Final paycheck laws by state

The federal rule

The Fair Labor Standards Act does not require employers to give a departing employee their final paycheck right away. In practice, the state you work in sets the clock. For the general process, from calculating hours to paying out PTO, see our final paycheck rules guide.

To total hours with breaks and overtime, use our time card calculator.

State-by-state table

The table covers the states whose rules we could confirm on an official state source (a statute, a regulation or a labor department page) retrieved on November 8, 2026. “Discharge” includes layoffs unless the row says otherwise. Many rules have exceptions for commissions, union contracts, seasonal work or a missing address, so follow the source link before you rely on a row.

States not in the table

We left a state out when its official page did not state a final-pay deadline in the text we could retrieve, or when the source could not be reached. That includes larger states such as New York, Illinois, Texas, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Georgia and Utah, as well as Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Virginia and Wyoming. Leaving a state out does not mean it has no rule. Check with the state labor department, or see our state labor law guides.

What counts as final wages

Final wages generally include all regular and overtime pay earned through the last day worked. Commissions and bonuses that have been earned are usually included too, though some states set separate timing for them. Whether you must pay out unused vacation or PTO depends on the state and on your written policy:

• California, Nebraska and Louisiana treat earned vacation as wages that must be paid at separation, according to the sources in the table.
• Maryland requires payout unless a written policy communicated at hiring says unused leave is forfeited.
• Connecticut requires payout only if your policy or a union contract provides for it. Rhode Island requires it for employees with at least one year of service.
• Washington treats vacation as a voluntary benefit and leaves payout to the employer.

Our PTO payout calculator and the PTO payout glossary entry explain the math.

Penalties for paying late

Several states add waiting-time or late-payment penalties. California can require up to 30 days of wages for a willful delay, Oregon has a similar penalty, Kansas adds 1% of the unpaid wages per day after the eighth day, and Delaware adds 10% per day up to the unpaid amount. These penalties can quickly exceed the paycheck itself, which is why most employers treat the final check as a priority.

Getting final pay right

1. Know which state’s rule applies: usually the state where the employee works.
2. Close the timecard on the last day and get manager approval the same day.
3. Add earned overtime, commissions and any PTO your state or policy requires.
4. Decide whether you need an off-cycle check to meet the deadline.
5. Keep a record of the separation date, the final hours and the date and method of payment.

Accurate final pay depends on clean time records. EZTime records hours through the time clock, lets managers correct timecards with an audit trail, and exports approved hours to PDF or Excel so payroll can run the final check without waiting for paper timesheets.

Three questions to check your understanding

Tap an answer to see whether you are right, with a short explanation.

Frequently asked questions

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