Hurt at work in California? Deadlines, weekly benefit and how to file

Tell your employer in writing within 30 days. File your claim within 1 year.

Temporary disability (TD) benefits can pay two-thirds of your gross (before-tax) wages, up to $1,764.11 a week in 2026.

Your employer's insurer, not the state, usually decides first. If they deny or delay, the free help listed here can explain your options.

In California, temporary disability pays part of your lost wages while you cannot do your usual job because of a work injury. Your employer's insurance company (the claims administrator) handles the claim, and disagreements go to a workers' compensation judge at a DWC district office.

What are my deadlines?How much will I get?Who is my doctor?Claim denied?

Checked against official sources: October 31, 2026.

Deadlines are strict. If you are near one, call the state agency or free help today.

Free tools for California

Free tools that run in your browser. Nothing you enter is saved or sent until you download, copy or print a document.

Deadline helper

Worked out in your browser. Nothing you enter here is saved or sent.

If you are not sure of the exact day, use the earliest day you think it could be.

Enter the date of injury

We add the number from the law to your date. Nothing is saved.

Benefit estimate calculator

This estimate uses the rule in California's data: a share of your average weekly wage, up to the state maximum.

Worked out in your browser. Nothing you enter here is saved or sent.

Gross pay per week, as the insurer would figure it. Include regular overtime and tips if they were part of your pay.

Enter your pay

We apply the rule in the law. Nothing is saved.

Written notice to your employer

A letter that tells your employer, in writing, that you were hurt or made sick by your work.

Where the reply should be sent.

Required when you mail it. Not needed if you hand it in person.

In your own words, in English. Keep it short and factual. Do not guess why it happened.

It goes into the letter as you type it.

Other formats

Claim checklist: what to gather and do

A printable list of papers to keep and steps to take.

What you already have

California
Other formats

Your checklist

Note naming your own doctor in advance

This state lets some workers name a personal doctor before an injury. Use the official form first if the state has one.

Where the reply should be sent.

Required when you mail it. Not needed if you hand it in person.

It goes into the letter as you type it.

Other formats

Deadlines in California

Tell your employer
30 days
File your claim
1 year
Waiting period

Temporary disability is not paid for the first 3 days after you leave work because of the injury, unless the disability lasts more than 14 days or you are hospitalized as an inpatient.

All the details →

Weekly benefit in California

What it pays
Two-thirds of your gross (before-tax) wages
Maximum
$1,764.11 a week in 2026
Minimum
$264.61 a week in 2026
Minimum rule

If your average weekly earnings are below $396.92, you receive the minimum of $264.61 a week.

Applies to
Injuries on or after January 1, 2026

Law: Cal. Lab. Code §§ 4453(a)(10), 4653, 4656(c)

Source: dir.ca.gov

All the details →

Who is your doctor in California?

Who chooses
It depends: network and choice rules both apply
Network
Medical Provider Network (MPN) or Health Care Organization (HCO), if your employer has one
Naming your own doctor first

You can be treated by your own regular doctor (M.D. or D.O.) or medical group from the first day if, before the injury, you gave your employer written notice with the doctor's name and business address, you had non-work health coverage on the date of injury, and the doctor agreed to treat you for work injuries.

Notice of Predesignation of Personal Physician (DWC Form 9783)

If your employer uses a Medical Provider Network (MPN), you are usually treated by MPN doctors; after the first visit you can pick another doctor in the MPN. If your employer has no MPN or Health Care Organization (HCO), the claims administrator picks your doctor for the first 30 days after the injury is reported; after that you can switch to a doctor or facility of your choice within a reasonable area.

With an MPN: choose another MPN doctor after the first visit. Without an MPN or HCO: after 30 days from the date the injury was reported, you may change to a physician of your choice. A chiropractor cannot be your treating doctor after 24 chiropractic visits.

Law: Cal. Lab. Code §§ 4600(c)-(d), 4616

Source: dir.ca.gov

Who is covered in California

Size of employer

Every California employer with even one employee must have workers' compensation insurance or be approved to self-insure.

Special rules
  • Household workers (nannies, housekeepers, gardeners) hired by a homeowner: Not covered if, in the 90 days before the injury, the job was (or was hired to be) for less than 52 hours or paid $100 or less, or if you work for your own parent, spouse or child.
Not covered
  • Independent contractors who control how their work is done (but workers are presumed to be employees, and California's ABC test decides most cases)
  • Unpaid volunteers for a public agency or nonprofit (meals, transportation, lodging or expense reimbursement do not count as pay)
  • Household workers employed for less than 52 hours or paid $100 or less in the 90 days before the injury
  • Household workers employed by their own parent, spouse or child
  • Federal employees, longshore and harbor workers, railroad workers and seamen are covered by federal programs, sometimes in addition to state law
Contractors

Just because your employer calls you an independent contractor does not make it true. Anyone who works for another person, other than as an independent contractor, is presumed to be an employee. You are probably an employee if the person paying you controls how you do the work, can fire you, pays you by the hour or salary, takes out payroll deductions, or supplies the tools.

Immigrant workers

You are covered whether or not you are a U.S. citizen and whether or not you are lawfully employed. You do not have to be a legal resident to receive most workers' compensation benefits.

If your employer has no insurance

If your employer was illegally uninsured, you can still file a claim with the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board, and you can also sue the employer in court. If an uninsured employer does not pay an award, the Uninsured Employers Benefits Trust Fund (UEBTF) may pay. File an Application for Adjudication of Claim first, and contact an Information and Assistance officer for help.

Uninsured Employers Benefits Trust Fund (UEBTF)

Check your employer's insurance

Law: Cal. Lab. Code §§ 3351, 3352(a)(1), (8), (9), 3353, 3357, 3700, 3706, 3715

Source: dir.ca.gov

If your claim is denied or delayed in California

First step

Call or visit an Information and Assistance officer (free) to understand the denial and your options. Then, to have a judge decide, file an Application for Adjudication of Claim at the DWC district office in the county where you live or were injured, and serve it on the claims administrator.

Form
Application for Adjudication of Claim

All the details →

Fired or punished for filing in California

It is illegal for your employer to fire you, threaten to fire you, or treat you worse because you filed or said you would file a workers' compensation claim, or because you received an award or settlement.

The law
Labor Code section 132a
What you may get

Your compensation can be increased by one-half, up to $10,000, plus costs up to $250, and you are entitled to get your job back and to be paid lost wages and work benefits.

Where to file

File a petition with the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board.

Deadline

Within 1 year from the discriminatory act or the date your employer ended your employment.

Law: Cal. Lab. Code § 132a

Source: dir.ca.gov

Lawyers' fees and other benefits in California

You can represent yourself or hire an attorney. An attorney for an injured worker cannot charge you directly; the fee is paid out of part of your benefits.

Besides medical care and temporary disability, California workers' compensation can pay permanent disability benefits if you do not fully recover, a supplemental job displacement voucher ($6,000 for injuries in 2026) for retraining if you cannot return to your job, death benefits to dependents, and mileage to medical visits (76 cents a mile from July 1, 2026).

Free help in California

State agency

California Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Workers' Compensation (DWC)

Phone
1-800-736-7401
Address
455 Golden Gate Avenue, 2nd Floor, San Francisco, CA 94102-7014
Find an office
Look up your case

Free help

Good to know in California

  • The DWC 1 claim form is printed in English and Spanish on the same form.
  • Temporary disability benefits are not taxed, and Social Security, union dues and retirement contributions are not taken out of them (DWC).
  • Medical care for a work injury must be paid by your employer even if you do not miss any work, and you should never get a medical bill once you have filed a claim form and your doctor knows the injury is work-related (DWC).

Changes in 2024–2026

For injuries in 2026 the temporary disability maximum rose to $1,764.11 and the minimum to $264.61 a week. AB 1870 requires the workplace workers' compensation poster to say that an injured worker may consult a licensed attorney and that attorney fees are usually paid from the worker's recovery. AB 1239 changes the rules for how disability payments may be paid (direct deposit to an account the worker authorized) from January 1, 2027. SB 230 amended the injury presumptions for firefighters and peace officers.

Law: Stats. 2024, ch. 87, effective January 1, 2025; Stats. 2024, ch. 806; Stats. 2025, ch. 404, effective January 1, 2026; Lab. Code 3212 et seq

Questions about workers' comp in California

How long do I have to tell my employer about a work injury in California?

Tell your supervisor right away. The law requires written notice to your employer within 30 days after the injury.

How long do I have to file a workers' comp claim in California?

You open a claim by giving your employer the DWC 1 claim form. If you need a judge to decide a dispute, you must start proceedings by filing an Application for Adjudication of Claim within 1 year from the date of injury, or within 1 year from the last temporary disability payment or the last medical treatment your employer provided.

How much does workers' comp pay in California?

Temporary disability (TD) benefits can pay two-thirds of your gross (before-tax) wages, up to $1,764.11 a week in 2026.

Can I choose my own doctor for a work injury in California?

If your employer uses a Medical Provider Network (MPN), you are usually treated by MPN doctors; after the first visit you can pick another doctor in the MPN. If your employer has no MPN or Health Care Organization (HCO), the claims administrator picks your doctor for the first 30 days after the injury is reported; after that you can switch to a doctor or facility of your choice within a reasonable area.

Can my employer fire me for filing a workers' comp claim in California?

It is illegal for your employer to fire you, threaten to fire you, or treat you worse because you filed or said you would file a workers' compensation claim, or because you received an award or settlement.

What if my workers' comp claim is denied in California?

Call or visit an Information and Assistance officer (free) to understand the denial and your options. Then, to have a judge decide, file an Application for Adjudication of Claim at the DWC district office in the county where you live or were injured, and serve it on the claims administrator.

Not about a work injury?

Not about a work injury? Unpaid wages → Wage Claim Map · Hurt in a car crash → Accident Claim Map · A medical bill → Medical Bill Map · Unemployment benefits → Unemployment Claim Map · Other problems → robinclaim.com

Nearby states

Sources