Pay Stub Requirements By State (2024)

Does federal law require employers to provide pay stubs?

The federal law in question here is the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) — which governs minimum wage, overtime, child labor, and record keeping laws for private-sector businesses.

What are the state-mandated pay stub requirements?

Below are factors that drive pay stub requirements at the state level:

States with no pay stub laws
States that require access to pay stubs, either electronically or by paper. If electronically provided, employees must be able to easily access or print their pay stubs.
States that require written or printed pay stubs.
States that require electronic opt-out. Employees must be given the opportunity to receive their pay stubs in paper format even if the employer prefers to deliver them electronically.
States that require electronic opt-in. Employees must opt-in to get their pay stubs electronically.

States with no pay stub laws

Alabama
Arkansas
Florida
Georgia
Louisiana
Mississippi
Ohio
South Dakota
Tennessee

States that require access to pay stubs

Alaska
Arizona
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Kansas
Kentucky
Maryland
Michigan
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
North Dakota
New Jersey
New York
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
Utah
Virginia
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming

States that require written or printed pay stubs

California
Colorado
Connecticut
Iowa
Maine
Massachusetts
New Mexico
North Carolina
Texas
Vermont
Washington

States that allow employees to opt-out of receiving electronic pay stubs

Delaware
Minnesota
Oregon

State that require employees to opt-in to receive electronic pay stubs

Hawaii

As you can see, most states have pay stub requirements. But keep in mind, the information that should go on the pay stub varies by state. Below are 5 examples.

Alaska

Pay period starting and ending dates
Rate of pay
Gross wages (or salary)
Straight-time hours
Overtime hours
Payroll taxes plus any other mandatory deductions
Voluntary deductions (meaning those the employee authorized)
Net pay

California

Pay period dates covered
Gross wages
Number of hours worked (does not apply to salaried-exempt employees)
Piece-rate units earned and piece rate payment, if applicable
All mandatory and voluntary deductions
Net wages
Employee name
Last 4 digits of the employee’s Social Security number or an employee identification number
The employer’s legal name and address

Massachusetts

Employer name
Employee name
Payment date
Number of hours worked during the covered pay period
Hourly pay rate
All wage deductions and increases made within the pay period

Minnesota

Employee name
Hourly pay rate, if applicable
Total number of hours worked during the pay period, unless the employee is exempt
Total gross pay
A list of the deductions taken out of the employee’s gross pay
Net pay
Pay period ending date
The employer’s legal name, and their operating name if different from their legal name

New York

Employee name
Employer name, address, and phone number
Pay period dates covered
Number of regular and overtime hours worked
Pay rates (regular and overtime)
Gross wages
All deductions from gross wages
Itemized credits or allowances applied against wages
Net wages

You’ll notice that some states are more detailed than others in what should go on the pay stub. This is why it’s very important that you check your state’s pay stub requirements. Note that some states do not go into detail at all. They only briefly state the requirements. For example, North Carolina’s statute simply says, “Furnish each employee with an itemized statement of deductions made from that employee's wages under G.S. 95-25.8 for each pay period such deductions are made.” Oklahoma’s statute says, “With each payment of wages earned by such employee, the employer shall issue to such employee a brief itemized statement of any and all deductions therefrom.”

What are the best practices for generating pay stubs?

Put all of the information required by state law on the employee’s pay stub.
If your state’s requirements aren’t exhaustive enough, fill in the gaps.
Provide just enough information for the employee to decipher how you arrived at their take-home pay.
Do not crowd the pay stub with irrelevant information, as this will likely make it harder for them to understand the statement.
Include information that will help you meet the FLSA’s record keeping requirements — such as hours worked each day, hourly rate, deductions from wages, and total wages paid each pay period.
Keep your pay stub design simple and easy to read. This is not the place for flashy graphics.
Consider making a glossary of pay stub terms available to your employees. For example, give brief descriptions for abbreviations like FIT, FICA, Med, SS, SIT, YTD, and for phrases like “Voluntary Deductions,” “Employer Contributions,” “Pretax Deductions,” “After-Tax Deductions,” and “Net Pay.” This can help improve employees’ knowledge of their paychecks.
Use payroll software that automatically generates pay stubs based on the employee’s payroll data for the covered pay period.

What are the penalties for not complying with pay stub laws?

States can impose penalties on employers who violate pay stub requirements. For example, in California, failure to provide pay stubs is considered a misdemeanor. It also comes with a civil penalty of $50 for the first violation against the employee. The penalty increases to $100 for each subsequent violation, up to a maximum of $4,000 (per employee). In New York, employers who fail to provide pay stubs may be liable for damages of up to $250 per day, per employee, unless they paid their employees as required by law. If the employee files a civil lawsuit, then the maximum damages are $5,000 per employee. All things considered, it’s best to provide pay stubs even if you’re not legally required to.