The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division announced a Final Rule revising the regulatory definition of "spouse" under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA). Effective March 27, 2015, the federal FMLA will define a spouse based on the law of the place where the employee’s marriage was entered into rather than the law of the state in which the employee resides. Under the current FMLA regulations, the definition of spouse does not include legally married same-sex spouses if the employee resides in a state that does not recognize the employee’s same-sex marriage.

This shift to a “place of celebration” interpretation will require that covered employers permit eligible employees in legal same-sex marriages to take FMLA leave to care for their spouse or covered family member regardless of the law in the state where they live. The new definition also includes same-sex spouses that entered into a valid marriage outside the United States. The effect of this change is that covered employers must permit leave for employees to (1) care for their same-sex spouse, stepchild, or stepparent with a serious health condition; (2) take qualifying exigency leave due to their same-sex spouse’s covered military service; or (3) take military caregiver leave for their same-sex spouse.