How Does Designated Person Bereavement Leave Work in California?

Starting January 1, 2027, an employee can name a designated person, someone related by blood or whose bond is the equivalent of family, and take up to five days of bereavement leave when that person dies. The employee names the person when requesting leave, and an employer may limit this to one designated person per 12 months.

I am Mac Malbrough. I hold a J.D. and an MS-HRM, I am not an attorney, and this is general information, not legal advice. I read SB 1149, Chapter 679 of the Statutes of 2026, on the California Legislative Information site on November 6, 2026. It was approved on September 27, 2026 and amends Section 12945.7 of the Government Code. The guide is written for employees who do not have a close legal relative to name, and for employers of 10 to 150 people whose handbooks list only spouses, parents and children.

Who counts as a designated person?

The statute defines a “designated person” as “any individual related to the employee by blood or whose association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship.” That wording reaches a cousin, an aunt, an uncle or a godparent, and it also reaches a close friend, a chosen family member or a mentor who played a family role. The law does not give a list of qualifying relationships beyond that sentence, and it does not require a marriage, a shared address or a legal document.

This matters most for people whose closest relationships fall outside a traditional list. Many urban professionals live far from the family they grew up with, support a household that is not built around a spouse, or were raised by someone who is not a legal parent. A policy that names only spouse, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, grandchild and domestic partner leaves those employees with no leave on the day they most need it.

How does the designation work?

The statute says the designated person “may be identified by the employee at the time the employee requests the leave.” In plain terms, the employee names the person when they ask for time off. The law does not require advance paperwork, a standing designation form or a waiting period before a name can be given. It does not tell the employer to approve or reject the choice, and it does not authorize a manager to interview the employee about the relationship.

Because the request often comes in the first hours after a death, I would keep the process short. One sentence in an email or a message to a manager should be enough: “I need bereavement leave. The person who died is my designated person, and I would like to start tomorrow.” The handbook paragraph below builds that in.

Can an employer limit this to one designated person per 12 months?

Yes, as an option. The statute says an employer “may limit an employee to one designated person per 12-month period for bereavement leave.” The word is “may.” An employer can choose a more generous policy, and a handbook that is silent does not have to impose the limit.

If you adopt the limit, write it down and apply it the same way to everyone. A limit works against a pattern of repeat requests, but it also means that an employee who names a person in March has used that designation until the following March. The statute does not say how the 12 months are counted, from the date of leave or from the date of death, so choose one rule in the policy and say so. I would count from the first day of leave.

How many days is the leave, and is it paid?

The leave is up to 5 days upon the death of a family member, and the days do not need to be consecutive. The leave must be completed within three months of the date of death. A designated person is now a family member for this purpose, so the same rules apply to them as to a parent or a spouse.

On pay, the text follows your existing policy:

• If you have a bereavement policy, the leave is taken under it.
• If you have no policy, the leave may be unpaid, but the employee may use vacation, personal leave, accrued and available sick leave or compensatory time off.
• If your policy gives fewer than five paid days, the employee is entitled to a total of at least five days, with the paid days first and the rest possibly unpaid, again with the option to use other available time.
• If your policy gives fewer than five unpaid days, the employee still gets at least five days unpaid.

One more point: the leave right is separate from California Family Rights Act leave. An employee who qualifies for both has two rights, not one. My guide to how CFRA, pregnancy disability leave and paid sick leave fit together shows how the leaves stack.

Who is covered?

An employee, under this section, is a person employed by the employer for at least 30 days before the leave begins. The employer is a person who employs five or more people, or the state and its political subdivisions. The definition of employee excludes people covered by Government Code Section 19859.3, and the section does not apply to an employee under a collective bargaining agreement that expressly provides equivalent bereavement leave and meets the wage conditions in subdivision (k). If you have a union contract, read it against that subdivision before you assume the section does or does not apply.

What can an employer ask for as proof?

An employer may ask for documentation of the death, and the employee must provide it within 30 days of the first day of the leave. The statute says documentation includes a death certificate, a published obituary or written verification of death, burial or memorial services from a mortuary, funeral home, burial society, crematorium, religious institution or government agency.

Notice what the statute does not list: proof of the relationship. I did not find language that lets an employer demand that an employee prove the bond with a designated person. I would not ask for it. An employer is also required to keep the request and any documentation confidential, and may share it only with internal personnel or counsel as necessary or as required by law. Retaliation and interference are unlawful, so an employee who asks, or who describes another person’s leave in an inquiry, is protected.

What does a handbook paragraph look like?

Here is language you can paste into your bereavement leave policy. Edit the pay terms to match what you actually offer.

Bereavement leave. An employee who has worked for the company for at least 30 days may take up to five days of bereavement leave upon the death of a family member. Family member means a spouse, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, domestic partner or designated person. A designated person is any individual related to the employee by blood or whose association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship. The employee may identify the designated person when requesting leave. The company limits each employee to one designated person per 12-month period, counted from the first day of leave. The days need not be consecutive and must be taken within three months of the date of death. Bereavement leave is paid according to the company’s bereavement pay policy, any remaining days are unpaid, and the employee may use available vacation, personal leave, sick leave or compensatory time off. On request, the employee will provide documentation of the death within 30 days of the first day of leave. The company keeps all requests and documents confidential and does not retaliate against any employee for requesting leave.

Add your actual number of paid days to the pay sentence before you publish it, and delete the sentence about the one-person limit if you choose not to use it. Then update your handbook version date. My California employee handbook requirements guide lists the other sections to review, and the California employee handbook template includes leave language you can adapt.

What should a manager say when someone asks?

The manager’s job is to say yes quickly and send the request to HR. Here is a script.

1. Start with the person: “I am so sorry. Take the time you need.”
2. Confirm the leave: “You are entitled to up to five days. Tell me which days you want to start with, and I will cover the rest.”
3. Do not ask about the relationship. If the employee names a designated person, write down the name and move on.
4. Send the request to HR the same day, with the dates and the name the employee gave.
5. Tell the employee that HR may ask for documentation of the death within 30 days, and that it stays confidential.

The two lines to avoid are “Was that person really family?” and “Can you bring me proof?” The first invites a claim of interference and the second misreads the statute, which asks for proof of the death.

What should you do this week?

Open your handbook and find the bereavement section. If it lists only family members by name, add designated person using the paragraph above and decide whether to use the one-per-12-months limit. Then give your managers the five-line script. If you want the rest of your policies checked at the same time, run the handbook gap checker, or book the HR compliance check-up. If you are an employee without a close legal relative, bookmark this page and name your person plainly when you ask for leave.

Sources

• SB 1149 (Durazo), Chapter 679, Statutes of 2026, approved September 27, 2026, read November 6, 2026
• Government Code Section 12945.7, as amended by SB 1149, in the chaptered text above

McKinley holds a J.D. but is not a licensed attorney. Articles here are general information, not legal advice. For your specific situation, talk with an employment attorney.

Data current as of November 2026. Sources are linked where each figure appears.