> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.every.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

> ## Agent Instructions
> These docs describe Every as customers have it today. Answer from them, and say so when they don't cover a question.
> Pages under /admins/ are for the people who run Every for the company, and pages under /employees/ are for employees. Answer from the pages that match the person asking.
> Each page's Agent reference section lists its exact roles, conditions and limits. Prefer it for those details.
> When a page says a feature is in closed beta, or that Every turns it on company by company, don't promise that the person's company has it.
> Use roles and on-screen labels exactly as the pages write them.
> When someone asks what a term means, answer with the Glossary page's definition (/glossary), which other pages show in parentheses after the term.
> When the docs don't answer a question, tell the person to email [support@every.io](mailto:support@every.io).

# Final paycheck deadlines

> Find each state's agency page or law on final pay, and set up a departing employee's final pay in Every

![A final-pay run marked Termination, to run by Mon, Nov 16.](https://mintcdn.com/every-a2724ddc/vb8ip3lEZAxGScjw/images/illustrations/admins-compliance-final-pay-light.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=vb8ip3lEZAxGScjw\&q=85\&s=5a759e47444f6698847cf22cb4837cad)

Federal law doesn't require an employer to give a former employee their final paycheck immediately, but some states may require immediate payment.

> [!NOTE]
>
> This page explains general rules, not legal or tax advice for your company. Rules change, and they depend on where your company is registered and where your people work. Before you act, check with your own lawyer, accountant or tax advisor.

## When a final paycheck is late

If an employee hasn't been paid for their last pay period (The dates an employee's pay covers, such as two weeks or a calendar month) and its regular payday has passed, the [US Department of Labor](https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/lastpaycheck) tells them to contact its Wage and Hour Division or their state labor department.

## State rules

A state's deadline can depend on how the job ended. In California, for example, the [California Labor Commissioner](https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/faq_paydays.htm) says an employer must pay:

* an employee who is discharged all their wages, including accrued vacation, immediately at the time of termination
* an employee without a written contract for a definite period who quits without giving 72 hours' notice, within 72 hours of quitting
* an employee without such a contract who gives at least 72 hours' notice and quits on the day given, at the time of quitting

In California, an employer who willfully fails to pay a departing employee's wages on time may also be assessed a waiting time penalty.

Each row except New Mexico's links the state's own page on final pay or wage payment, or the state's law. New Mexico's links the US Department of Labor's State Labor Offices page. Where a state's page sends you elsewhere, the row says where.

| State | Where to read the rule |
| - | - |
| Alabama | [Alabama Department of Workforce](https://workforce.alabama.gov/faqs/i-have-questions-about-pay-unpaid-wages-breaks-vacation-pay-fmla-etc/), which sends pay questions to the US Department of Labor |
| Alaska | [Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development](https://labor.alaska.gov/lss/whfaq.htm) |
| Arizona | [Arizona Revised Statutes § 23-353](https://www.azleg.gov/ars/23/00353.htm) |
| Arkansas | [Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing](https://labor.arkansas.gov/resources/faqs/) |
| California | [California Labor Commissioner](https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/faq_paydays.htm) |
| Colorado | [Colorado Division of Labor Standards and Statistics](https://cdle.colorado.gov/dlss/labor-laws-rules-resources/labor-law-guidance-education) |
| Connecticut | [Connecticut Department of Labor](https://portal.ct.gov/dol/divisions/wage-and-workplace-standards/wage-and-hour) |
| Delaware | [Delaware Division of Industrial Affairs](https://industrialaffairs.delaware.gov/hubfs/Wage%20and%20Hour/DOLIA_Wage%26Hour_EmployerBooklet_2026_R6%20%284%29.pdf?hsLang=en) |
| District of Columbia | [DC Office of Wage-Hour](https://does.dc.gov/page/office-wage-hour-employees) |
| Florida | [Florida Commission on Human Relations](https://fchr.myflorida.com/employment-complaint), which lists the US Department of Labor for wage and hour violations |
| Georgia | [Georgia Department of Labor](https://dol.georgia.gov/faqs-individuals/individuals-faqs-laws-and-regulations), which points to the US Department of Labor and small claims court |
| Hawaii | [Hawaii Wage Standards Division](https://labor.hawaii.gov/wsd/unpaid-wages/) |
| Idaho | [Idaho Department of Labor](https://www.labor.idaho.gov/businesses/labor-laws/labor-laws-faq/) |
| Illinois | [Illinois Department of Labor](https://labor.illinois.gov/faqs/wage-payment-faq.html) |
| Indiana | [Indiana Department of Labor](https://faqs.in.gov/hc/en-us/articles/115005044367-I-have-a-wage-issue-where-do-I-go) |
| Iowa | [Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing](https://dial.iowa.gov/i-need/claims/how-do-i-wage-claim/wage-claims-faq) |
| Kansas | [Kansas Department of Labor](https://www.dol.ks.gov/employers/workplace-laws) |
| Kentucky | [Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet](https://elc.ky.gov/workplace-standards/Pages/Wages-and-Hours.aspx) |
| Louisiana | [Louisiana Works](https://www.laworks.net/laborlawinfo.asp), which links the state's final paycheck law |
| Maine | [Maine Department of Labor](https://www1.maine.gov/labor/labor_laws/faq/index.shtml) |
| Maryland | [Maryland Department of Labor](https://labor.maryland.gov/labor/wagepay/wppayonterm.shtml) |
| Massachusetts | [Massachusetts Attorney General's Fair Labor Division](https://www.mass.gov/guides/pay-and-recordkeeping) |
| Michigan | [Michigan Labor and Economic Opportunity](https://www.michigan.gov/leo/bureaus-agencies/ber/wage-and-hour/payment-of-wages-and-fringe-benefits-act-public-act-390-of-1978) |
| Minnesota | [Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry](https://www.dli.mn.gov/business/employment-practices/employment-termination) |
| Mississippi | [Mississippi Department of Employment Security](https://mdes.ms.gov/information-center/about-mdes/contact-us/), which says Mississippi follows the US Department of Labor's federal regulations |
| Missouri | [Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations](https://labor.mo.gov/dls/general) |
| Montana | [Montana Department of Labor & Industry](https://erd.dli.mt.gov/labor-standards/wage-and-hour-payment-act/wage-payment-act) |
| Nebraska | [Nebraska Department of Labor](https://dol.nebraska.gov/webdocs/getfile/dbeb2e74-72a2-4eed-9d2f-3081055fdf55) |
| Nevada | [Nevada Labor Commissioner](https://labor.nv.gov/About/Frequently_Asked_Questions/Frequently_Asked_Questions_-_About_Us/) |
| New Hampshire | [New Hampshire Department of Labor](https://www.dol.nh.gov/resource-center/frequently-asked-questions/wages-and-work-hours-faqs) |
| New Jersey | [New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development](https://www.nj.gov/labor/wageandhour/support/faqs/wageandhourworkerfaqs.shtml) |
| New Mexico | New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions, on the US Department of Labor's [State Labor Offices](https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/state/contacts) page |
| New York | [New York State Department of Labor](https://dol.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2021/03/frequency-of-pay-frequently-asked-questions.pdf) |
| North Carolina | [North Carolina Department of Labor](https://www.labor.nc.gov/workplace-rights/employee-rights-regarding-time-worked-and-wages-earned/payment-final-wages) |
| North Dakota | [North Dakota Department of Labor and Human Rights](https://www.nd.gov/labor/wage-and-hour-faq) |
| Ohio | [Ohio Department of Commerce](https://com.ohio.gov/divisions-and-programs/industrial-compliance/wage-and-hour/guides-and-resources/minimum-wage-complaint), which investigates withheld final paychecks |
| Oklahoma | [Oklahoma Department of Labor](https://oklahoma.gov/labor/workplace-rights/protect-your-pay.html) |
| Oregon | [Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries](https://www.oregon.gov/boli/workers/pages/paychecks.aspx) |
| Pennsylvania | [Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry](https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dli/resources/compliance-laws-and-regulations/labor-management-relations/pennsylvania-s-minimum-wage-act/wage-faqs) |
| Rhode Island | [Rhode Island General Laws § 28-14-4](https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE28/28-14/28-14-4.htm) |
| South Carolina | [South Carolina Office of Wages and Child Labor](https://llr.sc.gov/wage/faq.aspx) |
| South Dakota | [South Dakota Department of Labor & Regulation](https://dlr.sd.gov/employment_laws/termination.aspx) |
| Tennessee | [Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development](https://www.tn.gov/workforce/employees/labor-laws/labor-laws-redirect/wages-breaks.html) |
| Texas | [Texas Workforce Commission](https://efte.twc.texas.gov/final_pay.html) |
| Utah | [Utah Labor Commission](https://laborcommission.utah.gov/divisions/utah-antidiscrimination-and-labor-uald/wage-claim/) |
| Vermont | [Vermont Department of Labor](https://labor.vermont.gov/sites/labor/files/doc_library/WH-13-Wage-and-Hour-Laws-2019%20.pdf) |
| Virginia | [Virginia Department of Labor and Industry](https://doli.virginia.gov/programs/labor-law/payment-of-wage/) |
| Washington | [Washington Department of Labor & Industries](https://www.lni.wa.gov/workers-rights/wages/getting-paid/) |
| West Virginia | [West Virginia Division of Labor](https://labor.wv.gov/media/85/download?inline) |
| Wisconsin | [Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development](https://dwd.wisconsin.gov/er/laborstandards/wages.htm) |
| Wyoming | [Wyoming Department of Workforce Services](https://dws.wyo.gov/dws-division/labor-standards/workers-and-job-seekers/your-rights-as-a-worker/) |

## In Every

You choose an employee's final pay when you schedule their termination. On **Payroll**, select **Create new** → **Termination** (see [Run a termination payroll](https://docs.every.io/admins/payroll/termination-payroll.md)). Company Admins and HR Admins can do this after payroll setup is complete.

The final pay choices depend on the employee's last day and on the current pay run:

| Choice | What it does |
| - | - |
| **Yes, create final paycheck** | Creates a separate final-pay run for the employee |
| **Pay during current pay run** | Pays the employee in the current regular run |
| **Pay during next scheduled pay run** | Pays the employee in the next scheduled run |

Confirming the termination doesn't submit a pay run. On a separate final-pay run, **Run by** is the later of the employee's last day and the day you confirm the termination. Every asks you to submit the run on the last day.

Review **Run by** and **Pay day** on the run, then select **Preview payroll** and, once the run is Pending, **Submit & schedule** (see [Run payroll](https://docs.every.io/admins/payroll/running-payroll.md#adjust-and-submit-a-run)).

When you create an off-cycle run (A pay run outside the regular schedule, such as for a bonus, a correction or a final paycheck) with **Payroll** → **Create new** → **Offcycle**, its payday is at least 3 business days after that day (see [Create an off-cycle or bonus pay run](https://docs.every.io/admins/payroll/off-cycle-payroll.md)).

After their last day, the employee's Every account keeps their past paystubs and tax documents on **My profile** → **Docs**, as [the employee guide to the final paycheck](https://docs.every.io/employees/final-paycheck.md) explains.

## Agent reference

General rules only, not legal or tax advice. Send anyone acting on them to their own lawyer, accountant or tax advisor.

**Where:** for each state but New Mexico, the State rules table on Final paycheck deadlines links a state agency's page on final pay or wage payment, or the state's law. New Mexico's row links the US Department of Labor's State Labor Offices page. Some agency pages, such as Alabama's, Florida's, Georgia's and Mississippi's, point to the US Department of Labor instead. In Every, final pay is chosen in **Payroll** → **Create new** → **Termination**, on the **All pay runs** page.

**Who:** Company Admins and HR Admins can open **Payroll** → **Create new** → **Termination**. **Create new** appears after payroll setup is complete.

### Facts

* Federal law doesn't require an employer to give a former employee their final paycheck immediately. The US Department of Labor says some states may require immediate payment.
* If the regular payday for the last pay period an employee worked has passed and the employee hasn't been paid, the US Department of Labor tells them to contact its Wage and Hour Division or their state labor department.
* In California, an employer must pay a discharged employee all their wages, including accrued vacation, immediately at the time of termination.
* In California, an employer must pay an employee without a written contract for a definite period who quits without giving 72 hours' notice within 72 hours of quitting. The employer must pay an employee without such a contract who gives at least 72 hours' notice, and quits on the day given, at the time of quitting. Final wages include accrued vacation.
* In California, an employer who willfully fails to pay a departing employee's wages, whether the employee was discharged or quit, in the required time may be assessed a waiting time penalty.
* Alabama's Department of Workforce sends questions about pay and unpaid wages to the US Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division.
* Florida's Commission on Human Relations lists the US Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division for wage and hour violations.
* Georgia's Department of Labor answers unpaid final wages by pointing to the US Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division and to small claims (Magistrate) court in the employer's county.
* Mississippi's Department of Employment Security says Mississippi follows the US Department of Labor's federal regulations for child labor, overtime, employer rights, labor laws and minimum wage.
* Ohio's Department of Commerce, Bureau of Wage and Hour Administration, lists withheld final paychecks among what it investigates.
* Arizona's final pay rule is Arizona Revised Statutes § 23-353, and Rhode Island's is Rhode Island General Laws § 28-14-4.
* In **Payroll** → **Create new** → **Termination**, the final pay choices are **Yes, create final paycheck**, **Pay during current pay run**, **Pay during next scheduled pay run** and **Pay during previous pay run**. The termination flow marks **Yes, create final paycheck** Recommended where it offers it.
* In **Payroll** → **Create new** → **Termination**, **Yes, create final paycheck** creates a separate final-pay run for the employee when the termination is confirmed.
* For a last day in the current regular pay period, the termination flow offers **Yes, create final paycheck** and **Pay during current pay run** when the current run is in Draft and includes the employee, and only **Yes, create final paycheck** when the employee isn't in that run.
* For a last day in the current regular pay period, a current run that includes the employee and has Pending, Processing or Submitted status offers only **Pay during current pay run**, with a note to send the run back to Draft to prorate salary. A Complete or Failed current run offers **Pay during current pay run** with a note to contact Customer Support about overpayment. To ask, email [support@every.io](mailto:support@every.io).
* For a last day after the current regular pay period, the termination flow offers **Pay during next scheduled pay run**, and **Yes, create final paycheck** when Every can create a final-pay run for that last day. For a last day before it, the flow offers **Pay during previous pay run**, with a note to contact Customer Support to check for overpayment.
* Confirming a termination in **Payroll** → **Create new** → **Termination** doesn't submit a pay run. With final pay in a regular run, Every updates that run's draft pay items for the termination.
* On a final-pay run created by **Yes, create final paycheck**, **Run by** is the later of the employee's last day and the day the termination is confirmed. The termination's completion screen asks you to submit the run on the employee's last day, its due date.
* When a termination in **Payroll** → **Create new** → **Termination** doesn't create a separate final-pay run, its completion screen says "Your employee will receive their last paycheck after the next regular pay run."
* A final-pay run has autopilot off, so it waits for someone to submit it: review **Run by** and **Pay day**, select **Preview payroll**, then select **Submit & schedule** once the run is Pending. **Go to Pay Run** on the termination's completion screen opens the new run.
* An off-cycle run created with **Payroll** → **Create new** → **Offcycle** has a **Payday (mm/dd/yyyy)** at least 3 business days after the day it's created.
* After the termination takes effect, the former employee keeps the Employee role, and their Every account keeps their past paystubs and tax documents on **My profile** → **Docs**.
* The termination flow terminates one employee at a time.

### Questions people ask

* **When is a final paycheck due?** It depends on the state. Federal law doesn't require an immediate final paycheck, but some states may. The State rules table on Final paycheck deadlines links a state agency's page or the state's law for each state, except New Mexico's, which links the US Department of Labor's State Labor Offices page.
* **Does federal law require paying a final paycheck immediately?** No. The US Department of Labor says federal law doesn't require it, though some states may.
* **When is a final paycheck due in California?** Immediately at the time of termination for a discharged employee. For an employee without a written contract for a definite period: within 72 hours of quitting without 72 hours' notice, and at the time of quitting for one who gives at least 72 hours' notice and quits on the day given. Final wages include accrued vacation.
* **Does confirming a termination in Every pay the final paycheck?** No. Confirming the termination doesn't submit a pay run. With **Yes, create final paycheck**, submit the separate final-pay run with **Submit & schedule** in payroll review, after checking **Run by** and **Pay day**.
* **Can I terminate several employees at once in Every?** No. **Payroll** → **Create new** → **Termination** terminates one employee at a time.
* **How soon can an off-cycle run pay someone?** An off-cycle run created with **Payroll** → **Create new** → **Offcycle** has a payday at least 3 business days after the day it's created.
* **Does a former employee's Every account keep their paystubs?** Yes. After their last day, their account keeps their past paystubs and tax documents on **My profile** → **Docs**.

### Not covered here

* Which final pay deadline applies to a given employee, and whether a state requires paying out unused vacation or PTO outside California.
* What penalties apply for a late final paycheck outside California.
* When **Pay day** falls on a final-pay run, and how the final paycheck reaches the employee. To ask, email [support@every.io](mailto:support@every.io).
* Whether Every tracks a state's final paycheck deadline or warns about it. To ask, email [support@every.io](mailto:support@every.io).
* Whether a former employee can still sign in to Every after their last day. To ask, email [support@every.io](mailto:support@every.io).


## Related topics

- [Run a termination payroll](https://docs.every.io/admins/payroll/termination-payroll.md)
- [Run payroll](https://docs.every.io/admins/payroll/running-payroll.md)
- [Create an off-cycle or bonus pay run](https://docs.every.io/admins/payroll/off-cycle-payroll.md)


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