WageCalcs
Menu

Calculators

State laws

PTO payout laws by state

8 states require earned vacation to be paid when a job ends, and 35 leave it to the employer’s written policy. Pick your state for its rule, its source and what your balance is worth.

  • Payout required (8)
  • Required unless a written policy says otherwise (6)
  • Required under conditions (2)
  • Depends on employer policy (35)

Every state’s rule

State Payout when a job ends Use-it-or-lose-it Source Checked against
Alabama Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
Alaska Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
Arizona Depends on employer policy No state rule found Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 23-350 Excerpts
Arkansas Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
California Payout required Not allowed Cal. Lab. Code § 227.3 Full text
Colorado Payout required Not allowed C.R.S. §§ 8-4-101(14)(a)(III), 8-4-109(1)(a); Nieto v. Clark's Market, Inc., 2021 CO 48, 488 P.3d 1140 Full text
Connecticut Depends on employer policy No state rule found Conn. Gen. Stat. § 31-76k Full text
Delaware Depends on employer policy No state rule found Del. Code Ann. tit. 19, ch. 11 Excerpts
District of Columbia Depends on employer policy No state rule found D.C. Code §§ 32-1301(3), 32-1303 Full text
Florida Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute No statute
Georgia Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
Hawaii Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
Idaho Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
Illinois Payout required Allowed with advance notice 820 ILCS 115/5; 56 Ill. Adm. Code 300.520 Full text
Indiana Required unless a written policy says otherwise No state rule found Die & Mold, Inc. v. Western, 448 N.E.2d 44 (Ind. Ct. App. 1983) Full text
Iowa Depends on employer policy No state rule found Iowa Code § 91A.4 Excerpts
Kansas Depends on employer policy No state rule found Kan. Stat. Ann. § 44-313 et seq. Excerpts
Kentucky Depends on employer policy No state rule found Ky. Rev. Stat. § 337.010(1)(c) Full text
Louisiana Payout required Allowed La. R.S. 23:631(D); Wyatt v. Avoyelles Parish Sch. Bd., 831 So. 2d 906 (La. 2002) Full text
Maine Required under conditions No state rule found 26 M.R.S. § 626 Excerpts
Maryland Required unless a written policy says otherwise No state rule found Md. Code Ann., Lab. & Empl. § 3-505(b) Full text
Massachusetts Payout required Allowed with advance notice Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 149, § 148 Full text
Michigan Depends on employer policy Allowed Mich. Comp. Laws § 408.473 Excerpts
Minnesota Depends on employer policy No state rule found Minn. Stat. §§ 181.13, 181.14, 181.74 Excerpts
Mississippi Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute No statute
Missouri Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
Montana Payout required Not allowed 23 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 56 (Mont.); McConkey v. Flathead Elec. Coop., 2005 MT 334, 330 Mont. 48, 125 P.3d 1121 Full text
Nebraska Payout required No state rule found Neb. Rev. Stat. § 48-1229(6); Roseland v. Strategic Staff Mgmt., 272 Neb. 434, 722 N.W.2d 499 (2006) Full text
Nevada Depends on employer policy No state rule found Nev. Rev. Stat. § 608.0197 Excerpts
New Hampshire Depends on employer policy No state rule found N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 275:43(V) Full text
New Jersey Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
New Mexico Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
New York Required unless a written policy says otherwise Allowed with advance notice N.Y. Lab. Law §§ 198-c, 195(5) Full text
North Carolina Required unless a written policy says otherwise Allowed with advance notice N.C. Gen. Stat. §§ 95-25.12, 95-25.13 Excerpts
North Dakota Payout required Allowed with advance notice N.D. Cent. Code § 34-14-09.2; N.D. Admin. Code ch. 46-02-07 Full text
Ohio Depends on employer policy No state rule found Ohio Rev. Code § 4113.15 Excerpts
Oklahoma Depends on employer policy No state rule found Okla. Stat. tit. 40, § 165.1(4) Excerpts
Oregon Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Full text
Pennsylvania Depends on employer policy No state rule found Wage Payment and Collection Law, Act of July 14, 1961, P.L. 637, No. 329 Excerpts
Rhode Island Required under conditions No state rule found R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-14-4(b) Full text
South Carolina Depends on employer policy No state rule found S.C. Code Ann. § 41-10-10(2) Excerpts
South Dakota Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
Tennessee Depends on employer policy No state rule found Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-2-103 Excerpts
Texas Depends on employer policy Allowed Tex. Lab. Code § 61.001(7)(B) Excerpts
Utah Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
Vermont Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
Virginia Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Excerpts
Washington Depends on employer policy No state rule found No statute Full text
West Virginia Depends on employer policy No state rule found W. Va. Code § 21-5-1 Excerpts
Wisconsin Required unless a written policy says otherwise Allowed with advance notice Wis. Stat. ch. 109 Full text
Wyoming Required unless a written policy says otherwise No state rule found Wyo. Stat. §§ 27-4-507, 27-4-501(a)(iii) Excerpts

What the rules mean

Payout required. Earned vacation counts as wages. It must be in your final pay whether you quit or are let go, and a handbook clause generally cannot take it away.

Required unless a written policy says otherwise. Earned vacation is owed by default, but a written policy that you were told about can limit or forfeit it.

Required under conditions. The law requires payout only in set circumstances, such as after a minimum length of service or at employers above a certain size.

Depends on employer policy. No state law requires payout. If your employer’s written policy or your contract promises it, it is owed; if not, it usually is not.

Whatever the rule, the PTO payout calculator shows what your balance is worth before and after federal withholding.

How each rule was checked

Each rule was last checked on September 25, 2026 against its official source. Full text means the statute, regulation or agency page was read in full. Excerpts means it was checked against excerpts of the official source. No statute means the state has no law on the subject to cite. See how we calculate, and tell us if a rule has changed.

Questions people ask

Which states require unused PTO to be paid out?

California, Colorado, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota require earned vacation to be paid when a job ends. Indiana, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Wyoming require it unless a written policy says otherwise.

Which states ban use-it-or-lose-it vacation policies?

California, Colorado, Montana treat earned vacation as wages that cannot be taken away. Several other states allow a forfeiture rule only if employees were told about it in advance.

Does sick leave have to be paid out?

Usually not. State paid sick leave laws generally do not require payout at the end of a job. A combined PTO bank usable for any purpose is often treated like vacation, which is why some states require it to be paid.

What if my state leaves it to the employer’s policy?

In 35 states, the written policy decides. If it promises payout, the promise can usually be enforced; if it says unused time is forfeited, it usually is.

Sources

Each source was read on September 25, 2026.

  1. IRS Publication 15 (2026), Employer’s Tax Guide