Pay stub requirements in Maine

01 — The law

What Maine law requires

1. 01

   Four named items with every payment of wages

   Every employer subject to the subchapter shall furnish to each employee with each payment of wages a statement that clearly shows the date of the pay period, the hours, total earnings and itemized deductions. The same subsection requires a true and accurate record of the hours worked by each employee and of the wages paid, preserved by the employer for a period of at least three years.

   Maine Revised Statutes 26 MRSA 665 - Powers and duties of commissioner →
2. 02

   Direct deposit does not remove the statement

   An employer making payment by direct deposit or other means of electronic transfer shall provide each employee with an accurate record of the transfer, including the date of the pay period, the hours, total earnings and itemized deductions, at the time the transfer is made. Where that record is provided in an electronic format the employer must supply a method by which the employee can have ready access to the information and print it without cost.

   Maine Revised Statutes 26 MRSA 665 - Powers and duties of commissioner →
3. 03

   Sixteen days between payments, eight days of lag

   At regular intervals not to exceed 16 days, every employer must pay in full all wages earned by each employee, and each payment must include all wages earned to within 8 days of the payment date. Wages must be paid on an established day or date at regular intervals made known to the employee, and the interval may not be increased without written notice at least 30 days in advance.

   Maine Revised Statutes 26 MRSA 621-A - Timely and full payment of wages →
4. 04

   An indexed floor, with two cities running their own

   Section 664 raises the minimum wage each 1 January by the increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers for the Northeast Region, rounded to the nearest five cents, and lifts it to any higher federal rate. The Department of Labor puts the 2026 figure at $15.10 an hour with a maximum tip credit of $7.55, and names Portland and Rockland as municipalities running local minimum wage ordinances of their own.

   Maine Department of Labor - Minimum Wage FAQ →
5. 05

   What an employer may not make you hand back

   No one may be required or permitted, as a condition of securing or retaining employment, to work without monetary compensation or to return part of it. Debt here means a benefit to the employee, and expressly excludes cash shortages, inventory shortages, dishonoured cheques and cards, damage to the property of the employer, and uniforms, protective equipment or tools of the trade that primarily serve the employer.

   Maine Revised Statutes 26 MRSA 629 - Unfair agreements →

02 — Local rates

Local rates above the Maine minimum

• Portland

  Portland runs its own minimum wage under Chapter 33 of the city code. It is $16.75 an hour from January 1, 2026, with a direct wage of $8.38 for service employees, and while an emergency order is in effect the city rate is one and a half times those figures.

  City of Portland - Minimum Wage →

• Rockland

  Rockland sets its own minimum wage at $16.00 an hour from January 1, 2026. A service employee, meaning one who regularly receives more than $191 a month in tips, is paid a direct wage of at least $8.00 an hour, and the employer makes up the difference wherever the tips fall short of the full rate.

  City of Rockland - Minimum Wage Notice →

03 — What we calculate

What this generator calculates for Maine

State withholding for Maine is calculated from the 2026 figures the state publishes, and our test suite holds those figures against the state's own published calculation rather than against arithmetic of ours.

04 — Questions

Frequently asked questions

Does Maine require a pay stub?

Yes. With each payment of wages the employer must furnish a statement that clearly shows the date of the pay period, the hours, total earnings and itemized deductions. The duty sits in the same subsection that makes the employer keep hours and wage records for three years, so the paperwork you get and the paperwork the state can inspect are described together.

Can my Maine employer give me an electronic pay stub?

Yes, with two strings attached. If the record comes in an electronic format the employer must provide a method by which you can have ready access to the information and print it without cost to you. The same four items are required whether you are paid by cheque or by electronic transfer, and with a transfer the record is due when the transfer is made.

What is the Maine minimum wage in 2026?

Fifteen dollars ten cents an hour from 1 January 2026. The rate is indexed each January to the Northeast Region CPI-W and rounded to the nearest five cents, which lifted it from $14.65 in 2025. The maximum tip credit is $7.55, leaving a direct service wage of $7.55 before tips. Portland and Rockland run higher local ordinances of their own.

How often does Maine require wages to be paid?

At regular intervals of no more than sixteen days, with each payment covering everything earned to within eight days of the payment date. The payday has to be an established day made known to you in advance, and an employer that wants to lengthen the interval owes you written notice at least thirty days before the change takes effect.

Can my Maine employer deduct a cash shortage from my pay?

No. Section 629 lets an employer recover a genuine loan, debt or advance, but it defines debt as a benefit to the employee and then rules out the usual candidates by name: cash shortages, inventory shortages, dishonoured cheques or credit cards, damage to property, and merchandise a customer bought. Uniforms and tools of the trade sit on the same excluded list.