Final Paycheck Deadlines in Oregon
At a glance
| Governing law | ORS 652.140 sets the deadline; § 652.150 sets the penalty wage; § 652.200 provides mandatory attorney's fees in a wage-collection lawsuit |
|---|---|
| Deadline if fired or laid off | By the end of the first business day after a discharge or a termination by mutual agreement (§ 652.140(1)) |
| Deadline if the employee quits | Immediately, on the last day, if the employee gave at least 48 hours' advance notice of quitting (excluding weekends/holidays); otherwise within 5 days (excluding weekends/holidays) or the next regular payday, whichever occurs FIRST: with a special estimate-then-true-up rule for employees on time-record-based pay (§ 652.140(2)) |
| Unused vacation/PTO payout required? | No independent statutory payout floor; vacation/PTO is owed at separation when the employer's policy or agreement provides for it (§ 652.140(6)). HB 4094 (2026), which would have placed policy-promised PTO on the final-wage schedule, died in committee |
| How final pay must be delivered | Employer must mail final wages to any address the employee designates on request, or may deposit them by direct deposit if the employee has agreed to it (§ 652.140(4)); if the separation itself falls on a weekend or holiday, payment is due by the end of the first business day after that (§ 652.140(3)) |
| Penalty for a late or unpaid final check | For willful nonpayment, 8 hours' pay per day at the regular hourly rate until payment or suit, at most 30 days (§ 652.150(1)). The penalty generally cannot exceed 100% of unpaid wages without proper written notice, or if the employer pays in full within 12 days after receiving notice (§ 652.150(2)). The 100% cap does not apply to a prior final-wage violation within one year or a same-day group termination (§ 652.150(4)). Financial inability when wages accrued is a defense (§ 652.150(5)) |
| How to enforce it | A wage claim filed with the Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) or a private civil lawsuit; a court must award the employee reasonable attorney's fees if wages remain unpaid more than 48 hours after becoming due, unless the employee willfully violated the employment contract or the employee's attorney unreasonably skipped giving the employer written notice before suing (§ 652.200(2)) |
| Exceptions and special rules | Seasonal farmworkers are generally due wages immediately, subject to a noon-the-next-day exception for qualifying end-of-harvest farmworker camps and a separate 48-hour-or-next-payday rule for a worker who quits without 48 hours' notice (§ 652.145); a business sale can carry over accrued leave to the new employer without triggering an immediate payout if the purchaser credits the same leave at an equal or better rate (§ 652.140(6)); motor-vehicle and farm-implement sales commissions follow their own due-date and reduced-penalty rules when the disputed amount is small (§ 652.150(3)) |
Requirements one by one
Governing law
ORS 652.140 sets Oregon's final-wage deadlines. § 652.150 sets the penalty for a willful violation. § 652.200 makes attorney's fees mandatory for the employee in most wage-collection lawsuits.
Deadline if fired or laid off
By the end of the first business day after the discharge or a mutually agreed termination. If you're fired on a Friday, the check is due by the end of the day Monday.
Deadline if the employee quits
This depends entirely on notice. Give your employer at least 48 hours' advance notice (not counting weekends or holidays) of your intent to quit, and all earned wages are due immediately on your last day. Without that notice, the employer has until 5 business days after you quit or the next regular payday, whichever comes first. If your pay depends on submitting time records, the employer instead pays an estimate within 5 days, then true-up wages within 5 days after you turn in your records.
Unused vacation/PTO payout required?
No, not on its own. Vacation or PTO is payable at separation when an employer's policy or agreement provides for it. HB 4094 (2026) would have required payment of policy-promised PTO on the final-wage schedule; it died in committee.
How final pay must be delivered
On request, the employer must mail the final paycheck to any address the employee designates. Direct deposit is allowed if the employee has agreed to it. If the separation itself falls on a weekend or holiday, the deadline shifts to the end of the first business day after that (a second business day for certain state or county fair-related employment).
Penalty for a late or unpaid final check
A willful violation triggers a penalty wage, 8 hours' pay per day at the employee's regular hourly rate, running until paid or until a lawsuit is filed, capped at 30 days. The penalty is generally capped at 100% of unpaid wages if no valid written notice is sent or if the employer pays in full within 12 days after receiving notice. That cap disappears if the employer violated the final-wage law in the preceding year or terminated another employee on the same day (ORS 652.150(2), (4)). An employer can avoid the penalty by showing financial inability to pay when the wages accrued.
How to enforce it
An employee can file a wage claim with the Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) or bring a private lawsuit. Courts must award the employee reasonable attorney's fees if the wages stayed unpaid more than 48 hours past their due date, unless the employee willfully broke the employment contract or their attorney skipped giving the employer written notice of the claim before suing.
Exceptions and special rules
Seasonal farmworkers generally receive final wages immediately. A qualifying end-of-harvest farmworker camp may pay by noon the next day while providing free, compliant housing. A seasonal farmworker who quits without 48 hours' notice instead must be paid within 48 hours after quitting or on the next regular payday, whichever comes first (ORS 652.145). When a business is sold, the new owner can carry over an employee's accrued leave instead of paying it out immediately, as long as the new owner credits the same leave and honors it at an equal or better rate. Motor-vehicle and farm-implement sales commissions follow their own due-date and reduced-penalty rules when a dispute involves a small percentage of the claimed amount.
What trips people up
A written nonpayment notice must state an estimated amount owed or enough facts to estimate it. An empty demand will not lift the 100% penalty cap unless the employer violated one of the separate wage-record statutes listed in ORS 652.150(2)(c).
Common questions
How fast do I get my final paycheck if I'm fired in Oregon? By the end of the next business day.
Does giving notice before I quit get me paid faster? Yes. At least 48 hours' notice means you're paid immediately on your last day; less notice (or none) means the employer has until 5 business days after you quit or the next regular payday, whichever comes first.
Do I get paid for unused vacation when I leave? Only if your employer's policy or agreement provides for it. A 2026 bill to place policy-promised PTO on the final-wage schedule died in committee.
Statutes and sources
- ORS 652.140(1)-(4): the discharge and quit deadlines, weekend/holiday extension, and delivery rules — see quotes above. — https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors652.html (accessed 2026-10-06)
- ORS 652.140(6): the business-sale leave-carryover exception — see quote above. — https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors652.html (accessed 2026-10-06)
- ORS 652.145: the seasonal-farmworker special rule — see quote above. — https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors652.html (accessed 2026-10-06)
- ORS 652.150(1)-(2), (4)-(5): the penalty-wage formula, notice and repeat-violation rules, and financial-inability defense — see quotes above. — https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors652.html (accessed 2026-10-06)
- ORS 652.200(2): the mandatory attorney's-fees rule in a wage-collection lawsuit — see quote above. — https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors652.html (accessed 2026-10-06)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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