Pay stub requirements in Virginia

01 — The law

What Virginia law requires

1. 01

   A written statement on each regular pay date

   On every regular pay date the employer provides a written statement, by paystub or online accounting, showing the name and address of the employer, the number of hours worked in the pay period, the rate of pay, the gross wages earned and the amount and purpose of any deductions. Employers in agriculture, agribusiness and forestry owe the statement only on the employee’s request.

   Code of Virginia § 40.1-29 (time and medium of payment; statement of earnings) →
2. 02

   The stub has to show its own arithmetic

   The statute is explicit that the paystub or online accounting "shall include sufficient information to enable the employee to determine how the gross and net pay were calculated". A stub that lists a net figure without the components behind it does not satisfy the section. Employers keep those records for at least three years from the date of the work performed.

   Code of Virginia § 40.1-29 (time and medium of payment; statement of earnings) →
3. 03

   Hourly employees at least every two weeks

   Every employer sets regular pay periods and rates. Salaried employees are paid at least once each month; employees on an hourly rate at least every two weeks or twice each month. Work-study students and employees whose weekly wages exceed 150 percent of the average weekly wage of the Commonwealth may agree to monthly pay. On termination, wages are due on the date they would have been paid had employment continued.

   Code of Virginia § 40.1-29 (time and medium of payment; statement of earnings) →
4. 04

   Unpaid wages cost more than the wages

   An employer that fails to pay wages owes all wages due plus an equal amount as liquidated damages plus eight percent annual interest from the date the wages were due. A knowing failure adds a civil penalty of up to $1,000 per violation. Willful non-payment is a Class 1 misdemeanor below $10,000 and a Class 6 felony at $10,000 or more, or on a second conviction.

   Code of Virginia § 40.1-29 (time and medium of payment; statement of earnings) →
5. 05

   $12.77 in 2026, then a legislated climb

   The Virginia Minimum Wage Act fixes $12.77 per hour from January 1, 2026 until January 1, 2027, then $13.75 for 2027 and $15.00 for 2028, after which the Commissioner sets a CPI-adjusted rate each year. The 2026 figure came from adding the 2.9 percent CPI-U increase to the 2025 rate of $12.41.

   Code of Virginia § 40.1-28.10 (minimum wages) →

02 — Local rates

Local rates above the Virginia minimum

03 — What we calculate

What this generator calculates for Virginia

State withholding for Virginia 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

Is an online payroll portal enough in Virginia, or do I need paper?

An online accounting satisfies § 40.1-29 on its own terms; the statute names "a paystub or online accounting" as equivalent ways of delivering the written statement. What matters is that the statement carries the required fields and enough detail to reconstruct the calculation.

Does my Virginia pay stub have to show the hours I worked?

It does if you are paid by the hour, and also if you are salaried at less than the standard salary level that the U.S. Department of Labor uses for the overtime exemption. Above that salary level the hours line may be left off, but everything else on the list still applies.

How long does my employer keep my Virginia pay stubs?

At least three years following the date of the work performed. That is the employer’s obligation rather than yours, but it is the reason a request for old statements is a reasonable one to make even a couple of years after leaving a job.

What happens if a Virginia employer simply does not pay?

Beyond the wages themselves, the employer is liable for an equal amount in liquidated damages and eight percent interest from the due date. Knowing failures draw a civil penalty of up to $1,000 per violation, and willful non-payment is criminal, rising to a felony at $10,000 or on a repeat conviction.

Why is Virginia’s minimum wage $12.77 and not a round number?

Because it is calculated rather than chosen. The Department of Labor and Industry added the 2.9 percent annual CPI-U increase to the 2025 rate of $12.41 and rounded, which produced $12.77 for 2026. The statute then takes over with fixed steps of $13.75 in 2027 and $15.00 in 2028.