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District of Columbia 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.
If you are discharged, your wages must be paid not later than the working day after the discharge. If you were responsible for the employer's money, the employer may take up to 4 days to verify your accounts before paying (D.C. Code § 32-1303(1)).
If you resign, wages are due on the next regular payday or within 7 days of resigning, whichever comes first (§ 32-1303(2)).
District law treats vacation pay as wages once the right to it has been earned; a policy that forfeits accrued time at separation has to be one that applied while the time was accruing.
Commissions earned before separation are wages under § 32-1303 and follow the same next-working-day and next-payday deadlines.
D.C. Code § 32-1303(4): liquidated damages of 10% of the unpaid wages for each working day the failure continues after the due date, or treble the unpaid wages, whichever is smaller. Ten working days of delay already reaches the treble ceiling.
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 D.C. Department of Employment Services — Office of Wage and Hour Compliance, which handles wage claims administratively, usually at no cost. The alternative is small claims court, where the limit for an individual in the District of Columbia is $10,000. 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.
If you are discharged, your wages must be paid not later than the working day after the discharge. If you were responsible for the employer's money, the employer may take up to 4 days to verify your accounts before paying (D.C. Code § 32-1303(1)).
If you resign, wages are due on the next regular payday or within 7 days of resigning, whichever comes first (§ 32-1303(2)).
District law treats vacation pay as wages once the right to it has been earned; a policy that forfeits accrued time at separation has to be one that applied while the time was accruing.
Two routes: file a wage claim with the D.C. Department of Employment Services — Office of Wage and Hour Compliance (https://does.dc.gov/service/wage-hour-compliance), or sue in small claims court where an individual's claim limit is $10,000. 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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