When will husband hear back on PFL after baby's birth? Also confused about intermittent leave reporting
Our baby arrived on 5/31 (yay but exhausted!!), and my husband submitted his PFL claim for baby bonding on 6/8. It's been almost 2 weeks with zero updates. How long before he hears something? Also, he's planning to take his 8 weeks in chunks - 2 weeks off, 2 weeks working, repeat. Do we have to notify EDD each time he switches? Is there some special form for intermittent leave? We can't figure out how to check his claim status either. With my SDI pregnancy disability claim I could see everything online, but his PFL account looks different. Getting nervous as our savings are tight and bills coming due soon!
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Kyle Wallace
Congrats on your new addition! For PFL baby bonding, he should hear back within 14 business days (about 3 weeks) after submitting. It's pretty normal to not hear anything for 2-3 weeks. As for checking status, he can log into SDI Online (same system as your SDI claim) and view his claim there - there should be a tab for PFL claims. For the intermittent schedule, he'll need to report each period separately on the certification forms they'll send. When he gets approved, they'll explain the certification process - essentially he'll need to submit a form after each 2-week chunk he takes off to get paid for that period. Make sure he keeps his employer informed too, as they need to verify the time off.
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Malia Ponder
•Thank you!!! That's such a relief about the timeline. I was expecting it to be faster like my SDI was. We'll keep waiting then. He swears he checked SDI Online but couldn't find anything about his claim. Maybe he's looking in the wrong place? I'll have him try again tonight. So for the intermittent schedule, will they automatically send those certification forms for each period, or does he request them somehow? We're worried about messing up the paperwork and having payments delayed.
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Ryder Ross
if he's doing intermittent leave hes gonna need to fill out seperate forms for each chunk FYI. my brother did this last year and he messed it up at first and had payment delayed. make sure to mark the EXACT dates for each chunk of leave
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Malia Ponder
•Oh no! That's exactly what we're worried about. Did your brother have to contact them before starting each chunk of time off, or just fill out forms afterwards? I'm worried some paperwork will get lost in the mail or something.
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Gianni Serpent
Just went through this! PFL baby bonding approvals are taking closer to 3 weeks right now based on what the EDD rep told me. Your husband needs to check for his claim in the SDI Online portal - it's the same system but sometimes PFL claims don't show up right away. Look under "View Recent Claims History" not just the dashboard. For intermittent leave (what your husband is doing), he needs to submit a separate certification for each 2-week period he takes off. EDD will NOT automatically know his schedule. After approval, they'll mail a form with instructions. For each chunk of leave, he'll need to: 1. Complete a continuing claim certification (DE 2580BF) 2. Submit it AFTER the period of leave ends 3. Be very precise with dates - if he says he's off June 10-24 but actually returns June 23, it can cause problems I recommend calling EDD directly to confirm his claim was received. I waited 2.5 weeks hearing nothing, then called and discovered they were missing a document.
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Henry Delgado
•Good luck getting through to EDD on the phone! I spent 3 DAYS trying every hour to talk to someone about my PFL claim last month. Always "high call volume" then disconnect. So frustrating!
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Olivia Kay
When I tried calling EDD about my baby bonding PFL claim last month, I kept getting disconnected after waiting for over an hour. Finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) which got me connected to an agent in about 12 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/DOLxZQb92wM?si=6N1iCQ3a8Cdb2Ay5 The EDD rep confirmed my intermittent leave schedule and explained that for each chunk of time off, I need to submit a continuing claim form. They should send these forms automatically after the initial claim is approved, but if you don't receive them, you can request them online. The most important thing is to be very precise with dates - they verify with employers.
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Joshua Hellan
•Claimyr is amazing!! saved me hours of frustration with my maternity leave claim!
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Jibriel Kohn
i thikn evreybody here is wrong. my hubsand did PFL last month and he got approved in just 1 week! we got the money in like 9 days. maybe something is worng with your husbands application? did he put the baby's birth certificate? thats required
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Kyle Wallace
•Not everyone's experience will be the same. Processing times vary widely depending on EDD's current workload, whether the application has any issues that need clarification, and if all documentation was properly submitted. While some claims are processed quickly as yours was, the official EDD guidance states up to 14 business days (which is about 3 weeks) for processing, and many people are currently experiencing the full timeline. The birth certificate is not always required - a hospital birth record can suffice initially, though they may request the birth certificate later.
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Malia Ponder
Update: My husband found his claim on SDI Online! It says "pending" so I guess that means they received it. Still no approval yet but at least it's in the system. He's going to call tomorrow morning to check if they need anything else from us. Thanks everyone for your help! I'll let you know what happens. Trying to enjoy these newborn days but the financial stress is real!
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Gianni Serpent
•Great news that it's showing in the system! "Pending" is normal at this stage. When he calls, ask specifically about the intermittent schedule certification process too, so you'll be prepared when the first payment period ends. Wishing you both well with your new baby!
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Henry Delgado
Can I ask a related question because I'm so confused about all this??? If I'm on pregnancy disability leave right now (baby due in 3 weeks), do I AUTOMATICALLY transition to baby bonding PFL or do I need to file a whole new claim? My doctor put me out at 36 weeks for high blood pressure and nobody at my work explained any of this!!!!
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Kyle Wallace
•You need to file a separate PFL claim for baby bonding after your pregnancy disability ends. These are two different benefits. Pregnancy disability (SDI) can last up to 4 weeks before birth and 6-8 weeks after (longer with complications). When that ends, you file for PFL baby bonding, which gives you an additional 8 weeks. They don't automatically transition you - you must apply for PFL separately, but you can do this while still on pregnancy disability to avoid gaps in payment. I'd recommend applying for PFL about 1-2 weeks before your SDI is set to end.
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