Types Of FMLA Leaves

12/3/2025

There are essentially two types of leave that can be taken under the FMLA: "Family Leave" and "Medical Leave".

"Family Leave" under the FMLA is leave taken by an employee for any of the following reasons:

• The birth of a child
• Placement of a child for adoption
• Placement of a child for foster care
• Qualifying exigencies related to certain individual’s military duty status

The provisions for a "qualifying exigency" under the FMLA focus on allowing family members to help assist when a spouse, son, daughter, or parent is on active duty, going on active duty, or just returning from active duty in a foreign country.

"Medical Leave" under the FMLA is leave taken by an employee for any of the following reasons:

• To care for the employee’s spouse, child, or parent with a serious health condition
• Because of the employee’s own serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform one or more of the essential functions of his or her job
• To care for a covered servicemember or recent veteran with a serious injury or illness

A "serious health condition" as defined under the FMLA means an illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition that involves: FMLA Training & Certification Program

• Inpatient care in a hospital, hospice, or residential medical care facility, or
• Pregnancy, or
• Continuing treatment by a health care provider

A "serious injury or illness" as defined under the FMLA means an injury or illness incurred by a covered servicemember in the line of duty while on active duty that may render the servicemember medically unfit to perform the duties of his or her office, grade, rank or rating, and preexisting conditions that have been aggravated in the line of duty.

Military caregiver leave is also available to eligible employees whose family member is a recent veteran, i.e., who were active members of the military (including National Guard and Reserves) within the past five years. Eligible employees may begin taking military caregiver leave up to five years after their family member was discharged from the military and may continue to take such leave throughout the single 12-month period, even if their leave extends beyond the five-year date.

To be protected under the FMLA, the covered servicemember/veteran with a serious injury or illness must be:

• Undergoing medical treatment, recuperations, or therapy; or
• Otherwise be in outpatient status; or
• Otherwise be on the temporary disability retired list

An eligible employee may be the spouse, son, daughter, parent (including in loco parentis) or "next of kin" of the covered servicemember. Next of kin means:

Nearest blood relative other than the spouse, son, daughter, or parent, unless the covered servicemember has designated in writing a blood relative for purposes of military caregiver leave under the FMLA and means the following individuals in the following order:

1. Blood relative granted legal custody
2. Brother and sisters
3. Grandparents
4. Aunts and uncles
5. First cousins

Make sure you understand the FMLA rules and your compliance requirements by taking any of our FMLA training courses. Options include:

• Certificate Program In FMLA, ADA, And PWFA Compliance
• FMLA Training & Certification Program
• Integrating FMLA, ADA, COBRA, And Workers' Compensation Training & Certification Program