• Key definitions are used to describe certification for FMLA leave.

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) certification for leave includes the following definitions:

Health care provider: Defined as a doctor of medicine or osteopathy who is authorized to practice medicine or surgery by the state in which the doctor practices, or any other person determined by the Secretary of Labor to be capable of providing health care services.

Written notice: If the employer does require a certification, it must give the employee written notice of this requirement. Both the requirement to provide a certification and the possible consequences of failing to provide a complete and sufficient certification must be in writing. To provide it only verbally may risk losing the employers’ ability to enforce a certification requirement. Such requirement information is usually in the eligibility/rights and responsibilities notice.