Introduction to the ECOMP Claims Process

Reporting a workplace incident and filing a claim for compensation require different forms, depending upon your employment status and government organization. Not all government agencies use ECOMP for form filing. You can check to see what forms your agency files through ECOMP by clicking "Register" from the ECOMP homepage and then selecting your employing government organization.

Overview

If your agency uses ECOMP for form filing, you will be able to manage the entire process from your Employee Dashboard. You can get to your Employee Dashboard by clicking "Sign In" on the ECOMP homepage.

Usually, to file a notice of injury, you should start by reporting the incident using OSHA Form 301 (Injury and Illness Incident Report). Some agencies support filing an OSHA-301 via ECOMP, while others do not. Either way, ECOMP will guide you through the process.

If you wish to file a claim under the Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA), you can file a claim using Form CA-1 (Notice of Traumatic Injury and Claim for Continuation of Pay/Compensation) or Form CA-2 (Notice of Occupational Disease and Claim for Compensation). Depending on your agency, you may be required to file an OSHA-301 before filing a FECA claim.

If your claim is submitted to the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP), you will be assigned a case number and receive an informational letter from OWCP with that case number. That letter will also provide you with information regarding how to view your case status, billing updates, coverage limitations, and other information via the Claimant Query System (CQS). To access CQS, please visit OWCP Connect.

Once a case number has been assigned, you can submit information pertaining to that case file through ECOMP's Document Upload feature, available from the ECOMP homepage. To use this feature, you will need your last name, case number, date of birth and date of injury. You can use this feature for any existing case, not just those initiated through ECOMP. Information submitted should usually be available to OWCP within 4 hours of upload.

An OWCP case number also enables you to file a Form CA-7 (Claim for Compensation). A CA-7 can be filed for any existing claim, not just those initiated through ECOMP, as long as you have a case number and other identifying information. You may also need to file a form CA-7a (Time Analysis Form) for intermittent periods of wage loss and/or a form CA-7b (Leave Buy Back Worksheet Certification). Forms CA-7 and CA-7a may be filed electronically via ECOMP, but at this time Form CA-7b may not be filed electronically and should be submitted by your employing agency.

Submitting and Reviewing Forms

Remember that before filing a form in ECOMP, you must register and create an account. Once you have registered, you can initiate a form from your Employee Dashboard.

You must fill out each form completely and submit it for review. You may save a partially completed form and come back to it later. You may also upload and attach supporting documents to be submitted along with a FECA claim form. If your form is incomplete, it will appear in your Dashboard as 'DRAFT', and will not be processed until you complete all fields and submit the form for review.

Once you submit your form, it will be reviewed by your supervisor (we'll ask you for their email address) and then by a reviewing official within your agency. If appropriate, FECA forms will then be submitted to OWCP. If your supervisor has a question, he/she may send the form back to you. Forms sent back for your review will appear in your Dashboard as 'Returned to Filer'.

You will receive status emails during this process. You may also use the "Track Status" function to monitor the progress of your submission or check the status of your forms from your Employee Dashboard.

Which Form Should I File?

OSHA Form 301 (Injury and Illness Incident Report)
If required, you should report a workplace injury or illness to OSHA. Some agencies support filing OSHA-301 forms via ECOMP, while others don't. When you start a new form, ECOMP will tell you how to proceed.

Form CA-1 (Notice of Traumatic Injury and Claim for Continuation of Pay/Compensation)
Form CA-2 (Notice of Occupational Disease and Claim for Compensation)
File only if you are a Federal employee and wish to submit a claim to OWCP.

• Form CA-1 is used for a traumatic injury (a medical condition resulting from an incident or activity occurring during one work shift).
• Form CA-2 is for an occupational disease (a medical condition resulting from an incident or activity occurring over more than one work shift).

Form CA-7 (Claim for Compensation)
File only if you have a Case Number, and if you want to claim wage loss compensation, leave buy back or a schedule award.

How long will it take?

Registering for ECOMP: 5 minutes

Filing OSHA-301: 22 minutes

Filing a Form CA-1 or CA-2: 15 minutes

Filing a Form CA-7: 13 minutes

What Will I Need?

• An ECOMP account (you can register for an ECOMP account using your email address)
• Your government organization
• Your supervisor's email address
• For new injury/illness claims, details for the event (place, time, extent of injury, etc.)
• If available, supporting documentation, such as medical reports (have these ready in electronic format)
• If you wish to file a CA-7, you need a case number

How Do I Get Started?

Create an account and then file the appropriate claim form from your Employee Dashboard.

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