Iowa bases the weekly check on what you actually bring home. You receive 80% of your weekly spendable earnings, meaning pay after taxes, instead of a slice of gross pay. The weekly ceiling for temporary total, healing period, permanent total and death benefits is $2,431 for injuries from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027.
How long you have to file depends on whether checks were paid. If no weekly benefits came, you have two years from the injury to file a petition. If they did, you have three years from the last weekly payment.
Iowa benefit rates, high and low
- Temporary total and healing period (time off while you recover): up to $2,431 a week.
- Permanent partial disability: up to $2,237 a week.
- Minimum for temporary total and healing period: $425 or your spendable earnings if those are lower.
These figures cover injuries from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027. The first 3 days off are unpaid, but if you miss more than 14 days, those days are paid too. Our weekly benefit calculator gives a ballpark figure.
| Weekly check | 80% of your weekly spendable earnings (take-home pay) |
|---|---|
| Weekly cap for TTD, healing period, PTD and death, injuries from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027 | $2,431 |
| Weekly minimum for TTD and healing period, injuries from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027 | $425 (or your spendable earnings, if lower) |
| Waiting period | first 3 days unpaid unless you miss more than 14 days |
Iowa time limits, step by step
- Tell your employer within 90 days of the injury or of the day you knew it was tied to work.
- File a petition with the Division within two years of the injury if no weekly benefits were paid.
- Ask for more benefits within three years of the last weekly payment.
- Appeal a deputy commissioner's arbitration decision to the Commissioner within 20 days of the decision date.
- Take the Commissioner's appeal decision to district court within 30 days.
The three-year rule catches people whose checks ended a while ago and who assumed the case was over. It may still be open.
Fights over care and denials in Iowa
In Iowa, the employer usually chooses the medical care. If that care is not working, you can ask for alternate care and if the employer refuses, petition the Division to decide.
When the whole claim is denied, your petition leads to an arbitration hearing before a deputy commissioner (a Division judge). The Workers' Compensation Division takes questions at 800-645-4583. For a broader look at next moves, read our guide to a denied claim.
Paying an Iowa workers comp lawyer
The Commissioner must approve attorney fees. Iowa Code section 86.39 also bars a fee on benefits the insurer was already paying voluntarily. In practice, that means the attorney earns a fee on what the case adds, not on checks you were getting anyway.
See our fee guide for how contingency arrangements generally work.
People also ask
Is the Iowa check based on gross pay?
No. It is 80% of weekly spendable earnings, which is your pay after taxes and similar deductions.
What if I do not like the doctor the employer chose?
Ask the employer for alternate care. If it says no, you can file a petition with the Division asking it to order a change.