As a reminder, beginning January 1, 2022, employers are required to report their Washington employees’ wages and hours and collect the premiums from employees’ wages for their new state’s long-term care (LTC) program, called WA Cares Fund. Employers are not required to contribute to this program.
The WA Cares Fund premium for 2022 is 0.58% of an employee’s gross wages without a maximum limit. The long-term care benefits under WA Cares Fund will be available to eligible employees starting in 2025.
Once the state’s reporting system is updated, the covered employers can report for both WA Cares Fund and WA PFML programs at the same time on the site.
Employees may apply for an exemption from the program if they have private long-term care insurance in place and have completed their application for an exemption from WA Cares before on or before December 1, 2021. (This is an extension from the previous November 1, 2021, deadline to apply for an exemption.) If the exemption is approved, the employees are required to notify their employer and provide them with a copy of their approval letter from the Employment Security Department (ESD). Once an employer receives the approved letter from employees, they are required not to withhold WA Cares premiums from those employees; and retain a copy of their employees’ approval letters on file.
WA Cares Fund the main site » Informational Flyer »
PPI Benefit Solutions does not provide legal or tax advice. Compliance, regulatory and related content is for general informational purposes and is not guaranteed to be accurate or complete. You should consult an attorney or tax professional regarding the application or potential implications of laws, regulations or policies to your specific circumstances.
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