Washington State Medical and Family Leave Premium Contributions

Beginning in 2019, if you are an employer in Washington State, you need to set up one or two new payroll calculations, as follows:

  • The employer’s contribution to medical leave.

    You are required to pay medical premiums if you employ more than 50 people.

  • The employee’s portion of family and medical leave.

    You are required to collect these premiums regardless of the number of people you employ.

The ceiling on wages subject to contributions for family and medical leave is the same as the ceiling for Social Security ($142,800 for 2020).

The responsibility for the medical leave premium may be shared between employer and employee. The responsibility for the family leave premium is the employee's.

This topic helps you to set up the calculations in Sage 100 Contractor. For detailed information on the provisions of the legislation, see the Washington State Paid Family and Medical Leave web page at https://paidleave.wa.gov/.

Important! The rates provided for calculating the premium contributions below are based on a total premium rate of 0.4 of an employee's gross wage. It is your responsibility to confirm the rate annually, and if it changes, to make adjustments accordingly.

Tip: The state provides a premium calculator on its website (at https://paidleave.wa.gov/estimate-your-paid-leave-payments/). Entering a gross amount of 1,000, then dividing the dollar amount premium by 1,000, yields the correct rates for employee and employer for each calculation.

To set up the employer's contribution for medical leave:

Open 5-3-1 Payroll Calculations, and then:

  • For the Tax Type, select 21 – Employer State Paid Leave.

  • For the Default Rate, enter 0.1467.

  • For the Default Max, enter $142,800.

    The ceiling on wages subject to contributions for family and medical leave is the same as the ceiling for Social Security.

  • For the Max Type, accept the selection of 4 – Wages/Year.

To set up the employee's deduction for family and medical leave

Open 5-3-1 Payroll Calculations, and then:

  • For the Tax Type, select 20 – Employee State Paid Leave.

  • For the Default Rate, enter 0.2533.

  • For the Default Max, enter the $142,800.

    The ceiling on wages subject to contributions for family and medical leave is the same as the ceiling for Social Security.

  • For the Max Type, accept 4 – Wages/Year.

  • For the W-2 box, enter 14.

  • For the W-2 Code, enter MAPFML.