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WH-380-E: What the "Expires" Date Actually Means

DOL's WH-380-E carries two dates: an OMB control-number expiration and a June 2020 revision line. Here's what each one governs.

Published: Updated: 4 min read

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Updated: Sources: 2

Editorial illustration of pay records, workplace documents, and an employment information checklist.

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What matters now

  • The 'Expires: 8/31/2029' date on Form WH-380-E is an OMB control-number expiration, not an expiration of the form's content or the FMLA rules it implements.
  • 'Form WH-380-E, Revised June 2020' is a separate marker showing when the form's content was last updated.
  • The employer must give the employee at least 15 calendar days to provide the certification.
  • An employer may not ask for more information than 29 C.F.R. §§ 825.306-825.308 allows.
  • Use of Form WH-380-E is optional, per the form's own text.

If you or your employer are looking at Department of Labor Form WH-380-E (Certification of Health Care Provider for Employee’s Serious Health Condition under the FMLA), you’ve probably noticed two different date markers printed on it: an OMB “Expires” date and a “Revised” line. They answer different questions, and neither one means the form or the underlying FMLA certification rules have expired. The form itself states “OMB Control Number: 1235-0003” and “Expires: 8/31/2029,” and separately “Form WH-380-E, Revised June 2020” (https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/WH-380-E.pdf). DOL’s own FMLA forms page clarifies what that expiration date does and does not govern: “The expiration date on the DOL forms is related to the collection of information as required by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and not relevant to the content of the required information” (https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla/forms).

Plain envelope, neutral work-record folder, blank paper sheets, and a magnifying lens.
Illustrative record-reading guide for employment and wages coverage; it contains no factual claim or record data.

This original record-reading guide is a general reading aid, not cited evidence. It does not depict a source record; the article text and source links provide the facts.

Key points

Form date meanings

The form’s header carries “OMB Control Number: 1235-0003” and “Expires: 8/31/2029” (https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/WH-380-E.pdf). This is an OMB control-number expiration tied to federal Paperwork Reduction Act review of information-collection forms — it is about DOL’s authorization to collect this information, not about whether the form’s substance is current. DOL’s FMLA forms page states this directly: “The expiration date on the DOL forms is related to the collection of information as required by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and not relevant to the content of the required information” (https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla/forms).

Separately, the form is marked “Form WH-380-E, Revised June 2020” (https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/WH-380-E.pdf). This revision line tells you when the form’s content — its questions and instructions — was last updated. It is a different marker from the OMB expiration date and answers a different question: not “is DOL still authorized to collect this,” but “when was this version’s content last revised.”

Certification process

The form cites the statutory and regulatory basis for the certification process: “29 U.S.C. §§ 2613, 2614(c)(3); 29 C.F.R. § 825.305” (https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/WH-380-E.pdf).

On timing, the form states: “The employer must give the employee at least 15 calendar days to provide the certification” (https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/WH-380-E.pdf).

On the consequence of an incomplete submission, the form states: “If the employee fails to provide complete and sufficient medical certification, his or her FMLA leave request may be denied. 29 C.F.R. § 825.313” (https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/WH-380-E.pdf).

On the limits of what an employer may request, the form states: “You may not ask the employee to provide more information than allowed under the FMLA regulations, 29 C.F.R. §§ 825.306-825.308” (https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/WH-380-E.pdf).

The form also draws a specific boundary on when certification can be required at all: “you may not request a certification for FMLA leave to bond with a healthy newborn child or a child placed for adoption or foster care” (https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/WH-380-E.pdf).

Finally, on the form’s own optional status: “While use of this form is optional” (https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/WH-380-E.pdf).

What this article does not answer

This article covers only what the WH-380-E form’s own printed text and DOL’s FMLA forms page say about the form’s date markers and its own cited process rules. It does not evaluate whether any individual reader’s medical condition qualifies as a serious health condition under the FMLA, whether a specific completed certification — the reader’s own or any other particular submission — was sufficient or complete, or any state or local leave law’s own certification form or requirements. Those determinations depend on facts and, where applicable, other laws that this record does not address.

https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/WH-380-E.pdf https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla/forms

Sources
  1. DOL Form WH-380-E (FMLA Certification of Health Care Provider)
  2. DOL WHD FMLA Forms Page
By: Why It Trends EditorialReviewed by: Why It Trends Review Desk