EDD PFL certification confusion: What return-to-work date should I enter when taking LOA after baby's birthday?

You should put February 16th as your return-to-work date on the EDD certification. That's when your PFL benefits end (day after baby's first birthday), regardless of any separate LOA arrangements you've made with your employer. The certification is telling EDD when to stop paying benefits, not actually tracking when you physically return to your workplace. Your employer won't be confused because they're already aware of your LOA plans. If you put March 3rd, EDD will likely continue payments until then, which would create an overpayment situation that you'd have to repay later.

For the love of GOD do NOT put March 3rd!!!! I made that exact mistake last year and got hit with a $2100 OVERPAYMENT notice six months later!!! EDD doesn't care about your LOA - they ONLY care about the PFL eligibility period which ENDS on your baby's birthday!!! Put Feb 16th or you'll regret it!!!

When I was in your situation, I put my actual return-to-work date which was 3 weeks after my baby's 1st birthday because that's what the form asked for. But then EDD kept paying me and I ended up with an overpayment notice. Such a headache. I finally got through to an EDD rep who explained that for PFL baby bonding, you should actually put the day after baby's birthday as your "return to work" date on the certification, even if you're taking additional leave. They really should make this clearer on the forms!

Put Feb 16! When i had my baby, the EDD claims specialist told me that for baby bonding PFL, the "return to work" date on certification is actually asking for "when are your PFL benefits ending" not literally when youre physically back at work. Those are two different things that EDD doesnt explain well.

If I understand correctly, you're asking about the final certification for your PFL baby bonding claim, not a new certification for the LOA period, correct? The certification's "return to work" field should reflect the date your PFL eligibility ends (day after baby's first birthday) because: 1. PFL baby bonding benefits legally end on your child's first birthday 2. Any arrangement for additional leave is between you and your employer only 3. EDD systems automatically calculate benefits based on this date 4. Your employer already has your LOA documentation separately Be sure to enter February 16th to avoid overpayment issues that would require repayment and potentially delay any future claims you might have.

my sister just went thru this! she put her real return date (after her extra time off) and got overpaid then had to deal with repayment drama for months. def put the day after baby bday!!!!

When you end baby bonding and start unpaid LOA, you technically have a "change in status" with EDD. You're going from "receiving benefits" to "not eligible for benefits but still not working." The certification is asking when that status change happens, not when you physically return to your desk. Hope that helps!

So important to get this right! For my first baby I put my actual return date and had no issues, but that was back in 2019. For my second in 2023, I did the same thing and got hit with an overpayment notice! Apparently they've gotten stricter about this. Now I tell all my mom friends to put the day after baby's birthday regardless of when they're actually returning.

Also make SURE you keep copies of EVERYTHING - I took screenshots of all my certifications because EDD "lost" my documents when they did the overpayment review. The system is BROKEN!!!

Just wanted to add my experience - I was in the exact same situation last year! I put February 16th (day after baby's birthday) on my final certification even though I didn't physically return to work until mid-March. EDD stopped my payments correctly and I had zero issues. My HR department actually told me this was the right approach when I asked them about it. They said the EDD certification and their internal leave tracking are completely separate systems, so there's no confusion on their end. You're definitely making the right choice by putting Feb 16th. Better safe than sorry with EDD overpayments!

I went through this exact same situation with my son's first birthday in 2023! I was so stressed about what date to put, but I ended up using the day after his birthday (when PFL legally ends) rather than my actual return date which was 2 weeks later. Best decision ever - no overpayment issues, no confusion with HR, and EDD processed everything smoothly. My employer completely understood because they know PFL and company leave policies are totally separate things. The key thing to remember is that the certification is just telling EDD when to stop paying you benefits, not creating any kind of work schedule for your employer. Your HR team already has all your leave paperwork and knows when you're actually coming back. Definitely go with February 16th - you'll save yourself so much stress and potential financial headaches down the road!

I'm a new mom going through this same situation right now! My baby turns 1 next month and I'm also planning to take some additional unpaid time off after my PFL ends. Reading through all these responses has been SO helpful - I had no idea about the overpayment issues that could happen if you put your actual return date instead of when benefits end. It sounds like everyone is in agreement that you should put February 16th (the day after your baby's birthday) on your certification to avoid any problems with EDD. The horror stories about overpayments and having to pay back thousands of dollars plus interest are terrifying! Thank you for asking this question - it's exactly what I needed to know for my own situation. Good luck with your transition back to work!

I just want to echo what everyone else is saying here - definitely put February 16th! I learned this the hard way when I was on maternity leave with my first child. I thought I was being honest by putting my actual return date, but EDD doesn't care about your personal arrangements with your employer. The way I think about it now is that the certification is basically asking "when should we stop sending you money?" not "when are you physically walking back into your office?" Those are two completely different questions, even though the form makes it sound like they're the same thing. Also, just a tip - if you do accidentally put the wrong date and end up with an overpayment, don't panic. It's fixable, but it's a huge hassle and takes forever to resolve. Much easier to just get it right the first time!

Just wanted to add another voice to the chorus - definitely put February 16th! I'm an HR rep at a mid-size company and we deal with this confusion all the time. Employees always worry that putting the "wrong" date will somehow mess up their leave arrangements with us, but honestly we don't even see your EDD certifications. Your PFL certification and your company's leave paperwork are completely separate processes. We track your approved leave dates in our own system, and EDD tracks benefit eligibility in theirs. There's no cross-referencing between the two. The number of employees who've come to me stressed about overpayment letters because they put their actual return date instead of when benefits end is honestly heartbreaking. Save yourself the headache and put the day after your baby's birthday - that's when PFL legally ends regardless of any additional leave you've arranged with your employer.

I'm so glad you asked this question! I just went through this exact situation with my daughter's first birthday last month. I was terrified of making the wrong choice after reading horror stories online about EDD overpayments. I ended up putting the day after my baby's birthday (when PFL legally ends) even though I had arranged 3 weeks of additional unpaid leave with my employer. Everything went perfectly - EDD stopped payments on the right date, no overpayment issues, and my HR department wasn't confused at all since they already had my extended leave paperwork. The key insight that helped me was realizing that the certification is purely for EDD's benefit tracking system - it has nothing to do with your actual work arrangements. Put February 16th and save yourself potential thousands in overpayment headaches!

As someone who works in benefits administration, I see this confusion constantly! The key thing to understand is that EDD's certification process is purely about benefit eligibility tracking - it's not connected to your employer's leave management system at all. When the form asks for your "return to work" date for baby bonding PFL, they're really asking "when does your eligibility for these specific benefits end?" For baby bonding, that's always the day after your child's first birthday, regardless of any other leave arrangements you might have. Your employer already has documentation of your approved LOA through March 3rd, so there won't be any confusion on their end. These are completely separate processes that don't communicate with each other. Definitely put February 16th to avoid overpayment issues. I've seen too many families get hit with surprise repayment demands because they thought they were being "more accurate" by putting their actual return date. Trust me, the hassle of dealing with EDD overpayment collections is not worth it!

I'm currently dealing with this same situation! My baby's first birthday is coming up in a few weeks and I've been stressing about this exact question. Reading through all these responses has been such a lifesaver - I had no idea that putting your actual return date could lead to overpayment issues. It sounds like the consensus is crystal clear: put the day after your baby's birthday (February 16th in your case) because that's when PFL benefits legally end, regardless of any additional leave you've arranged with your employer. The certification is just telling EDD when to stop paying benefits, not tracking your actual work schedule. Thank you for asking this question! It's exactly what I needed to see before filling out my own final certification. Good luck with your transition back to work after your LOA!

I went through this exact situation with my son last year! I was so confused about which date to put and almost made the mistake of putting my actual return date. Thankfully my sister warned me after she got hit with an overpayment notice for doing exactly that. I ended up putting the day after my baby's birthday (when PFL eligibility ends) even though I took an additional 2 weeks of unpaid leave. EDD stopped payments correctly on the right date and I had zero issues. My employer wasn't confused at all since they already had my leave paperwork separate from the EDD stuff. The way I think about it now is that EDD certification is just telling them "stop paying me benefits on this date" - it has nothing to do with when you're actually sitting back at your desk. Put February 16th and save yourself the headache!

I'm a new mom who just finished my PFL baby bonding leave last month and faced this exact same dilemma! I was so stressed about which date to put because I also had additional unpaid leave arranged after my baby's first birthday. I ended up calling EDD (after waiting on hold for 2 hours!) and the representative was very clear: put the day after your baby's birthday, which in your case would be February 16th. She explained that the certification is asking when your PFL benefit eligibility ends, not when you're physically returning to work. I put the day after my daughter's birthday even though I didn't actually return until 3 weeks later, and everything processed perfectly. No overpayment issues, no confusion with HR. The rep also mentioned that this is one of the most common mistakes they see - people putting their actual return date instead of when benefits end, which creates overpayment situations that take months to resolve. Definitely go with February 16th! Your employer won't be confused because they already have your LOA paperwork separate from anything EDD-related. Good luck with your transition back to work!