Sick Leave & Doctor's-Note Rules in Philadelphia

Philadelphia workers are covered by the Promoting Healthy Families and Workplaces Act, the city’s paid sick leave law, enacted in 2015. One detail sets it apart from most other cities: an employer can ask for a doctor’s note after a shorter absence than the common three-day threshold. This guide explains the 2026 rules, exactly when a note can be required, and how a note from a licensed physician fits in. It’s general information, not legal advice.

What the law gives you

The law covers employees who work in Philadelphia. You accrue at least one hour of sick time for every 40 hours worked, up to 40 hours per calendar year (your employer can set a higher limit). Whether that time is paid depends on the size of the business:

• 10 or more employees: must provide paid sick time.
• Fewer than 10 employees: must provide sick time, but it may be unpaid.
• Chain establishments (a business operating under the same name in 15 or more locations) must provide paid sick time regardless of employee count.

You can begin using accrued sick time after your 90th calendar day of employment. It covers your own illness or care, a family member’s care, and certain situations involving domestic violence or sexual assault.

When can a Philadelphia employer require a doctor’s note?

This is where Philadelphia differs. The law allows an employer to require reasonable documentation only for sick time of more than two consecutive days, so the trigger arrives on the third consecutive day of absence, sooner than the three-day threshold used in cities like New York, San Francisco, and Seattle. For an absence of two consecutive days or fewer, no note can be required.

What the note can contain is limited. The law expressly says an employer may not require that the documentation explain the nature of the illness. For a medical absence, “documentation signed by a health care professional indicating that sick time is necessary” is treated as reasonable documentation. A separate confidentiality provision reinforces this: an employer may not require disclosure of the details of your medical condition as a condition of providing sick time. So an employer can confirm that your time off was warranted, but cannot compel your diagnosis.

Who enforces it

The Act is administered by the office the Mayor designates, in practice, the City of Philadelphia Department of Labor, through its Office of Worker Protections. That office takes complaints, investigates, can impose fines and order restitution and reinstatement, and protects workers from retaliation for using sick time or asserting their rights. A 2025 amendment (the POWER Act) strengthened enforcement and recordkeeping but did not change the accrual rate, the 40-hour cap, the employer-size thresholds, or the more-than-two-consecutive-days documentation rule described above.

Philadelphia sits within Pennsylvania, which does not have a statewide paid sick leave mandate, so the city ordinance is the governing law for Philadelphia workers. For the wider state context, see our overview of Pennsylvania doctor’s-note laws.

How an online doctor’s note fits in

Because a Philadelphia employer can only ask for documentation after more than two consecutive days, shorter absences need no note. When a longer absence does trigger a request, what your employer is entitled to is narrow: documentation from a health professional that your sick time was necessary, not an explanation of your illness.

A note from a physician licensed in Pennsylvania can meet that need whether the evaluation happened in person or through a legitimate telehealth review. What makes a note valid is that a real, licensed clinician genuinely assessed your situation, not the format it came in. A document stating you were seen and that time off was appropriate gives your employer exactly what the law allows it to ask for.

A few practical pointers for Philadelphia workers:

• Note the two-day threshold: Philadelphia lets employers ask for a note sooner than many other cities.
• A note only needs to show the sick time was necessary; it doesn’t have to state what was wrong with you.
• Keep any documentation minimal, and know the confidentiality rule protects your medical details.

Common misunderstandings

The detail Philadelphia workers most often miss is the two-day threshold. Because many national articles describe a three-day rule, people assume the same applies here, but Philadelphia allows a documentation request after more than two consecutive days, so the trigger can arrive a day earlier than in most other cities. A second misunderstanding is that the note must explain the illness; the law specifically says it may not be required to state the nature of the illness, and a health professional’s note that the sick time was necessary is enough. A confidentiality provision adds that your employer may not require disclosure of the details of your medical condition.

It also helps to separate this law from other leave programs. Paid sick time under the Act is distinct from federal family or medical leave and from workers’ compensation, each of which has its own forms and eligibility. CuroNote’s guides, and any note a licensed physician might issue, concern routine sick-time documentation for work or school, not those programs. If your situation involves a serious or extended condition, that’s a conversation for your own clinician and, where appropriate, an employment attorney.

What to do if you’re asked for a note

If your employer requests documentation after a qualifying absence of more than two consecutive days, provide a note that confirms only what’s needed, that you were seen and that the time off was necessary, without disclosing your diagnosis. The law and its confidentiality provision both protect you from having to explain the illness. If you believe your employer is requiring a note for shorter absences or pressing for medical details, the Office of Worker Protections within the City’s Department of Labor investigates complaints and prohibits retaliation. Keeping a copy of what you submit, along with the relevant dates, is good practice in case a question arises later.

CuroNote is preparing to launch online doctor’s-note services and is not yet issuing notes. This page is here to help you understand your rights under Philadelphia law in the meantime. For related reading, see do you actually need a doctor’s note?, can employers verify a note?, and are online doctor’s notes legal?.