Your Rights at Work: Getting Paid

When your pay is due in New Hampshire, your final paycheck, what your employer may take out of your pay, minimum wage, overtime and meal breaks, and how to file a wage claim with the Department of Labor.

Checked against its sources October 12, 2026.

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APA: Granite Record. (n.d.). Your Rights at Work: Getting Paid. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://graniterecord.org/guides/wage-rights
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BibTeX: @misc{guides-wage-rights, title = {Your Rights at Work: Getting Paid}, howpublished = {Granite Record}, url = {https://graniterecord.org/guides/wage-rights}, note = {Accessed 2 Nov. 2026} }

At a Glance

In New Hampshire your employer must tell you your rate of pay when you are hired and pay you on regular paydays set in advance. If you are fired, all your wages are due within 72 hours; if you quit or are laid off, by the next regular payday. Your employer may take money out of your pay only as the law requires or you agree in writing. If you are not paid what you earned, you can file a wage claim with the New Hampshire Department of Labor, and your employer may not punish you for it.

Were you paid everything you earned, on time?
- YesKeep your pay statements: they list what was taken out of each paycheck.
- NoFile a wage claim with the Department of Labor, within 36 months.
Did your job end?
- You were firedYour wages are due in full within 72 hours.
- You quit or were laid offYour wages are due by the next regular payday.
Your employer may not fire or punish you for filing a claim, or for asking about or discussing wages.

Step by Step

Your rights to your pay

Know when you must be paid
Your employer must pay all the wages you have earned on regular paydays set in advance, at no cost to you: within 8 days after the end of the work week if you are paid weekly, or within 15 days if you are paid every two weeks. The Department of Labor may allow some employers to pay less often, but never less than once a month.
When you are hired, your employer must tell you your rate of pay and the day and place you will be paid, and must tell you before either changes.
The law: RSA 275:43, RSA 275:49
Your last paycheck
- If you are fired, your employer must pay all your wages within 72 hours.
- If you quit, by the next regular payday. If you gave at least one pay period’s notice, within 72 hours.
- If you are laid off, or your work stops because of a labor dispute, by the next regular payday.
An employer that willfully, and without good cause, pays late owes you extra, as liquidated damages: 10 percent of the unpaid wages for each day the pay is late, not counting Sundays and legal holidays, up to the amount of the unpaid wages.
The law: RSA 275:44
What may be taken out of your pay
Your employer may hold back part of your wages only when a state or federal law requires or allows it, such as payroll taxes, or when you have agreed in writing to a deduction for a lawful purpose that benefits you, such as union dues, health insurance, retirement contributions, a charity, or anything else you agree to that gives your employer no financial advantage. A deduction you agree to for some other purpose may not be used to pay for things you need to do your job.
Each pay period that something is taken out, your employer must give you a statement of the deductions.
The law: RSA 275:48, RSA 275:49
Minimum wage, overtime and meal breaks
Minimum wage. New Hampshire’s minimum wage is the federal minimum wage.
Overtime. Unless your job is exempt, you must be paid time and one-half your regular rate for every hour over 40 hours in a work week. Federal law requires it of the employers the Fair Labor Standards Act covers; New Hampshire’s law requires it of most other employers.
Meal breaks. Your employer may not make you work more than 5 consecutive hours without a half-hour break to eat, unless you can eat while you work and your employer lets you.
Overtime pay (U.S. Department of Labor)
The law: RSA 279:21, RSA 275:30-a

If your employer breaks the law

File a wage claim
You can file a wage claim with the New Hampshire Department of Labor, no later than 36 months after the wages were due. The Department sends a copy to your employer, who has 20 days to object; if it does not, the Department may order it to pay. Either side can ask for a hearing, and the Department decides in writing within 30 days after it. A decision can be appealed to the superior court within 20 days.
You can also sue for unpaid wages in court, yourself or through a representative, and the court may order your employer to pay your costs and reasonable attorney’s fees.
File your claim online with the Department’s wage claim form. Its office answers at 603-271-3176, Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM; mail and hearings stay at 95 Pleasant Street, Spaulding Building, in Concord.
File a wage claim online (Department of Labor)New Hampshire Department of Labor
The law: RSA 275:51, RSA 275:53
Your employer may not punish you for it
An employer may not fire you, or treat you differently in any other way, because you filed a complaint or a claim, took part in an investigation or hearing about your pay, or asked about, talked about or shared what you or a coworker are paid.
It is also illegal to pay someone less than a coworker for equal work because of their sex. Your employer must post a notice saying so, with how to reach the Department of Labor.
The law: RSA 275:38-a, RSA 275:37, RSA 275:49

Common Questions

How can I be paid?

You can be paid in cash, by a check you can cash near work, by direct deposit you have agreed to in writing, or on a payroll card with at least one free way to take out your whole balance each pay period. An employer that pays electronically must also offer you a paper check.

Do vacation pay and other benefits count as wages?

Your employer’s rules on vacation pay, sick leave and other benefits must be given to you in writing or posted where you can see them. Vacation, holiday and sick pay, severance and work expenses that are your employer’s practice or policy count as wages when they are due.

Can my last paycheck be mailed to me?

If you quit or are laid off, you can ask for the last paycheck to be mailed to you.

Can a tipped worker be paid less than the minimum wage?

A tipped worker in a restaurant or hotel who regularly gets tips may be paid a lower base rate by the employer, but if base pay and tips together come to less than the minimum wage for all the hours worked in a pay period, the employer must pay the difference.

Does the minimum wage cover every job?

The law exempts some work, such as farm and household labor, and lets some young and new workers be paid less.

Who Can Help

The New Hampshire Department of Labor enforces the state’s wage laws and takes wage claims. The U.S. Department of Labor’s overtime page explains the federal overtime rule. For advice about your own situation, a lawyer can help:

The New Hampshire Bar Association’s Lawyer Referral Service refers you to a lawyer who handles your kind of problem, for an administrative fee. Call 603-229-0002, weekdays 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM, or ask online.

Lawyer Referral Service