North Carolina
For North Carolina, waiting period (days) is 7 days; retroactive trigger (days) is 21 days; how days are counted is Calendar days. No compensation is due for the first seven days of lost time from work. Payment for days 1-7 is due only if the employee's disability has continued beyond 21 days; statute or rule citation is N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-28, recorded from its source on 2026-08-17.
- State
- North Carolina our reading
- Waiting period (days)
- 7 days verified
- Retroactive trigger (days)
- 21 days verified
- How days are counted
- Calendar days. No compensation is due for the first seven days of lost time from work. Payment for days 1-7 is due only if the employee's disability has continued beyond 21 days. verified
- Statute or rule citation
- N.C. Gen. Stat. § 97-28 our reading
Values marked our reading are our classification of what the source says — the source does not print them in those words. The quote below is the evidence for each one; judge it yourself.
What the source says
no compensation is due for the first seven days of lost time from work, unless the disability exceeds 21 days. Therefore, the first workers’ compensation disability payment issued to the employee by the employer or carrier will not include any workers’ compensation disability payments for days 1-7. Payment for days 1-7 will be due only if the employee’s disability has continued beyond 21 days.
— ic.nc.gov, retrieved 2026-08-17
Source
- ic.nc.govhttps://www.ic.nc.gov/faqs