Texas workers’ compensation

Texas Temporary Income Benefits Calculator 2026

Estimate weekly TIBs from average weekly wage, post-injury earning ability, the applicable percentage, and the Texas fiscal-year limits tied to the injury date.

Rules checked: August 25, 2026 · FY 2023–2026 · FY 2026 TIBs range: $191–$1,271 per week
Texas weekly wage-loss estimator

Estimate Texas temporary income benefits

Calculation stays in your browser
Texas benefit limits change each October 1 and remain tied to the injury date.
How will you enter average weekly wage (AWW)?
Include the amount the carrier may treat as post-injury earnings, including a qualifying bona fide job offer when applicable.
Percentage rule to model
Confirm workers’ compensation coverage first.

Most Texas private employers may choose whether to carry workers’ compensation insurance. This calculator models Texas statutory TIBs only when the claim is within the covered system. A non-subscriber injury may involve a different employer plan or legal route.

Texas TIBs formula

Temporary income benefits generally equal 70% of the difference between AWW and weekly earnings after the injury. The result is subject to the minimum and maximum in effect on the injury date.

AWW − post-injury weekly earnings× 70%then apply fiscal-year limits

Example

For an AWW of $1,000 and post-injury earnings of $400, the weekly loss is $600. Seventy percent is $420. Because that amount is within the FY 2026 range, the estimated weekly TIBs amount is $420.

Post-injury earnings can include actual modified-duty wages. Section 408.103 also permits the wage from a bona fide position the employee is reasonably capable of performing to be treated as post-injury earnings when the legal requirements are met.

Low-wage 75% rule

For injuries on or after September 1, 2015, an employee earning less than $10 per hour may receive 75% of the weekly wage loss for the first 26 weeks. That benefit cannot exceed actual earnings for the previous year. Texas law describes presumptions using recent quarterly wage reports, a representative high quarter, or other credible evidence.

The calculator therefore requires an entered previous-year weekly earnings amount in this mode. It does not verify the hourly threshold, determine which prior-year method controls, or count the first 26 weeks.

Average weekly wage

Texas DWC generally describes AWW as earnings during the 13 weeks before the injury divided by 13. The wage record can include overtime, special pay, and certain non-cash benefits such as health-insurance premiums or a vehicle allowance. If the employee did not work the full period, similar-employee evidence may be used.

  • Include covered wages and overtime from the claim employer.
  • Review includable non-cash benefits and when they stop.
  • Report wages from another employer if the injury causes losses there.
  • Do not use the ordinary worksheet for a school-district employee without reviewing the special method.
  • Check seasonal, part-time, intermittent, and similar-employee rules.

Texas fiscal-year TIBs limits

Injury-date periodFiscal yearMinimumMaximum
Oct. 1, 2025–Sept. 30, 20262026$191$1,271
Oct. 1, 2024–Sept. 30, 20252025$183$1,219
Oct. 1, 2023–Sept. 30, 20242024$176$1,174
Oct. 1, 2022–Sept. 30, 20232023$167$1,112

The injury-date limit continues for the period benefits are payable. A January 2026 injury and an October 2026 injury do not belong to the same Texas fiscal year.

When TIBs may begin and end

Texas DWC says TIBs begin after the work injury causes eight days of disability. The first seven days are not paid unless disability lasts 14 days or more. TIBs can end when the worker reaches maximum medical improvement, can again earn AWW, or reaches the statutory endpoint—generally 104 weeks after the eighth day of disability.

This tool estimates a weekly amount only and does not count waiting days or decide whether a work restriction, job offer, wage loss, or maximum-medical-improvement date is valid.

Frequently asked questions

Does every Texas worker have statutory TIBs?

No. First verify whether the employer had Texas workers’ compensation coverage or qualifying self-insurance on the injury date.

Why does the calculator ask for post-injury earnings?

TIBs replaces a percentage of wage loss, not automatically a percentage of the entire pre-injury wage.

Does every payment have to equal at least $191 in FY 2026?

Not necessarily. Texas Rule 129.3 applies the minimum when the calculated TIBs amount plus post-injury earnings is below the minimum. A payment can therefore be below $191 when post-injury earnings bring the combined amount above that threshold. Coverage, disability, duration, and special caps also matter.

Can I use the 75% route for more than 26 weeks?

No. The cited statute limits that percentage to the first 26 weeks and requires the hourly-wage and prior-year-earnings conditions.

Where is the full claim process?

Read the Texas Workers’ Compensation Guide and Texas Benefits Chart.

Official sources

  1. Texas DWC temporary income benefits — formula, low-wage percentage, waiting period, and ending events.
  2. Texas DWC maximum and minimum weekly benefits — fiscal-year limits.
  3. Texas DWC income and medical benefits — AWW methods and definitions.
  4. Texas DWC Appeals Panel Decision Manual: income benefits — Rule 129.3 wage-loss and minimum-rate treatment.
  5. Texas Labor Code Chapter 408 — sections 408.041, 408.061–.062, and 408.101–.103.

Page last reviewed: August 25, 2026. Check the next fiscal-year table for injuries on or after October 1, 2026.