Vermont: Employee Expense Reimbursement Requirements
The short answer
Vermont has no general statute requiring reimbursement of every necessary business expense. An employer may not require an employee or applicant to pay for a medical examination that is a condition of employment, and minimum-wage law restricts deductions for required apparel.
Ask Ezel about your situation
This is the general rule in Vermont. Ezel applies current Vermont law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law and coverage | No general necessary-expense mandate; 21 V.S.A. § 301 covers condition-of-employment exams for employers with 1+ service providers, while §§ 383 and 385 apply apparel rules to 2+ employers and covered employees |
|---|---|
| Reimbursable expense standard | No general expense standard; employer cannot require payment of a condition-of-employment medical exam, and cannot deduct required-apparel care, cleaning, or maintenance (§§ 301, 385(4)) |
| Authorization, direction, and primary benefit | Medical-exam rule turns on the exam being a condition of employment; required-apparel purchase deduction needs express written employee authorization; no general primary-benefit or ratification test |
| Excluded losses and employee fault | No general loss/fault schedule; § 301 also protects applicants, while § 385's apparel protections are limited by the minimum-wage subchapter's coverage and exclusions |
| Request deadline and documentation | No general reimbursement request, receipt, itemization, certification, or submission deadline; express written authorization is required for a required-apparel purchase deduction |
| Employer policy, preapproval, and caps | Apparel deduction cannot reduce remuneration below minimum wage, include administrative fees, or violate a CBA; no general expense-policy, preapproval, cap, de minimis, or waiver framework |
| Payment deadline, method, and interest | Medical-exam cost cannot be shifted and apparel deductions are restricted, but the cited sections state no after-the-fact reimbursement clock, payment method, advance/stipend rule, or interest |
| Enforcement and remedies | Medical-exam violation carries up to $100 per violation (§ 303); Labor Commissioner enforces § 385, while §§ 394-395 penalties/double-wage remedy apply when pay falls below the applicable wage rate, not as a general expense formula |
Compare this rule across all 50 states + DC →
Vermont uses narrow cost rules, not a general indemnity
Current Title 21 does not state a general rule requiring every employer to
repay all necessary or reasonable business expenses. It instead assigns or
restricts particular costs.
Under 21 V.S.A. § 301, an employer may not require an employee or applicant to
pay for a medical examination that is a condition of employment. The rule's
definition in 21 V.S.A. § 302 reaches an employer, including a governmental
body, with at least one individual performing services in Vermont. Section 303
provides a civil penalty up to $100 for each violation.
The required-apparel rule is different. It sits in the minimum-wage subchapter.
21 V.S.A. § 383(2)-(3) begins employer coverage at two employees and lists
excluded employee categories. Under 21 V.S.A. § 385(4), no payroll deduction
may be made for required-apparel care, cleaning, or maintenance.
The purchase cost is not absolutely employer-paid under that section. A
required-apparel deduction needs the employee's express written authorization.
Even then, it cannot reduce total remuneration below the minimum wage, include
administrative fees or charges, or conflict with a collective bargaining
agreement.
No general claim form or payment clock
The cited provisions state no general reimbursement request deadline, receipt
rule, itemization, certification, or substitute for missing documentation. The
written-authorization requirement applies to a required-apparel purchase
deduction; it is not a statewide expense-claim procedure.
The medical-exam rule directly prohibits shifting the cost as a condition of
employment. The apparel rule controls payroll deductions. Neither creates a
general after-the-fact payment deadline, required payment method, mileage rate,
stipend formula, or interest rule.
Remedies depend on which narrow rule applies
The medical-exam subchapter supplies its own penalty: up to $100 for each
violation under 21 V.S.A. § 303.
For the minimum-wage subchapter, 21 V.S.A. § 385(1) authorizes the Commissioner
of Labor to enforce and administer the chapter. If an apparel deduction causes
pay to fall below the applicable wage rate, § 394(a) permits a civil penalty up
to $100 for each underpaid day, and § 395 allows the employee to recover the
stated double-minimum-wage measure, costs, and reasonable attorney's fees. Those
sections do not create a general damages formula for mileage, travel, phones,
tools, supplies, home-office costs, or every apparel dispute.
What trips people up
Required apparel is not one simple employer-paid rule. Care, cleaning, and
maintenance cannot be deducted. A purchase deduction is possible only with
express written authorization and the three statutory safeguards.
The coverage rules differ. The medical-exam rule uses a one-or-more service-
provider definition and includes governmental bodies. The minimum-wage apparel
rule begins at two employees and excludes the employee categories listed in
§ 383(2).
Common questions
Must a Vermont employer pay for a required medical exam?
Yes. If the medical examination is a condition of employment, § 301 prohibits
requiring the employee or applicant to pay its cost.
Can an employer deduct required-uniform cleaning costs?
No deduction may be made for the care, cleaning, or maintenance of required
apparel under § 385(4), for employees covered by that subchapter.
Does Vermont require reimbursement of ordinary mileage or remote-work costs?
No general private-sector mileage, phone, home-office, or all-necessary-expense
formula appears in the official Title 21 provisions reviewed for this topic.
Statutes and sources
- 21 V.S.A. §§ 301-303. Employer-paid condition-of-employment medical exam,
coverage definitions, and civil penalty. Official § 301
(accessed July 14, 2026). - 21 V.S.A. §§ 383 and 385. Minimum-wage-subchapter coverage and required-
apparel deduction rules. Official § 385
(accessed July 14, 2026). - 21 V.S.A. §§ 394-395. Under-minimum penalties and civil action. Official
§ 395
(accessed July 14, 2026).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
Get the answer for your situation
You just read how Vermont handles this in general. Ezel applies current Vermont law to your facts and answers your specific question, with citations.
Opens in Ezel Pro. Every answer cites the authority it relies on.