Maryland

$15.00 / hour

All Maryland employers must pay at least $15.00 per hour; in 2026 Montgomery County requires $18.00 for 51 or more employees, $16.50 for 11-50 and $15.95 for 10 or fewer, Howard County requires $16.00, and Prince George's County requires $15.30.

Effective

2026-07-01

Checked

2026-08-10

1.5%

Most Maryland employees must be paid 1.5 times their usual hourly wage for hours worked over 40 in a 7-day week; agricultural workers generally receive overtime after 60 hours.

Checked

2026-08-10

A signed agreement declaring that a worker is an independent contractor is not, by itself, enough to establish that status; the economic reality of the work relationship determines whether the worker is economically dependent on the employer.

Checked

2026-08-10

Each employer must set regular pay periods and pay each employee at least once every 2 weeks or twice each month; an administrative, executive or professional employee may be paid less frequently, and a payday falling on a nonworkday moves to the preceding workday.

Checked

2026-08-10

When employment ends, the employer must pay all wages due on or before the day the employee would have been paid had employment not ended; accrued leave need not be paid if a written policy limits compensation, the employee was notified at hire, and the policy states unused leave is not paid.

Checked

2026-08-10

For pay periods beginning on or after October 1, 2024, a private employer with at least one employee must provide each payday a written or online statement showing employer identity and contact details, payment and period dates, nonexempt hours, all rates and additional pay bases, gross and net pay, and each deduction's amount and description.

Effective

2024-10-01

Checked

2026-08-10

An employer may deduct wages only when ordered by a competent court, expressly authorized in writing by the employee, allowed by the Commissioner because the employee received full consideration, or otherwise made in accordance with law or regulation.

Checked

2026-08-10

Wages must be paid in U.S. currency or a face-value-convertible check; direct deposit may be used with employee authorization, and a debit card or card account may be used only with authorization and written disclosure of applicable fees in at least 12-point font.

Checked

2026-08-10

15%

A covered retail employer with 50 or more retail employees in Maryland must provide a paid 15-minute break for shifts over 4 through 6 hours, a 30-minute nonworking break for shifts over 6 hours, and for shifts over 8 hours a 30-minute break plus a paid 15-minute break for each additional 4 consecutive hours or fraction thereof.

Checked

2026-08-10

If an employee is required to work or be on hand, the employer must pay for that time as hours worked, subject to the wage-and-hour exemptions and rules described by the Department.

Checked

2026-08-10

No general predictive scheduling requirement for private employers was located in MD's official sources as of 2026-08-13. This records the result of a documented search of 2 official sources, not a statement that no such law exists. Federal requirements continue to apply where applicable.

Checked

2026-08-13

No general expense reimbursement requirement for private employers was located in MD's official sources as of 2026-08-13. This records the result of a documented search of 2 official sources, not a statement that no such law exists. Federal requirements continue to apply where applicable.

Checked

2026-08-13

A commission agreement is enforceable, but when the employee completed all required services and the final transaction occurs after termination, the commission must be paid; a clause imposing unconditional forfeiture solely because employment ended is unenforceable in that circumstance.

Checked

2026-08-10

For a lump-sum distribution of an annual bonus, Maryland withholding uses the combined state-and-local percentage specified in the annual employer guide for the applicable local-tax-rate group.

Effective

2026-01-01

Checked

2026-08-10

No general severance requirement for private employers was located in MD's official sources as of 2026-08-13. This records the result of a documented search of 2 official sources, not a statement that no such law exists. Federal requirements continue to apply where applicable.

Checked

2026-08-13

No general holiday premium pay requirement for private employers was located in MD's official sources as of 2026-08-13. This records the result of a documented search of 2 official sources, not a statement that no such law exists. Federal requirements continue to apply where applicable.

Checked

2026-08-13

Maryland prevailing-wage law applies to public work, including school construction, with a contract value of at least $250,000 when the State is the contracting body and contributes any funding, or a political subdivision is the contracting body and at least 25% of construction funds are State money.

Checked

2026-08-10

1%

Employees earn 1 hour of sick and safe leave for every 30 hours worked; employers with 15 or more employees provide paid leave and employers with fewer than 15 employees provide unpaid leave.

Effective

2018-02-11

Checked

2026-08-10

No official source has been recorded for this topic yet. The federal baseline applies until a rule is confirmed; nothing here asserts that the jurisdiction lacks its own rule.

No source recorded

6%

An eligible employee of a covered employer is entitled to 6 workweeks of unpaid parental leave in a 12-month period for birth, adoption or foster placement; employers with 15 or more employees also must permit use of earned paid leave for specified family illness or bereavement, and separate adoption and deployment-leave rules apply.

Checked

2026-08-10

4.75%

Maryland employer withholding combines state tax with the applicable local tax; for 2026 the state individual rates are graduated and Maryland law does not permit less than 4.75% for withholding-tax purposes.

Effective

2026-01-01

Checked

2026-08-10

An employer must obtain Maryland Form MW507 from each employee at or before hiring; if an employee does not provide a withholding certificate, the employer must withhold using one exemption.

Checked

2026-08-10

Maryland's 2026 withholding guide assigns a combined state-and-local withholding percentage to a lump-sum annual bonus based on the employee's applicable local income-tax rate.

Effective

2026-01-01

Checked

2026-08-10

Residents of the District of Columbia, Pennsylvania and Virginia who do not maintain a place of abode in Maryland for more than 183 days may claim exemption from Maryland withholding; West Virginia residents may claim exemption regardless of time spent in Maryland, using Form MW507.

Checked

2026-08-10

Maryland employers calculate withholding by combining state income tax with local income tax using the employee's county of residence or Baltimore City; 2026 local rates range from 2.25% to 3.30% according to locality.

Effective

2026-01-01

Checked

2026-08-10

0.3% · wage base $8,500

For 2026, Maryland contributory unemployment-insurance rates range from 0.30% to 7.50% under Table A, and tax applies to the first $8,500 of wages paid to each employee in the calendar year.

Effective

2026-01-01

Checked

2026-08-10

No general disability insurance requirement for private employers was located in MD's official sources as of 2026-08-13. This records the result of a documented search of one official source, not a statement that no such law exists. Federal requirements continue to apply where applicable.

Checked

2026-08-13

Each employer shall secure compensation for all covered employees by maintaining insurance with an authorized insurer, participating in an approved governmental or private self-insurance group, or maintaining approved individual self-insurance.

Checked

2026-08-10

For Maryland withholding, annual filing applies when expected annual tax is under $250, quarterly filing when tax is under $700 per quarter, monthly filing after liability exceeds $700 in a quarter, and accelerated remittance applies when prior-year withholding was at least $15,000 and accumulated withholding reaches $700, due within 3 business days after payroll.

Effective

2026-01-01

Checked

2026-08-10

As long as a Maryland unemployment-insurance account remains open, the employer must file contribution reports each calendar quarter even when no wages were paid; a no-wage quarter is reported as zero.

Checked

2026-08-10

Employers must file Maryland Form MW508 and required W-2 wage-and-tax data by January 31 following the tax year; Maryland state and local income tax withheld are combined in Form W-2 box 17.

Checked

2026-08-10

Employers covered by Maryland unemployment law must report new employees, rehires and recalled employees to the Maryland New Hire Registry within 20 days after the employee's first day of work.

Checked

2026-08-10

75%

For an ordinary wage attachment, the exempt amount is the greater of 75% of disposable wages or 30 times the Maryland minimum hourly wage multiplied by the number of weeks in which the wages were earned; deducted medical-insurance payments are also exempt.

Checked

2026-08-10

An employer may not discriminate between employees by paying a wage to employees of one sex or gender identity at a rate less than employees of another sex or gender identity for comparable work, or by providing less favorable employment opportunities based on sex or gender identity, subject to statutory exceptions.

Checked

2026-08-10

For postings made on or after October 1, 2024 for work physically performed at least partly in Maryland, an employer must disclose a good-faith minimum and maximum wage range, a general description of benefits and any other compensation offered; compliance records must be kept for at least 3 years after filling or posting the position.

Effective

2024-10-01

Checked

2026-08-10

An employer may not seek or rely on an applicant's wage history in screening or setting wages; after an initial offer with compensation, voluntarily provided history may be used or confirmed only to support a higher offer that does not create an unlawful pay differential.

Checked

2026-08-10

2%

An employee paid less than the wage required by Maryland wage-and-hour law may recover the shortfall, an additional equal amount as liquidated damages, reasonable counsel fees and costs; a court may reduce liquidated damages only when the employer proves good faith and reasonable belief.

Checked

2026-08-10

Employers must post the applicable Maryland labor notices in a conspicuous workplace location; the MOSH safety-and-health poster is required, and unemployment-covered employers must display the employee-rights and health-insurance-coverage notices received at registration.

Checked

2026-08-10

30%

Maryland work permits are required for minors under 18 and generally are not issued below age 14; minors 14-15 are limited to 3 hours on a school day and 18 in a school week, while all covered minors may not work more than 5 consecutive hours without a 30-minute nonworking period.

Checked

2026-08-10

No general e verify requirement for private employers was located in MD's official sources as of 2026-08-13. This records the result of a documented search of 2 official sources, not a statement that no such law exists. Federal requirements continue to apply where applicable.

Checked

2026-08-13

Maryland employers must register for an unemployment-insurance account, and the Combined Registration Application used for Maryland tax and unemployment accounts should be submitted no later than 20 days after the first day of business.

Checked

2026-08-10

An employer shall keep a record of an employee's name, address and occupation, rate of pay, amount paid, and hours worked each day and workweek for at least 3 years.

Checked

2026-08-10

1.5%

Maryland unemployment-insurance interest is 1.5% per month on unpaid balances.

Effective

2026-01-01

Checked

2026-08-10

A court action for unpaid wages under the Maryland Wage and Hour Law or Wage Payment and Collection Law typically must be filed within 3 years.

Checked

2026-08-10