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

Tell your employer within 30 days (the date of the accident). File your claim within 12 months.

Temporary total disability (TTD) benefits (wage loss benefits) can pay two-thirds of your gross (before-tax) wages, up to $1,192 a week (July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027).

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 Montana, temporary total disability benefits replace part of your wages when your injury or occupational disease keeps you from working at all. Your employer's insurer (a private insurer, the Montana State Fund, or a self-insured employer) handles the claim; disputes go first to required mediation at the Department of Labor & Industry and then to the Montana Workers' Compensation Court.

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 Montana

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 Montana'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

Montana
Other formats

Your checklist

Deadlines in Montana

Tell your employer
30 days
File your claim
12 months
Waiting period

Wage loss benefits are not paid for the first 32 hours or 4 days of wage loss, whichever is less.

All the details →

Weekly benefit in Montana

What it pays
Two-thirds of your gross (before-tax) wages
Maximum
$1,192 a week (July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027)
Minimum rule

Montana law sets no minimum weekly amount for temporary total disability; you receive 66 2/3% of your wages up to the maximum.

Applies to
Injuries from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027

Law: Mont. Code Ann. §§ 39-71-116, 39-71-701

Source: erd.dli.mt.gov

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Who is your doctor in Montana?

Who chooses
It depends: network and choice rules both apply
Network
Managed care organization or preferred provider organization, if the insurer refers you in writing

You may choose the treating physician for your first treatment. Any time after the insurer accepts liability, it may designate a different treating physician or approve your choice. The insurer may also send you to a managed care organization or preferred provider organization, which then designates your treating physician.

After the insurer designates a treating physician or refers you in writing to a managed care organization, you must get care from that physician or organization unless the insurer authorizes otherwise; the insurer does not have to pay for other care, except emergency treatment.

Law: Mont. Code Ann. § 39-71-1101

Source: leg.mt.gov

Who is covered in Montana

Size of employer

The Workers' Compensation Act applies to all employers and all employees except the jobs the law lists. Any employer with an employee must have coverage through a private insurer (Plan 2), the Montana State Fund (Plan 3), or approved self-insurance (Plan 1). Full-time, part-time, seasonal and occasional workers must be covered.

Not covered
  • Household or domestic employment
  • Casual employment
  • Dependent family members and the employer's spouse (as defined by federal tax rules)
  • Sole proprietors, working partners and members of member-managed LLCs (they may elect coverage)
  • Real estate, securities or insurance salespeople paid only by commission
  • Direct sellers, newspaper carriers and freelance correspondents (with written acknowledgment)
  • People working under an independent contractor exemption certificate
  • Certain corporate officers and LLC managers, ministers, amateur sports officials, licensed jockeys and race trainers, and musicians under written contract
  • Railroad and other employment covered by federal law, sometimes in addition to state law
Contractors

An independent contractor is excluded only if working under an independent contractor exemption certificate issued by the Department of Labor & Industry (or otherwise meeting the law's test). A contractor who is not an independent contractor counts as an employee.

Immigrant workers

Montana law says the terms 'employee' and 'worker' include aliens and minors, whether lawfully or unlawfully employed.

If your employer has no insurance

If your employer did not have required coverage, the Uninsured Employers' Fund (UEF) at the Department of Labor & Industry can pay you the same benefits you would have received if your employer had been insured. The fund pays as money is available, pays weekly disability benefits before medical bills, makes no lump-sum payments, and pays no more than $100,000 in medical benefits per claim. The employer is liable for 100% of the benefits and you may also be able to sue it.

Uninsured Employers' Fund (UEF)

Law: Mont. Code Ann. §§ 39-71-118, 39-71-401, 39-71-503

Source: leg.mt.gov

If your claim is denied or delayed in Montana

First step

First, tell the insurer in writing what you want and why, with supporting documents. The insurer has 15 working days to answer in writing. If it denies your request, file a mediation petition with the DLI Dispute Resolution Section (by email to DLIERDMediation@mt.gov or by mail).

Form
Workers' Compensation Mediation Petition

All the details →

Fired or punished for filing in Montana

Your employer may not use the filing of a workers' compensation claim as grounds for firing you. If you can return to work within 2 years of the injury with a medical release, you must be given preference over other applicants for a comparable job that opens with the same employer and fits your physical condition and abilities.

The law
Mont. Code Ann. § 39-71-317
Where to file

Disputes about being fired for filing a claim go to the state district court. Disputes about the rehiring preference go to the Workers' Compensation Court.

Law: Mont. Code Ann. § 39-71-317

Source: leg.mt.gov

Lawyers' fees and other benefits in Montana

A worker's attorney must file a fee contract with the Department of Labor & Industry on its form, and the Department may regulate the amount of the fee based on the benefits gained, time spent and complexity of the case.

Montana also pays temporary partial disability (up to the TTD maximum), permanent partial disability (maximum $596 a week for injuries July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027), permanent total disability, rehabilitation benefits, death benefits, and travel costs for treatment beyond the first 100 miles a month. Medical benefits close 60 months after the date of injury unless reopened by petition.

Free help in Montana

State agency

Montana Department of Labor & Industry (DLI), Employment Standards Division, Workers' Compensation Claims Assistance Bureau

Phone
(406) 444-6543
Address
P.O. Box 8011, Helena, MT 59604-8011 (office: 301 South Park Avenue, Floors 4 and 5, Helena, MT 59601)

Free help

Good to know in Montana

  • Medical benefits end 60 months from the date of injury or diagnosis of an occupational disease; you may ask DLI to reopen them within five years after they end.
  • After your first emergency room visit, you pay $25 of each later emergency room visit.
  • If you also receive Social Security disability for the same injury, your TTD can be reduced by up to half of the Social Security payment.

Changes in 2024–2026

The TTD maximum rose to $1,192 a week for injuries from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027 (from $1,137 for FY2026 and $1,084 for FY2025), per the DLI state average weekly wage memo of June 2026. In 2025 the Legislature moved several Workers' Compensation Court provisions out of Title 39 into Title 3, chapter 9 (for example, 39-71-2905 was renumbered 3-9-111; Ch. 688, L. 2025).

Questions about workers' comp in Montana

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

Report every on-the-job injury to your supervisor, employer or the insurer as soon as possible, even if you do not get medical treatment.

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

You must submit a signed claim form (First Report of Injury, FROI) within 12 months of the accident.

How much does workers' comp pay in Montana?

Temporary total disability (TTD) benefits (wage loss benefits) can pay two-thirds of your gross (before-tax) wages, up to $1,192 a week (July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027).

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

You may choose the treating physician for your first treatment. Any time after the insurer accepts liability, it may designate a different treating physician or approve your choice.

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

Your employer may not use the filing of a workers' compensation claim as grounds for firing you. If you can return to work within 2 years of the injury with a medical release, you must be given preference over other applicants for a comparable job that opens with the same employer and fits your physical condition and abilities.

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

First, tell the insurer in writing what you want and why, with supporting documents. The insurer has 15 working days to answer in writing.

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