Final paycheck laws by state: when your last wages are due

Being let go and quitting are two different clocks

Almost every state with a final pay law writes separate rules for an employee the employer lets go and for one who resigns. The logic is simple: an employer who decides to end a job can prepare the check, while a resignation can come without warning. That is why the strictest rules apply to discharge. In California, Colorado, Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana and Nevada, the final wages are due on the day the job ends when the employer makes the decision, with narrow exceptions written into some of those laws. At the other end of the fixed windows, Texas allows 6 days: an employee let go on November 13, 2026 must be paid by November 19, 2026. For resignations, the next regular payday is the most common rule, and a handful of states reward notice by moving the deadline earlier.

Layoffs, reductions and the end of a contract

A layoff is treated as a discharge in most final pay laws: the employer chose to end the job, so the stricter clock applies, even when the separation is described as temporary or comes with a promise of recall. Montana's labor agency, for example, writes that wages are due immediately when an employee is laid off or discharged. The end of a fixed-term contract or a seasonal job usually follows the same rule. If you are unsure which category your departure falls into, look at who made the decision and when it was announced, then compare the two columns of the table below.

What the final check must include

The last paycheck covers every hour worked up to the end, at your regular rate and with overtime for hours past the weekly limit. Earned commissions and nondiscretionary bonuses already calculable are wages too, although their timing may follow the commission plan. Accrued vacation is owed with the final wages where state law treats it as wages, which is the case in California, Colorado, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota and Rhode Island, and elsewhere when the employer's policy promises it; the PTO payout guide sorts each state. Employers may deduct the usual taxes and the deductions you authorized in writing, but many states forbid keeping wages to cover unreturned equipment or a cash shortage without a signed authorization, and under the federal "free and clear" rule no deduction made for the employer's benefit may cut into the minimum wage or overtime owed.

Paying by check, direct deposit or pay card

The method usually follows your normal pay arrangement. If you were paid by direct deposit, the final wages can arrive the same way on the due date. Some states require the employer to mail the check if you ask, or to hold it at the workplace, and a few let the employee choose. An employer cannot delay a final paycheck because you have not returned a laptop, signed a separation agreement or completed an exit interview; those are separate matters. Severance, if offered, comes under the terms of the agreement, while the wages you have already earned are due by the state deadline whatever you decide about it, as the severance guide explains.

When the final paycheck is late

Start with a written request to payroll or human resources that names your last day and the amount you expect. If the deadline passes, file a wage claim with the state labor agency, which investigates without a fee, or with the Wage and Hour Division when the problem is unpaid minimum wage or overtime. Several states add waiting-time penalties: the employer owes extra pay for each day the final wages are late. The agency for your state is listed on its state page. When large sums or a contract dispute are involved, an employment lawyer can look at your documents.