California Temporary Disability Duration Calculator 2026
Count the dates in one continuous period of temporary disability, see how California’s initial three-day waiting rule changes the potential payable count, and convert the result into full weeks and remaining days.
Count California TD days and weeks
How the continuous-period worksheet counts days
The worksheet includes both the first and last disability dates entered. It then applies the waiting treatment described in Labor Code section 4652. If disability begins on the injury date and full wages were paid for that day, the injury date is not used as one of the three waiting days and is not displayed as potentially payable.
This is a date worksheet, not a medical finding. Use a continuous period supported by the treating doctor’s work-status reports. Separate or interrupted periods require a complete claim payment history and are not combined here.
California’s first three days and the 14-day exception
Section 4652 generally prevents recovery of temporary-disability indemnity for the first three days after the worker leaves work because of the injury. The result changes when temporary disability continues for more than 14 days or the worker is hospitalized as an inpatient for treatment required by the injury: in either situation, indemnity may be payable from the disability date.
| Continuous period entered | Worksheet treatment |
|---|---|
| 1–3 countable days, no inpatient exception | All countable dates fall inside the waiting period |
| 4–14 countable days, no inpatient exception | First three countable dates excluded; later dates shown as potentially payable |
| More than 14 countable days | Initial waiting dates restored in the worksheet |
| Inpatient hospitalization for required injury treatment | Initial waiting exclusion removed in the worksheet |
A full-wage injury day is excluded before this test. The inpatient exception is separate.
Examples of the waiting-period count
May 1 through May 4
With no inpatient exception and no full-wage injury day, three dates are waiting days and one day remains potentially payable.
May 1 through May 14
The duration is not more than 14 days. Three waiting dates remain excluded and 11 days are shown as potentially payable.
May 1 through May 15
The period now exceeds 14 days, so the initial waiting dates are restored and 15 days are shown as potentially payable.
Injury and disability both begin May 1
If full wages were paid on May 1, the worksheet excludes that date and begins the waiting count with the next continuous disability date.
The 104-week limit is an aggregate claim limit
For most injuries on or after January 1, 2008, Labor Code section 4656 limits aggregate temporary-disability payments to 104 compensable weeks within five years from the injury date. “Aggregate” matters: separate TTD and TPD periods for the same injury can consume the same limit. This worksheet shows the five-year anniversary as a reference but does not subtract prior payments or declare the final cap date.
Specified conditions—including certain hepatitis cases, amputations, severe burns, HIV, listed eye injuries, pulmonary fibrosis, and chronic lung disease—may allow up to 240 compensable weeks within five years. Section 4656 also contains a separate 240-week provision for qualifying section 3212.1 injuries or conditions occurring on or after January 1, 2023. Those exceptions require claim-specific confirmation.
When temporary disability may stop
California DWC explains that TD generally stops when the worker returns to work, is released for work, or reaches maximum medical improvement. The injured-worker guidebook also identifies return to regular or sufficiently paid modified work and the applicable statutory duration limit. Entering an end date here does not establish that the claims administrator selected the correct ending event.
Use the weekly-rate tools separately: estimate a California TTD rate when no work can be performed, or a California TPD rate for an eligible reduced-earnings period.
Frequently asked questions
Does the calculator count weekends?
It counts every calendar date inside the continuous disability period entered. Do not use it for an intermittent schedule unless the medical and payment records support that entire continuous range.
Is day 14 enough to restore the first three days?
No. Section 4652 requires temporary disability to continue for more than 14 days, so this worksheet restores the waiting dates beginning with a 15-day continuous period.
What hospitalization should I select?
Select yes only for hospitalization as an inpatient for treatment required by the work injury. An emergency-room visit without inpatient admission should not be assumed to satisfy the statutory exception.
Why ask whether full wages were paid on the injury day?
Section 4652 includes the injury day when calculating the waiting period unless the employee received full wages for that day.
Does this calculate the value of a TD check?
No. It counts dates only. The weekly rate, wage evidence, offsets, credits, payment history, and claims-administrator determinations are separate.
Does it combine multiple periods of disability?
No. It models one continuous period. Obtain the full benefit-payment ledger before evaluating the aggregate 104- or 240-week limit across separate periods.
Official sources
- California Labor Code sections 4650–4657 — payment timing, waiting period, weekly benefit rules, and aggregate duration limits.
- California DWC temporary disability overview — when TD begins, general payment frequency, and common ending events.
- California DWC Guidebook, Chapter 5 — TTD and TPD explanation, payment notices, common ending events, and 104- or 240-week context.
Method last reviewed: August 25, 2026. Report a possible date-rule or source issue through the contact page. For the broader claim process, read the California Workers’ Compensation Guide.