Set up Colorado FAMLI (Family and Medical Leave Insurance) for an employee

Angela222 · ‎March 15, 2026

Hello,

I am trying to set up Colorado FAMLI (Family and Medical Leave Insurance) for an employee, but the instructions I found do not match what I see in my QuickBooks account.

The guidance says to go to Edit Tax Withholdings for the employee to add FAMLI+, but that option does not appear anywhere in my employee setup.

Additionally, the instructions mention assigning a policy in Payroll Settings, but I do not see any place in my settings where a policy can be created or assigned.

For context:

I am using the QuickBooks Online Basic Payroll plan
I have an employee located in Colorado
I have already checked the employee tax setup and payroll settings, but there is no option for FAMLI or policy assignment

I am trying to determine whether:

This feature is not available on the Basic Payroll plan
There is a different setup path that is not reflected in the instructions
There may be a system issue or glitch preventing the option from appearing

Has anyone else experienced this or successfully set up Colorado FAMLI in QuickBooks with the Basic Payroll plan?

Any guidance would be appreciated. Thank you.

JaneDave_I

Hi, Angela. I wanted to clear a few things up regarding your Colorado Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) setup. For the Colorado FAMLI policy to appear in the system, at least one employee must have a Colorado address listed in their profile. Could you please verify that this employee's address is entered correctly? Once confirmed, the policy should automatically show up in your settings.

Also, please don't worry about your specific payroll plan, as this feature is not restricted to a higher tier. Since FAMLI is a state-mandated tax, QuickBooks includes it in every plan, including Core, Premium, and Elite. The reason you didn't see the option initially wasn't a system glitch or hidden menu. This is simply how the software operates. QuickBooks uses conditional logic, meaning the policy settings remain hidden until the system detects at least one employee with a Colorado address in their profile. Once that address is in place, the system will trigger those settings, making them visible to you.

Regarding the instructions you mentioned earlier, it sounds like your previous steps were correct. Since the policy is now visible on your end after updating the address, I recommend checking out this article for a complete step-by-step walkthrough to ensure everything is finalised correctly: Set up Colorado Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program (FAMLI).

Feel free to reply to this post if you need further assistance.

View solution in original post

JaneDave_I

Hi, Angela. I wanted to clear a few things up regarding your Colorado Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) setup. For the Colorado FAMLI policy to appear in the system, at least one employee must have a Colorado address listed in their profile. Could you please verify that this employee's address is entered correctly? Once confirmed, the policy should automatically show up in your settings.

Also, please don't worry about your specific payroll plan, as this feature is not restricted to a higher tier. Since FAMLI is a state-mandated tax, QuickBooks includes it in every plan, including Core, Premium, and Elite. The reason you didn't see the option initially wasn't a system glitch or hidden menu. This is simply how the software operates. QuickBooks uses conditional logic, meaning the policy settings remain hidden until the system detects at least one employee with a Colorado address in their profile. Once that address is in place, the system will trigger those settings, making them visible to you.

Regarding the instructions you mentioned earlier, it sounds like your previous steps were correct. Since the policy is now visible on your end after updating the address, I recommend checking out this article for a complete step-by-step walkthrough to ensure everything is finalised correctly: Set up Colorado Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program (FAMLI).

Feel free to reply to this post if you need further assistance.

JaneDave_I

Hello there, Angela.

I’m following up to see if the solution we provided worked for you.

Did it resolve the issue, or are you still experiencing difficulties?

We're happy to assist further if you need any more help.

Angela222

Hi, thank you so much for your help and for taking the time to explain this so clearly.

I double checked the employee’s address and made a small adjustment on my end, and that did the trick. The policy is now showing correctly in my account.

I really appreciate your guidance. It was very helpful.

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Set up Colorado FAMLI (Family and Medical Leave Insurance) for an employee