consecutive weeks — so any disability lasting about a month is paid from day one. FLI has no waiting week at all.
New Jersey figures by date
| Window | Weekly maximum | Other figures | Your contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 1, 2026 – Dec 31, 2026 | $1,119 | Base-week earnings test: $310 Alternative base-year earnings test: $15,500 | TDI: 0.19% up to $171,100; FLI: 0.23% up to $171,100 |
| Jan 1, 2027 – Dec 31, 2027 | $1,158 | Base-week earnings test: $319 Alternative base-year earnings test: $16,000 | Not yet published |
After the last window, the calculator switches to an explicit “enter the official figure” mode rather than reusing an old maximum.
Worked example
Take a worker paid $70,000 a year with steady pay, taking 12 weeks off (bonding with a new child) from Oct 5, 2026, when the figures for Jan 1, 2026 – Dec 31, 2026 apply. New Jersey TDI & FLI uses the base-year wages ÷ base weeks (every week counted): $1,346.15.
The formula gives 85% × $1,346.15 = $1,144.23, limited to the $1,119 maximum: a weekly benefit of $1,119, or 83% of their usual weekly pay. 12 paid weeks come to $13,428.
Over a year, their own payroll contribution is $294 — about $5.65 a week.
At $200,000 a year, the same leave pays $1,119 a week — the maximum, 29% of that worker’s weekly pay, for a yearly contribution of $718.62.
What catches people out in New Jersey
- TDI has a second ceiling: the lower of 26 weeks of benefits or one-third of your total base-year wages. Lower earners with short work histories hit the one-third rule first.
- FLI can be continuous or intermittent: one block of up to 12 weeks, or up to 56 separate days, within 12 months.
- To qualify in 2026 you need 20 base weeks of $310 or more, or $15,500 in the base year. For 2027 the figures are $319 and $16,000.
- Workers pay both programs. In 2026: 0.19% for TDI and 0.23% for FLI on the first $171,100 — at most $325.09 and $393.53. The 2027 wage base is $177,100; the 2027 rates had not been published when we checked.
- Some employers run a private plan instead of the state plan. It must pay at least as much, but you claim through the plan, not the state.
Official New Jersey resources
Related programs
Neighbors that run their own programs.
Sources for this page
- NJ Department of Labor and Workforce Development: Press release, Dec. 29, 2025: 2026 benefit rates. Supplies: 2026 TDI/FLI maximum $1,119; base week $310; alternative earnings $15,500; wage base $171,100. Checked .
- NJ Department of Labor and Workforce Development: Employer rate information. Supplies: 2026 worker rates (TDI 0.19%, FLI 0.23%); 2027 TDI maximum $1,158, base week $319, alternative earnings $16,000, wage base $177,100. Checked .
- NJ Division of Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance: Temporary Disability Insurance for workers. Supplies: 2026 TDI worker contribution 0.19% on the first $171,100. Checked .
- NJ Division of Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance: Family Leave Insurance for workers. Supplies: 2026 FLI worker contribution 0.23% on the first $171,100; 12 weeks / 56 days. Checked .
- NJ Division of Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance: TDI frequently asked questions. Supplies: Waiting week and when it is paid; AWW = base-year earnings ÷ base weeks; 85% of AWW. Checked .
- NJ Department of Labor and Workforce Development: Temporary Disability Benefits Law (N.J.S.A. 43:21-25 et seq.). Supplies: 85% of AWW, 70% of statewide average cap, rounding down to the dollar; waiting week paid after three payable weeks; one-third of base-year wages cap. Checked .
Figures on this page verified . Spotted a difference from your agency’s notice? Report a correction.