Benefits and money

The supplemental job displacement benefit (SJDB voucher)

By the Work Injury Compass editorial team · Last updated November 2026 · How we write and check guides

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Who qualifies

For injuries on or after January 1, 2013, you qualify for the voucher if:

• your injury caused permanent partial disability, meaning a doctor found you have lasting impairment; and
• your employer did not make a qualifying offer of regular, modified or alternative work within 60 days after the claims administrator received the first report from your treating doctor, a QME or an AME finding that all your conditions are permanent and stationary and that you have permanent partial disability (Labor Code §4658.7).

A qualifying job offer has to last at least 12 months. According to DWC, the job must also pay at least 85 percent of what you earned at the time of injury. The doctor completes a DWC form describing your work capacities and restrictions, so the employer can see whether a job fits. If the employer makes a valid offer, you don't get the voucher, even if you turn the job down. See return to work and modified duty.

When you should receive it

If no qualifying offer is made, the claims administrator must give you the voucher within 20 days after the time for making an offer runs out (Labor Code §4658.7). In practice, that's about 80 days after it receives the permanent and stationary report. If that report is in and nothing has arrived, write to the adjuster and ask for the voucher. Disputes about the voucher go to the WCAB.

What the $6,000 can pay for

The voucher is worth $6,000 in total, whatever your permanent disability percentage. It's spent at your choice on (per Labor Code §4658.7 and DWC):

• Education and retraining: tuition, fees, books and required expenses at a California public school or a provider on the state's Eligible Training Provider List.
• Licensing and certification: occupational license or professional certification fees, and related exam and prep course fees.
• Tools required by a training course.
• Computer equipment, up to $1,000.
• Miscellaneous expenses, up to $500 reimbursed.
• A licensed placement agency or vocational counselor, up to 10 percent ($600).

You can't spend it on anything else, and you can't cash it out.

Rules to know

• Not for cash. For injuries on or after January 1, 2013, the voucher can't be settled or traded for cash, including in a Compromise and Release.
• Expiration. A voucher issued on or after January 1, 2013 expires two years after it's issued or five years after the date of injury, whichever is later (DWC).
• Paying the school. Payments are made to the school or provider, or you're reimbursed for eligible expenses you paid. Keep receipts and send them promptly.
• Older injuries are different. For injuries from 2004 through 2012, the voucher ranged from $4,000 to $10,000 depending on the permanent disability level, and it was offered once the PD level was decided.

The Return-to-Work Supplement Program (RTWSP)

DIR runs a separate program that pays a one-time $5,000 to workers injured on or after January 1, 2013 who received an SJDB voucher from a claims administrator. Key points from DIR's program page:

• You apply online. Every DWC district office has a kiosk with a computer, scanner and printer, and Information & Assistance officers can help in person or at 1-800-736-7401.
• DIR must receive your application within one year of the date the voucher was served on you.
• You'll need the entire voucher, including its proof of service page, your ADJ case number and your claim number.
• DIR decides eligibility within 60 days of a complete application and pays within 25 days of approval.

The supplement is in addition to the voucher and to your permanent disability payments. Don't let the one-year application window pass while you're waiting for your case to settle.

A simple timeline example

A warehouse worker hurts a shoulder in 2025. In May 2026 the treating doctor issues a report finding the shoulder permanent and stationary with lasting impairment and a permanent no-overhead-lifting restriction, and the adjuster receives it on May 10. The employer has until about July 9 (60 days) to offer a regular, modified or alternative job lasting at least 12 months. No offer comes, so the voucher is due within the next 20 days. The worker gets it in late July, signs up for a commercial driver's license course and an office-skills certificate at a community college, and applies online for the $5,000 supplement well before the one-year mark from the voucher's service date.

Common problems

• No voucher ever arrives. Often the adjuster is waiting for a final rating or a settlement. Under the 2013 rules, the trigger is the P&S report and the missed job offer, not the settlement. Ask in writing.
• A "job offer" that doesn't fit your restrictions, or a temporary assignment. An offer has to meet the legal requirements to defeat the voucher, so keep a copy and compare it with your doctor's restrictions.
• School not eligible. Check that the program is a California public school or on the Eligible Training Provider List before you enroll.
• Expired voucher. Mark the expiration date as soon as you get it.

How SJDB fits with your other benefits

The voucher doesn't reduce your permanent disability payments, and it's separate from temporary disability, which usually ends around the time you're declared permanent and stationary (see when TD ends). If you can't go back to your old job, plan your retraining early. The voucher's timeline begins when the P&S report arrives, not when the case settles.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Every case is different. For free help from the state, call the DWC Information & Assistance unit at 1-800-736-7401.