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Texas sets its own deadline, its own penalty, and its own rule on unused vacation. Here is what the statute says, what it is worth to you, and where to file if the money never arrives.
Final pay is due within six (6) calendar days of the last day of work (Texas Payday Law, Tex. Lab. Code § 61.014). If the sixth day falls on a day the business is normally closed, payment is due the next regular workday.
If you quit or resign, final pay is due on the next regularly scheduled payday after your last day. If you gave notice, the employer may end your employment immediately and does not owe wages for the notice period.
Unused vacation, holiday, sick leave and severance are owed only if the employer's written policy or agreement provides for them (TWC guidance).
Bonuses and commission-based wages are due in the timely manner set by the agreement between you and the employer; if the plan sets a payment date, that date controls.
The Texas Payday Law does not add a waiting-time penalty that is payable to the employee. The remedy is a wage claim filed with the Texas Workforce Commission, which can order the employer to pay the wages found due and can penalise the employer administratively.
This state does not impose a separate statutory penalty for late final pay. Treat that number as leverage in the letter, not as a promise: a court or agency decides what is actually owed, and the penalty provisions usually require the employer to have acted wilfully or without good cause.
File with the Texas Workforce Commission — Labor Law Section, which handles wage claims administratively, usually at no cost. The alternative is small claims court, where the limit for an individual in Texas is $20,000. Both routes go better with a dated written demand and a certified-mail receipt, because the first question either forum asks is when the employer knew.
Final pay is due within six (6) calendar days of the last day of work (Texas Payday Law, Tex. Lab. Code § 61.014). If the sixth day falls on a day the business is normally closed, payment is due the next regular workday.
If you quit or resign, final pay is due on the next regularly scheduled payday after your last day. If you gave notice, the employer may end your employment immediately and does not owe wages for the notice period.
Unused vacation, holiday, sick leave and severance are owed only if the employer's written policy or agreement provides for them (TWC guidance).
Two routes: file a wage claim with the Texas Workforce Commission — Labor Law Section (https://www.twc.texas.gov/programs/wage-and-hour/texas-payday-law), or sue in small claims court where an individual's claim limit is $20,000. A dated written demand sent first is what makes either route easier, because it fixes the date the employer was on notice.
Only official sources are used: the state labor agency, the statute itself, and where relevant the U.S. Department of Labor. Third-party summary sites are deliberately excluded because they disagree with each other on penalty formulas.
Reviewed 2026-11-03 · reviewed again every 90 days.
being fired · resigning · a layoff · unused PTO · unpaid commissions
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