How Long Can You Be on Workers' Comp in California?

How long can you be on workers' comp in California?

Most people draw temporary disability for up to 104 weeks, then move into permanent disability, lifetime medical care, or both. Some benefits can continue for the rest of your life.

There is no single deadline that ends a California workers' comp claim. Temporary disability, permanent disability, medical treatment, the job retraining voucher, and your right to reopen the claim each run on a separate clock.

Knowing which clock applies to you matters. Confusing one clock for another is the most common reason an injured worker thinks every benefit ran out when only one of them did.

Here is the full picture, then the details on each benefit below.

Benefit	What it pays in 2026
Temporary disability	Two-thirds of your wage, $264.61 to $1,764.11 per week, up to 104 weeks (Labor Code 4656)
Permanent disability	Two-thirds of your wage, $160 to $290 per week, set by your rating (Labor Code 4658)
Medical care	100 percent of approved care, no copay (Labor Code 4600)
Medical mileage	76 cents per mile to your appointments for trips on or after July 1, 2026 (72.5 cents earlier in 2026)
Job retraining voucher	$6,000 if you cannot return to your old job (Labor Code 4658.7)
Death benefits	$250,000 to $320,000 to dependents, plus $10,000 burial (Labor Code 4702)

How long does temporary disability last in California?

Temporary disability usually stops after 104 weeks within five years of your injury date. Nine serious conditions extend that limit to 240 weeks.

Temporary disability, often shortened to TD, replaces part of your wages while a doctor says you cannot do your usual job. For most injuries on or after January 1, 2008, Labor Code section 4656 caps TD at 104 weeks, paid within a five-year span that starts on your date of injury.

Aggregate disability payments for a single injury occurring on or after January 1, 2008, causing temporary disability shall not extend for more than 104 compensable weeks within a period of five years from the date of injury.

A short list of conditions gets more weeks. If your injury or illness falls into one of these categories, the cap rises to 240 weeks in that same five-year span:

• Acute and chronic hepatitis B
• Acute and chronic hepatitis C
• Amputations
• Severe burns
• Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
• High-velocity eye injuries
• Chemical burns to the eyes
• Pulmonary fibrosis
• Chronic lung disease

Firefighters and peace officers with a qualifying cancer claim under Labor Code section 3212.1 also get a 240-week limit, for injuries occurring on or after January 1, 2023. For the full extension rules, see our breakdown of the 240-week TD extensions.

What happens to your benefits after 2 years on workers' comp?

Reaching the 104-week temporary disability limit does not end your claim. Permanent disability, medical care, and other benefits can continue well past that point.

104 weeks works out to almost exactly two years, so many workers assume their case closes when those checks stop. It does not. The TD clock only covers wage-replacement payments while your injury is still healing. Once a doctor decides your condition is permanent and stationary, meaning it is not expected to improve further, your claim moves into the permanent disability phase instead of ending.

Medical treatment for your injury does not stop at the two-year mark either. Your right to ongoing care, a permanent disability award, a retraining voucher, and the right to reopen your case later all run on their own separate timelines, each covered below.

How long does permanent disability pay in California?

Permanent disability pays for a set number of weeks based on your disability rating. At 70 percent or higher, it can continue for the rest of your life.

Once your condition is permanent and stationary, a doctor assigns a permanent disability, or PD, rating: a percentage that reflects how much the injury limits you. Labor Code section 4658 sets how many weeks of PD each rating pays.

PD rating	Benefit weeks	Award at the 2026 max ($290/wk)
10 percent	30 weeks	$8,700
20 percent	75 weeks	$21,750
30 percent	130 weeks	$37,700
40 percent	200 weeks	$58,000
50 percent	270 weeks	$78,300
60 percent	350 weeks	$101,500
70 percent	430 weeks	$124,700 plus a life pension

Two situations pay beyond that weekly schedule. If your rating is 70 to 99 percent, Labor Code section 4659 adds a life pension once your scheduled PD weeks run out, and that smaller payment continues for the rest of your life. If your rating reaches 100 percent, meaning the state considers you totally disabled, your full payment continues for life from the start, with no weekly schedule at all.

For how the life pension is calculated, see our guide to section 4659.

How long does workers' comp pay for medical treatment?

Medical care for your work injury has no fixed end date. It continues for as long as treatment is reasonably needed, unless you settle your case.

Labor Code section 4600 requires your employer to pay for medical care that is reasonably required to cure or relieve the effects of your injury, with no copay to you. This duty does not expire after a set number of weeks or years. It lasts for as long as the treatment remains medically necessary.

Two things can end it sooner. A doctor may decide you no longer need treatment for the injury. Or you may settle your claim through a Compromise and Release, often called a C&R, which trades your right to future medical care and other benefits for a lump sum. Read any settlement closely before you sign it, since it can close the door on care you may need later.

How long do you have to use your job retraining voucher?

Your job retraining voucher expires two years after you receive it, or five years after your injury date, whichever comes later.

If your injury leaves you with permanent partial disability and your employer does not offer regular, modified, or alternative work within 60 days after a doctor finds your condition permanent and stationary, Labor Code section 4658.7 entitles you to a supplemental job displacement benefit. Workers usually call this the SJDB voucher. It is worth up to $6,000 toward retraining or education.

The voucher itself carries a deadline. It expires two years after your claims administrator issues it, or five years after your date of injury, whichever date comes later. Use it before then or you lose it. For the full eligibility rules, see our guide to the section 4658.7 voucher.

What is the 5-year rule for reopening a workers' comp claim?

You can ask to reopen your workers' comp claim within five years of your injury date if your condition genuinely gets worse.

Benefits can end and a case can still come back. Labor Code section 5410 lets an injured worker reopen a claim for new and further disability within five years of the date of injury. The Workers' Compensation Appeals Board, or WCAB, keeps jurisdiction over your case for that entire period.

This is the clock people mean when they ask about the "5-year rule." It is separate from the one-year deadline to file your original claim, and separate from the five-year window inside the 104-week TD cap above. Reopening does not happen automatically. You, or your attorney, must act before the five years run out and show that your condition changed. For the filing steps, see our guide to reopening a claim under section 5410.

If you are not sure which clock applies to your claim, a short conversation can help. Eman Yazdchi reviews each California workers' comp claim individually before advising on next steps.

Call (661) 273-1780 or use the contact form to have your claim reviewed.