Covered employers should ensure their leave policies comply with this new law and that they are prepared to provide this new leave by January 1, 2026.

Effective January 1, 2026, New Hampshire employers with at least 20 employees must provide unpaid leave rights for employees to attend medical appointments related to childbirth, postpartum care and infant pediatric care.

Overview

New Hampshire’s new unpaid leave law amends RSA 275 as part of HB2, a broader piece of legislation “relative to state fees, funds, revenues, and expenditures” which Governor Kelly Ayotte signed into law on June 27, 2025. The law entitles covered employees up to 25 hours of unpaid leave from work to attend the employee’s own medical appointments for childbirth or postpartum care, or the employee’s child’s pediatric medical appointments within the first year of the child’s birth or adoption.

Sharing Parental Leave

If both parents work for the same employer, the parents must share the 25-hour leave entitlement. In other words, the parents are entitled to a combined total of 25 hours of leave in their child’s first year—not 25 hours per parent.

Eligibility and Scope

The new law applies to employers in New Hampshire with at least 20 employees. The new law does not define the term “employee.” However, under RSA 275:36, “employee” as used in the law’s subdivision is defined to include full-time and part-time employees, but not temporary or seasonal employees. The law does not address whether out-of-state employees count toward the 20-employee threshold.

Reasonable Notice and Documentation

Employees must provide reasonable advance notice prior to taking leave and make reasonable efforts “to schedule the leave so as not to unduly disrupt the operations of the employer.” Employers may request reasonable documentation to verify that the leave is used for its intended purpose. The law does not specify what type of documentation employers may request, but a medical note from the employee’s healthcare provider would likely be reasonable to verify the use of the leave.

Unpaid Leave

While the statute explicitly provides for unpaid leave, it also provides that “an employee shall be permitted to substitute any accrued vacation time or other appropriate paid leave for any leave taken pursuant to this section.” Thus, the employee may opt to substitute accrued vacation or other appropriate paid leave for any portion of the leave at their discretion. The law does not specify whether employers may require employees to use their available paid leave to cover their leave under the new law, but the language suggests the option is to be exercised at the employee’s discretion.

If the employee is salaried, rather than hourly, then the employer must comply with its separate statutory obligations under RSA 275:43-b, which requires that exempt employees be paid their full salary for any pay period in which they perform work, with few exceptions. As a result, employers generally may not deduct pay from salaried employees’ paychecks for missed time under unpaid leave laws unless allowed by statute.

Reinstatement

Similar to the Family and Medical Leave Act, the new law requires that employers restore employees to their original jobs when they return from leave.

Other Statutory Support for Parents in the Workplace

New Hampshire employers should also remember the following legislative support for parents:

• New Hampshire’s new law effective July 1, 2025, “Policies Relating to Nursing Mothers” (RSA 275:78-83) that requires employers with six or more employees to 1) give lactating employees an unpaid break of 30 minutes to pump for every three hours of work, and 2) provide access to a reasonable space, that is not a restroom, to express milk during working hours.
• New Hampshire’s maternity leave law, found at RSA 354-A:7, VI, which provides that pregnant women must be allowed to take leave for periods of temporary disability due to pregnancy, maternity leave, or related medical conditions.
• New Hampshire’s voluntary Paid Family and Medical Leave (NH PFML) program that allows, but does not require, employers to offer employees paid family and medical leave. NH PFML insurance plans are funded by premiums paid by New Hampshire workers and New Hampshire employer participants, and offered by MetLife, the state’s paid family and medical leave insurance partner.

Action Items

Covered employers should ensure their leave policies comply with this new law and that they are prepared to provide this new leave by January 1, 2026.

For More Information

If you have any questions about this Alert, please contact Bronwyn L. Roberts, Molly Connor, any of the attorneys in our Employment, Labor, Benefits and Immigration Practice Group or the attorney in the firm with whom you are regularly in contact.

Disclaimer: This Alert has been prepared and published for informational purposes only and is not offered, nor should be construed, as legal advice. For more information, please see the firm's full disclaimer.