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Unused PTO in Ohio: must it be paid out?

Ohio does not require payout of unused vacation unless the employer's written policy or an employment contract promises it.

The practical question is not whether your employer has a policy — most do — but whether that policy actually forfeits earned time, and whether it was communicated before you earned it.

Statute
Ohio Rev. Code § 4113.15; § 4113.99
If fired
Ohio sets no separate deadline for a discharge. Wages must be paid on the employer's regularly scheduled payday, and most employers must pay at least twice a month (Ohio Rev. Code § 4113.15(A)) — so the final check is due on the next regular payday.
If you resigned
Same rule on resignation: the final wages are due on the next regularly scheduled payday, not on the day you leave.
Late-pay penalty
Ohio Rev. Code § 4113.15(B): if wages stay unpaid for 30 days beyond the regularly scheduled payday, the employer is liable for liquidated damages equal to 6% of the amount still unpaid or $200, whichever is greater — but only for amounts not in good-faith dispute.
PTO
Ohio does not require payout of unused vacation unless the employer's written policy or an employment contract promises it.
Small claims limit
$6,000 for an individual
Last verified
2026-11-03 single source

What to put in the file before you write anything

  1. Your accrual balance on the last day of work, from the payroll system rather than from memory.
  2. The policy in force during your employment, with its effective date — a policy adopted after you accrued time is a weaker defence for the employer.
  3. Whether the policy says "use it or lose it", caps accrual, or is silent. Silence usually favours the employee.
  4. The payout rate: accrued hours are normally paid at your final rate of pay, not at an older, lower rate.

What the letter does that a phone call cannot

A demand letter fixes three things at once: the amount, the date each item was due, and the date the employer was on notice. Every forum that can help you — the Ohio Department of Commerce — Bureau of Wage & Hour Administration, a small claims judge — starts from those three facts. The letter is built from Ohio Rev. Code § 4113.15; § 4113.99 and your own figures, so the deadline it states is the one that applies to your separation, not a generic thirty days.

If the amount fits inside $6,000, small claims court is usually faster than an agency queue; if it does not, the agency route and a demand first is the cheaper path.

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Questions

Does Ohio law require vacation payout?

Ohio does not require payout of unused vacation unless the employer's written policy or an employment contract promises it.

Can my employer retroactively cancel my PTO balance in Ohio?

A forfeiture has to come from a policy that applied while the time was being earned. A policy introduced at separation, or applied only to departing employees, is the weakest version of the argument and is worth challenging in writing.

Other situations in Ohio

being fired · resigning · a layoff · unpaid commissions · all Ohio rules

Reviewed 2026-11-03 against the sources listed on the Ohio page. This is a self-help document tool, not legal advice, and no outcome is guaranteed.