Pay stub requirements in Maryland

What Maryland law requires

• Eight items on the stub for each pay period

  For each pay period the employer gives a written statement, on the physical pay stub or the online pay statement, showing the employer’s name registered with the State, address and telephone number; the date of payment and the beginning and ending dates of the pay period; the hours worked unless the employee is exempt from overtime; the rates of pay; gross and net pay; the amount and name of all deductions; a list of additional bases of pay such as bonuses or commissions; and, for piece work, the applicable piece rates and the number of pieces completed at each.

  Source

• Written notice at hiring, and before anything changes

  At the time of hiring the employer gives written notice of the rate of pay, the regular paydays it sets, and leave benefits. Any change in a payday or a wage requires notice at least one pay period in advance, although the section does not stop an employer from raising a wage without advance notice.

  Source

• The state publishes a free pay stub template

  The Commissioner of Labor and Industry is required to create and make available to employers, at no charge, a pay stub template that may be used to comply with § 3-504. That is unusual: most states describe the required fields and leave the format entirely to the employer.

  Source

• No Social Security numbers on wage payments

  An employer may not print, or cause to be printed, an employee’s Social Security number on the wage payment check, on an attachment to that check, on a notice of direct deposit, or on a notice of credit to a debit card or card account. The prohibition covers governmental units as employers as well.

  Source

• Pay at least every two weeks or twice a month

  Each employer sets regular pay periods and pays every employee at least once in every two weeks or twice in each month; administrative, executive and professional employees may be paid less frequently. Where a regular payday falls on a nonworkday, payment moves to the preceding workday.

  Source

• $15.00 statewide, whatever the employer’s size

  Since January 1, 2024 the State minimum wage rate has been $15.00 per hour for every employer, ending the earlier split between small employers of fourteen or fewer employees and everyone else. An employer may pay 85 percent of the State minimum wage to an employee under the age of eighteen.

  Source

Local rates above the Maryland minimum

• Montgomery County

  Montgomery County adjusts its rate every July 1 by the Washington-Arlington CPI-W. From July 1, 2026 it is $18.00 per hour at employers with 51 or more employees, $16.50 at employers with 11 to 50, and $15.95 at employers with 10 or fewer.

  Source

• Howard County

  Howard County phased in its own schedule under Council Bill 82-2021. Larger employers reached $16.00 per hour on January 1, 2025; smaller employers moved to $15.50 on January 1, 2026 and to $16.00 on July 1, 2026, after which the rate follows CPI-U from January 2027.

  Source

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• Md. Code, Labor and Employment § 3-504 — Notice and pay stub requirements
• Md. Code, Labor and Employment § 3-502 — Payment of wage
• Md. Code, Labor and Employment § 3-413 — Minimum wage rate
• Montgomery County Office of Human Rights — Minimum wage increase
• Howard County — Minimum wage increase

Wage and hour law changes. Check the linked source before relying on any figure here, and treat this page as a starting point rather than legal advice.

Nearby states

• Virginia
• West Virginia
• Pennsylvania
• Delaware
• District of Columbia
• Alabama