The FMLA entitles eligible employees of covered employers to take up to 12 “workweeks” per year of unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons.
On January 5, 2026, the U.S. Department of Labor, through its Wage and Hour Division, issued two opinion letters addressing specific uses of leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The first opinion letter concerns school employees, specifically how school closures for less than a full week impact their use of FMLA leave. The second opinion letter addresses how FMLA leave may be used for time spent traveling to or from medical appointments related to the employee’s or the employee’s family member’s serious health condition.
How School Closures of Less Than a Full Week Impact Employees’ Use of FMLA Leave
The FMLA entitles eligible employees of covered employers to take up to 12 “workweeks” per year of unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons. In general, when an employee takes FMLA leave for less than one full workweek, the amount of FMLA leave used is determined as a proportion of the employee’s actual workweek. Under the FMLA regulations, when a holiday falls during a week when an employee is taking FMLA leave in an increment of less than a full workweek, the holiday does not count against the employee’s FMLA leave entitlement, unless that employee was originally scheduled and expected to work on that holiday. See 29 C.F.R. § 825.205(b)(1). By contrast, if a holiday falls during a week that an employee is taking a full workweek of FMLA leave, the entire workweek is counted against the employee’s FMLA leave entitlement. See 29 C.F.R. § 825.200(h).
Opinion Letter FMLA2026-1 indicates that these same principles apply to school employees when their schools are temporarily closed for any planned or unplanned reason, including closures for less than a full week due to inclement weather. Therefore, when an employee is taking FMLA leave for less than a full workweek and the school closes for less than a week during that workweek, the school employer should not deduct the school closure time from the employee’s FMLA entitlement if the employee would not be expected to report to work during the closure. Conversely, when an employee is taking FMLA leave for a full workweek and the school closes for less than a week during that period, the school employer may deduct the full week’s worth of leave from the employee’s FMLA entitlement because the closure for less than a week has no impact on the employee’s FMLA leave usage.
Furthermore, whether the school employer schedules “makeup” days for school closures does not impact this FMLA leave analysis. The opinion letter states that if a school employer schedules a makeup day in the future, the employee’s ability to take FMLA leave on that makeup day must be evaluated independently of whether that employee took FMLA leave on the day being replaced by the makeup day. Therefore, if an employee still has unused FMLA leave entitlement prior to the makeup day, the employee may use FMLA leave on that makeup day.
Use of FMLA Leave for Time Spent Traveling to or from Medical Appointments
The FMLA statute entitles eligible employees to use leave for their own “serious health condition” or to care for certain family members with a “serious health condition.” 29 U.S.C. § 2612(a)(1). The statute defines a “serious health condition” to include not only the immediate limitations and effects of such a condition, but also “inpatient care” and “continuing treatment” of such a condition. Id. § 2611(11). Accordingly, FMLA leave can be used for time spent at medical appointments related to an employee’s serious health condition.
Opinion Letter FMLA2026-2 specifies that an employee may take FMLA leave not only for the actual appointment for a serious health condition, but also for the time spent traveling to or from the appointment, because this travel is “[p]art and parcel of obtaining care and continuing treatment from a medical provider.” Similarly, caring for family members with a serious health condition may include accompanying them to medical appointments. As such, when an eligible employee travels to or from a medical appointment with a healthcare provider to diagnose, monitor or treat a serious health condition of a covered family member, that employee is entitled to use FMLA leave for the travel time.
However, the opinion letter specifies that, while the FMLA entitles employees to take FMLA leave for time spent traveling to obtain care and treatment, the FMLA does not protect misuse of this leave for unrelated purposes. Accordingly, FMLA-protected leave for travel time does not encompass travel to, from or stops for activities that are unrelated to a medical appointment for the employee’s serious health condition or the medical appointment of a covered family member with a serious health condition.
Furthermore, under the FMLA statute and regulations, a covered employer may require an employee to submit a certification from a medical provider that supports the employee’s need for FMLA leave. The law requires such certification to include information such as “the date on which the serious health condition commenced,” “the probable duration of the condition” and “the appropriate medical facts within the knowledge of the health care provider regarding the condition.” 29 U.S.C. § 2613(b). However, Opinion Letter FMLA2026-2 indicates that this certification need not include any information regarding the employee’s travel time to or from medical appointments, because such information is not often within the healthcare provider’s knowledge.
What This Means for Employers
While these opinion letters are not law and courts are not bound by them, they do provide guidance as to acceptable uses of FMLA leave.
Employers are encouraged to review their employee handbooks and separate FMLA policies and practices to ensure compliance with these standards. School employers specifically should ensure they have practices in place to monitor exactly when employees’ use of FMLA leave coincides with school closings, regardless of whether those closings are planned or unplanned. From an employee-relations standpoint, employers should clearly communicate to their employees when full versus partial workweeks will be deducted from their FMLA leave. Employers are encouraged to consult with counsel to develop such policies and strategize how to communicate these policies to their employees.
Furthermore, FMLA-covered employers should account for travel time associated with medical appointments when evaluating employees’ requests for FMLA leave for their own serious health condition or a family member’s serious health condition. Opinion Letter FMLA2026-2 is clear that an employer cannot require a medical provider’s certification to include information about travel time. However, employers should remember that the employee’s travel time will also be covered by the FMLA and plan accordingly.
Employers are further reminded that the FMLA statute prohibits employers from interfering with, restraining, or denying an employee from exercising or attempting to exercise their rights under the FMLA. See 29 U.S.C. § 2615(a)(1). This includes an employee’s right to take FMLA leave for time spent traveling to or from medical appointments related to a serious health condition. Employers are encouraged to consult with counsel to review their practices and planned courses of action related to FMLA leave to ensure they are not interfering with or restraining employees’ FMLA rights.
For More Information
If you have any questions about this Alert, please contact Caroline M. Austin, Christopher D. Durham, Bronwyn L. Roberts, Anshul S. Agrawal, any of the attorneys in our Employment, Labor, Benefits and Immigration Practice Group or the attorney in the firm with whom you are regularly in contact.
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