When your final paycheck is due in Washington
In Washington, if you are fired or laid off, your final paycheck is due at the end of the established pay period. The same rule applies if you quit.
- Fired or laid off
- End of the established pay period
- If you quit
- Same as fired or laid off
- If the employer pays late
- Willful withholding can bring twice the wages withheld, plus costs and attorney fees.
- Filing a wage claim
- File a Workplace Rights complaint with the Washington Department of Labor and Industries (L&I).
The law
Wash. Rev. Code §§ 49.48.010, 49.52.070. Read the statute or the state agency’s page.
Checked against the statute in October 2026. Laws change, so confirm the current rule before you rely on it.
What to do next
If the deadline has passed, ask for the wages in writing first and keep a copy. The free first letter in the Wage Claim Letters kit does this. If that doesn’t work, file a wage claim with the agency listed above. The final paycheck lookup compares states side by side.
Other states
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington, D.C.
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
General information about Washington law, not legal advice, and not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Wage Claim Letters is a self-help template kit from Kits For That.