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Frequently asked questions

In order to answer frequently asked questions relating to the COVID-19 Temporary Paid Leave Program, the Department of Consumer Business Services is offering guidance about the program.

This $30 million program is intended to bridge the gap left by the Families First Coronavirus Relief Act and was established with money received from the federal government to help Oregon respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program provides a $120 per-day payment to workers who are required to quarantine due to COVID-19 exposure, but do not qualify for COVID-19-related paid sick leave or do not have access to paid sick leave.

This webpage will be updated as more information is available.

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General Program Details

The Oregon Legislature’s Emergency Board established the COVID-19 Temporary Paid Leave Program in July 2020 to help bridge the gap left by the Families First Coronavirus Relief Act.

The $30 million program was established with money received from the federal government earlier this year to help Oregon respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program provides a $120 per-day payment to workers who need to quarantine/isolate due to COVID-19 exposure or symptoms, but do not qualify for COVID-19-related paid sick leave or do not have access to COVID-19-related time off​.

The program starts Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020.​

You are allowed to use the program for only one quarantine period of up to 10 working days. If you work multiple jobs, you can apply for only one set of benefits. ​

People who qualify will receive $120 per day for a maximum of 10 working days (up to $1,200 total) for the time they need to quarantine/isolate, but are unable to work (including telework).​

You can file as soon as you are told to quarantine/self-isolate and need to take a leave from work.​

You are eligible to file any time starting Sept. 16, 2020, but it can’t be for a quarantine period that ended before Sept. 16, 2020. There are limited funds available and claims will be paid on a first-come, first-paid basis.


Eligibility and Qualifications

The program is for people who need to quarantine/isolate because of potential exposure to COVID-19, or who are experiencing related symptoms and are seeking medical diagnosis, and meet at least one of the following requirements:

  • Do not receive COVID-19-related time off through their employer
  • Their employer is exempted from the Families First Coronavirus Response Act’s emergency paid sick leave requirement
  • ​They have exhausted available COVID-19-related paid sick leave

There are two exemptions identified in the Act. The first exemption is for private-sector employers with more than 500 employees and for employers with fewer than 50 employees when imposing paid sick leave or paid family and medical leave would jeopardize the viability of their businesses.

The second exemption is for employers who employ health care providers or emergency responders.

Federal guidance establishes tha​t a “health care provider” includes anyone employed in any of the following:

  • Doctor's office
  • Hospital
  • Health care center
  • Clinic
  • Post-secondary educational institution offering health care instruction
  • Medical school
  • Local health department or agency
  • Nursing facility
  • Retirement facility
  • Nursing home
  • Home health care provider
  • Any facility that performs laboratory or medical testing
  • Pharmacy
  • Any similar institution, employer, or entity

“Emergency responders” are defined as anyone necessary for the provision of transport, care, health care, comfort, and nutrition of such patients, or others needed for COVID-19 response. This includes, but is not limited to:​

  • Military or national guard
  • Law enforcement officers
  • Correctional institution personnel
  • Firefighters
  • Emergency medical services personnel
  • Physicians
  • Nurses
  • Public health personnel
  • Emergency medical technicians
  • Paramedics
  • Emergency management personnel
  • 911 operators
  • Child welfare workers and service providers
  • Public works personnel
  • People with skills or training in operating specialized equipment or other skills needed to provide aid in a declared emergency
  • P​eople who work for such facilities employing these people and whose work is necessary to maintain the operation of the facility

An eligibility quiz is available at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/ffcra/benefits-eligibility-webtool.

You are not eligible for the COVID-19 Temporary Paid Leave Program if you are using a similar COVID-19 quarantine relief program. However, if you have used a similar paid leave program for COVID-19 quarantine, you may still be eligible for this program.

If you are receiving help from the state, county, or a community-based organization for rent, utilities, food, or other essentials, this would not disqualify you.​

Employees must meet all the following requirements to be eligible for the program:

  • Work in Oregon and required to file an Oregon personal income tax return.
  • Directed to quarantine by a local or tribal public health authority or health care provider because of exposure to someone infected or have COVID-19-related symptoms and are seeking a medical diagnosis.
  • Not able to work (including telework) because you need to quarantine or isolate.
  • Do not expect to earn more than $60,000 individually or $120,000 jointly in 2020.
  • Your employer does not provide COVID-19-related paid sick leave or you have exhausted your available COVID-19-related paid sick leave.
  • Are not applying for or receiving unemployment insurance benefits for the time off due to quarantine or isolation.
  • Are not applying for or receiving workers’ compensation claim benefits due to quarantine or isolation or experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.
  • Are not seeking or using benefits from similar COVID-19 quarantine relief programs in Oregon or another state.
  • Are not applying for or receiving other forms of paid leave from your employer during your quarantine or isolation, such as banked sick leave or vacation leave.
  • Are not laid off or furloughed by your employer.
  • Must have notified your employer that you need to quarantine or isolate.
  • ​Can claim only one quarantine period.

The program is only for workers unable to work because they need to quarantine or isolate and their employer does not provide COVID-19-related paid time off. You may not qualify if you don’t work in Oregon or meet the income requirements; you have available COVID-19-related paid time off; you received unemployment benefits for the time off due to quarantine; or you received workers’ compensation benefits for the time off due to quarantine.​

If you are unsure if you qualify for the program, review the list of eligibility requirements and take the eligibility quiz.​ If you are still unsure, call 833-685-0850 (toll-free) or 503-947-0130.

The COVID-19 Temporary Paid Leave Program was created in July 2020 by the Legislature’s Emergency Board and did not become effective until Sept. 16, 2020. Because there are limited funds available, it was decided to include only quarantine periods that were in place during or after the effective date of the program.​

If you are in quarantine/isolation when the program began Sept. 16, 2020, you can claim the entirety of your quarantine period. (For example, the program rolls out Sept. 16, 2020, but a person began quarantining Sept. 10, 2020, they could claim the $120 for all of the days they are in quarantine (up to 10 working days). However, someone whose quarantine ended Sept. 15, 2020, is not able to claim this payment.)​

If you meet the eligibility requirements, you will receive $120 a day for up to 10 working days of quarantine for the days you were unable to work, regardless if you work full time or part time.

We may contact your employer to verify the number of days you were scheduled to work or that you would have worked if you were not required to quarantine/isolate.​

List the number of working days (up to 10) you normally would have been scheduled to work during the 14-day quarantine/isolation period.​

You can convert the total number of estimated work hours for the quarantine or isolation period into working days. Please refer to the application form instructions for more information.​

Yes, but you are limited to claiming 10 working days.​

You can claim estimated work days for just your employer.​

No, they do not qualify for benefits under the COVID-19 Temporary Paid Leave Program. However, you may qualify for the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program. For more information about the PUA program, go to https://unemployment.oregon.gov/frequently-asked-questions#faqTopic-2008.

If your worksite is based in Oregon, you qualify for this program.​

Yes, because your worksite is in Oregon.​

No, because your jobsite/place of work is not based in Oregon. The program is limited to jobsites in Oregon.​

No. The program prohibits a worker from concurrently taking multiple forms of paid leave.​

Yes, as the claim is not related to COVID-19 exposure or symptoms.​

Yes, if you are unable to perform tasks assigned by your employer or work the required hours under the arrangement.​

Contact your employer to tell them you cannot report to work because you have been advised to quarantine. They should inform you of available paid leave. If you need help, contact 503-947-0132.​

No. You may qualify for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance through the Oregon Employment Department. Go to https://unemployment.oregon.gov/.

​​You can use available paid leave from your employer instead of participating in this program.​

Contact tracers and medical providers should provide this information at the time of providing the advice to quarantine. Similar information will be provided if you are advised to isolate. Information about quarantine and isolation is available at https://govstatus.egov.com/OR-OHA-Contact-Collaborative.​

You are eligible for the days you were scheduled or anticipated to work for the employer that does not offer a work-from-home option. You are also eligible for days you did not feel well enough to telework, even if your employer allows you to work from home. Fill out the application form and list the days that you cannot work, either because the job does not allow telework and the days you felt unwell and could not work from home.​

​​If you meet all of the listed program qualifications, you can apply for benefits. Accepting (or refusing) financial assistance is not part of this program.​

The Oregon Legislature established the program as financial assistance to workers who were not extended paid sick leave benefits under the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). As such, self-employed people do not qualify for the program. However, self-employed people who need to quarantine or isolate may qualify for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance. Also, the FFCRA allows self-employed people to receive paid sick leave in the form of a tax credit allowed against their federal self-employment tax. For information, go to https://go.usa.gov/x73Wm.

​​​​If your employer does not report your income to the state, then you would not be eligible for this program. If you are not sure, ask your employer. Often employers who pay off the record pay in cash.


Application Process

​

You will be asked to provide the following:

  • Your name, address, and contact information
  • Date of birth
  • Social Security number or taxpayer ID number
  • Employer name and contact information
  • Number of days scheduled to work, but unable due to quarantine/isolation
  • The date you needed to quarantine/isolate or the date you were tested if you quarantined because you were experiencing COVID-19-related symptoms
  • ​County health or tribal public health office or health provider and contact information, including which county or tribal government contacted you
  • You anticipate earning an income of no more than $60,000 individually in 2020 or have a household income of no more than $120,000 in 2020.
  • A county or tribal public health authority or a health care provider instructed you to quarantine, or you have COVID-19-related symptoms and are seeking a medical diagnosis.
  • Your employer does not provide COVID-19-related paid time off.
  • You will not request unemployment benefits for the time off due to quarantine.
  • You are not filing a workers’ compensation claim for the time off due to quarantine.
  • You are not using or have used similar COVID-19 quarantine relief programs.
  • You are not using or seeking to use other paid time off from your employer during the quarantine period.
  • You have notified your employer about the need to quarantine/isolate.
  • ​You are unable to work during the quarantine period.​
​

A household is all the people who occupy a housing unit, such as a house, an apartment, a mobile home, a group of rooms, or a single room that is a separate living quarter. A household can consist of a single family, a person living alone, two or more families living together, or any other group of people who share living arrangements. A household income is the combined money received on a regular basis in the previous year or past 12 months by household members ages 15 years and older. Household income does not include noncash benefits such as food stamps, health benefits, or subsidized housing.​

The easiest option is to fill out the online form at oregon.gov/covidpaidleave. The form is available in English, Spanish (Oregon.gov/covidausenciatemporalpagada), and Russian (Oregon.gov/Covidpaidleave-ru). For those who are unable to fill out the online form (or the online form is not in their language), they can call 503-947-0131. They will be helped with their application through a translation service.

Please refer to the COVID-19 Temporary Paid Leave Program instructions at oregon.gov/covidpaidl​eave.

Applications can be denied for different reasons. For example, your application will be denied if you do not qualify for the program. Also, if you were asked to provide additional information about your application and you did not respond within 7 calendar days after we contacted you to provide the information, your application will be denied.​

We will suspend any incomplete applications or those needing more information. We will contact you, and you have 7 calendar days to provide the information or the claim will be denied.

​If your application is denied, you can reapply. If you are denied again, you have the right to request an appeal. Due to the nature of the program, the program may be closed before your appeal process is completed.​

​Employees with nonstandard workweeks (eight-hour workdays, five days per week) can convert the total number of estimated work hours for the quarantine or isolation period into working days. Please refer to the application form instructions for more information.​

Enter your estimated number of work days for the quarantine period.​​​

No. The payment is based on a working day, and is not prorated for the number of hours you are scheduled or estimated to work.​

​​Report only the days when you would be working for the employer that does not provide COVID-19-related paid time off.​

If you meet program qualifications and your residence is affected by wildfire, you can apply for the program. The application asks for your mailing address for purposes of delivering your check. If your mail is temporarily forwarded to a different address, you may experience a delay in delivery. If your check is returned to the Department of Consumer and Business Services, we will contact you for alternative delivery arrangements.

Information regarding U.S. Postal Service residential service disruptions are available at https://about.usps.com/newsroom/service-alerts/residential/welcome.htm. Directions for temporarily forwarding mail to another address are located at https://moversguide.usps.com.


Receiving Payments

Since this is a new program and we don’t know the volume of applications we will receive each day, we are not sure how long it will take to process these claims. Our goal is to have claims processed in two weeks of receipt, but that could be dependent on how quickly we can verify your information.​

You will receive a check in the mail.​​

The state has a process to verify the provided information. This may include reviewing tax records or employment data maintained by the state, contacting your employer, or verifying the justification for your quarantine. We may also review unemployment claims and workers’ compensation records. If it is determined that you did not meet eligibility requirements or provided false information, you will be responsible to repay all funds received.​

​Yes, any money you receive from the program is taxable.​​

These payments are taxable, so we need your Social Security number (SSN) or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) to issue a Form 1099 at the end of the year. Also, the Department of Revenue will use your SSN or ITIN to make sure you meet the income requirements. Finally, if it is later determined that you were not eligible to receive COVID-19 Temporary Paid Leave payments, we may use your SSN or ITIN to collect those funds.​



​​​​​​Contact us

833-685-0850 (toll-free) or 503-947-0130​

Call center hours:​ 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday​

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