Workers' comp · NC
North Carolina workers' comp calculator
North Carolina caps total disability at a fixed number of weeks but lets the most seriously hurt workers apply to go beyond it.
Rules read on official North Carolina pages on · Checked by Radif Partners · How we calculate
- Benefit rate
- 66.67%
- Gross average weekly wage before taxes
- Weekly maximum
- $1,446
- from January 1, 2026
- Weekly minimum
- $30
- floor
- Waiting period
- 7 days
- paid back past 21 days
North Carolina pays total disability at 66.67% of the employee's average weekly wage, no more than the maximum the Industrial Commission sets each January 1 and no less than $30 a week (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-29(a)). For 2026 injuries the maximum is $1,446, reached at a wage of about $2,169 a week, and that cap stays with the claim for its whole life. No compensation is due for the first 7 days of lost time unless the disability exceeds 21 days, in which case days 1 to 7 are paid (§ 97-28). A furniture finisher earning $880 who is out twenty-two days receives $1,844. Temporary total disability may not run past 500 weeks from the first date of disability, unless the employee later proves a total loss of wage-earning capacity and wins extended compensation. Scheduled injuries such as the loss of a thumb, an arm or the use of the back are paid for a fixed number of weeks at the same rate, on top of the healing period.
Weekly temporary total disability benefit in North Carolina
$733
$3,178 a month · 66.67% of the wage, tax-free
| 66.67% of $1,100 | $733 |
| Weekly maximum / minimum | $1,446 / $30 |
| Days paid / unpaid waiting days | 30 / 0 |
| Total for the time off | $3,143 |
Estimate of wage-loss benefits for a total disability, from the North Carolina Industrial Commission rates. Medical care is paid separately; partial disability, permanent impairment ratings and settlements follow other rules. How this is calculated.
Past 500 weeks: extended compensation
Under § 97-29(b), TTD stops 500 weeks after the first date of disability, and the insurer needs no permission from the Industrial Commission to end it then. The finisher earning $880 who never returns to work receives $587 a week and $293,348 before that line. The way past it is § 97-29(c): once 425 weeks have passed, the employee may apply for extended compensation, and must prove by a preponderance of the evidence a total loss of wage-earning capacity, meaning the complete elimination of the capacity to earn any wages. The Commission may weigh pre-existing and injury-related limitations, vocational skills, education and experience.
The insured-wage formula and the January reset
North Carolina does not use the state average weekly wage directly. Section 97-29(i) takes the average weekly insured wage under G.S. 96-1, multiplies it by 1.10 and rounds to the nearest two dollars, which is why every figure on the Industrial Commission’s rate table is an even number. The 2026 figure, $1,446, applies to all injuries and claims arising on or after January 1. A lab manager earning $2,400 a week computes to $1,600 and receives $1,446. The $30 floor dates from the statute and is not indexed.
Day twenty-two
The seven-day wait in § 97-28 is repaid only after three weeks. The Commission's own explanation is blunt: the first check will not include days 1 to 7, and those days become due only if the disability continues beyond 21 days. Out twenty days, the finisher receives $1,090; out twenty-two days, $1,844.
When checks stop, the worker can ask the Executive Secretary's Office for an order compelling payment plus a 10% late-payment penalty under § 97-18(e) and (g). An insurer that wants to stop paying on its own must file a Form 24 application, and the worker has 17 days from its mailing to respond. Scheduled injuries are paid at 66 2/3% of average weekly wages for a fixed number of weeks in addition to the healing period (e.g. thumb 75 weeks, index finger 45 weeks, arm 240 weeks, total loss of use of the back 300 weeks), with partial loss paid proportionally (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-31). See how much workers’ comp pays for settlements, and the North Carolina child support page for benefits treated as income.
The North Carolina rules this calculator applies
| Rule | North Carolina |
|---|---|
| Temporary total disability rate | 66.67% of gross average weekly wage before taxes |
| Weekly maximum | $1,446 |
| Weekly minimum | $30 |
| Applies to | injuries in calendar year 2026 |
| Waiting period | 7 days, paid back when the disability lasts more than 21 days |
| Limit on temporary total benefits | 500 weeks |
Rate. Sixty-six and two-thirds percent of average weekly wages, not more than the amount established annually effective January 1 and not less than $30.00 per week (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-29(a)). source
Waiting period. No compensation is due for the first seven days of lost time unless the disability exceeds 21 days, in which case days 1-7 are paid (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-28; Industrial Commission FAQs). source
Duration. TTD may not exceed 500 weeks from the date of first disability unless the employee qualifies for extended compensation, which requires an application after 425 weeks and proof of total loss of wage-earning capacity (G.S. 97-29(b)-(c)). source
Permanent disability. Scheduled injuries are paid at 66 2/3% of average weekly wages for a fixed number of weeks in addition to the healing period (e.g. thumb 75 weeks, index finger 45 weeks, arm 240 weeks, total loss of use of the back 300 weeks), with partial loss paid proportionally (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-31). source
Worth knowing in North Carolina
- North Carolina's maximum is 110% of the average weekly insured wage (G.S. 96-1), rounded to the nearest multiple of $2.00, and applies to injuries on and after the following January 1 (G.S. 97-29(i)). source
- The cap that applies for the whole claim is the maximum for the year of injury: $1,446.00 for 2026, up from $1,380.00 in 2025 (Industrial Commission rate table). source
- A worker whose weekly checks stop can ask the Industrial Commission for an order compelling payment plus a 10% late-payment penalty (G.S. 97-18(e), (g); IC FAQs). source
- Insurers can terminate TTD without Commission permission after 500 weeks, or when the employee returns to work, subject to the trial return-to-work rules of G.S. 97-32.1 (IC FAQs). source
- To contest a Form 24 application to stop benefits, the worker must file a response within 17 days of its mailing (G.S. 97-18.1; IC FAQs). source