Leave Bank Recipient Eligibility

To receive leave from the Leave Bank, you must:

1. Be a current NIH Leave Bank member (NIH Leave Bank membership is only open to NIH federal employees – federal employees at other agencies are not eligible for NIH Leave Bank membership).
2. Experience a family or personal qualifying medical emergency, which is projected to result in at least 24 hours (prorated for part-time employees) of non-pay status after exhausting your available paid leave. Please note – per policy, Leave Bank hours cannot be used for bereavement purposes.
3. Submit a complete NIH Leave Bank Recipient Application Package (see below) to the Leave Bank Office no later than 30 calendar days following the termination of the medical emergency.

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) Eligibility

You may choose to invoke FMLA in conjunction with your Leave Bank request, although this is not required to be approved to receive Leave Bank leave. If you choose to invoke FMLA, you must:

1. Be a full-time or part-time employee with at least twelve months of Federal civilian service.
2. Experience a qualifying medical emergency.
3. Have FMLA leave available (up to 12 weeks in a 12-month period).

NIH Leave Bank Recipient Application Package

Package should be submitted to the NIH Leave Bank Office for review. It must include:

• Fax Cover Sheet
• Leave Recipient Application
• Authorization for Disclosure of Information
• Confidential Medical Documentation - Medical documentation may not be required as part of the application packet in some limit circumstances. Visit the Medical Documentation webpage for additional information

Please visit the Leave Bank Recipient Homepage for more information.

For questions, email LeaveBank@od.nih.gov or call (301) 443-8393.