The final rules for Maine’s Paid Family and Medical Leave Program were announced on Wednesday.

Almost all Mainers will see their paychecks go down a bit in the coming year to help pay for the paid family and medical leave program.

Maine’s new Paid Family Medical Leave Law allows eligible workers to take up to 12 weeks of paid family leave to care for a relative or birth a child, among other reasons.

Additionally, it covers military and safe leave.

In October 2023, the law went into effect. You should be aware of these dates.

Your employer and you will split a one percent wage premium starting January 1st 2025.

A maximum of 0.5 percent can come from the employee.

The paid family leave deduction will be $5 for every $1000 earned.

Because it will take time for the Maine Paid Family and Medical Leave Fund to be built, benefits will not be available until May 1, 2026.

Individuals who are self-employed can enroll in the program, but you must choose to do so.

The premium rate for self-employment has been set at 0.5 percent of the individual’s income.

Maine Paid Leave Portal allows self-employed individuals to elect coverage.

In order to help Mainers prepare for the program, the Maine Department of Labor offers a variety of resources for employers as well as workers.

We have a one-pager on ‘What Employers Need to Know 2025’, a FAQ guide, and the final rules, which are obviously the most important. In addition, we’ll be holding two webinars to demonstrate our new contributions portal system, which we’re using to register employers with our program and submit wager portion quarterly contributions beginning next year,” said Luke Monahan, program director.

A webinar for Third-Party Administrators is taking place on December 10th.