Pay stub requirements in West Virginia
Calculated
West Virginia pairs a narrow statement duty with an unusually precise payday rule. Section 21-5-9 requires an employer to furnish each employee with an itemized statement of the deductions made from wages for each pay period in which deductions are made, and to give written notice at hiring of the rate of pay and the day, hour and place of payment. Section 21-5-3 then says the employer must settle with its employees at least twice every month with no more than nineteen days between settlements. The state minimum wage of eight dollars seventy five cents only reaches employers with six or more employees at one location.
- Pay stub required
- An itemized statement of deductions each pay period
- Electronic delivery
- Not addressed for the statement itself
- Minimum wage 2026
- $8.75/hour, at sites with six or more employees
- Pay frequency
- Twice a month, no more than nineteen days apart
01 — The law
What West Virginia law requires
An itemized statement of deductions, pay period by pay period
Every person, firm and corporation shall furnish each employee with an itemized statement of deductions made from his wages for each pay period such deductions are made. The section says nothing about gross pay, hours or net pay, so the statutory statement is a deductions list rather than a full earnings record.
West Virginia Code 21-5-9 - Notification, posting and records →Written notice at hiring, and before anything changes
An employer must notify employees in writing at the time of hiring of the rate of pay and of the day, hour and place of payment, and must notify them in writing or by a posted notice of any change to those arrangements before it takes effect. Employment practices and policies on vacation pay, sick leave and comparable matters must also be made available in writing or on a posted notice.
West Virginia Code 21-5-9 - Notification, posting and records →Settle twice a month, and never more than nineteen days apart
Every person, firm or corporation doing business in the state, other than railroad companies, shall settle with its employees at least twice every month with no more than nineteen days between settlements, unless a special agreement provides otherwise. The nineteen day ceiling stops a nominally semimonthly schedule from stretching across an awkward calendar.
West Virginia Code 21-5-3 - Payment of wages by employers other than railroads →Payroll cards carry a disclosure duty and free withdrawals
An employer compensating employees with payroll cards must provide full written disclosure of any applicable fees, must ensure the employee can make at least one withdrawal or transfer per pay period without cost for any amount on the card, and must ensure in network withdrawals or transfers are free. Where an employee never identifies an account for deposit, the employer may pay by payroll card instead.
West Virginia Code 21-5-3 - Payment of wages by employers other than railroads →An assignment of future wages expires after a year
No assignment of or order for future wages is valid for a period exceeding one year from its date. It must be in writing, must state the total amount due on its face, and is invalid unless the employer written acceptance is endorsed on it. Three quarters of the periodical earnings of the assignor are at all times exempt from such an assignment.
West Virginia Code 21-5-3 - Payment of wages by employers other than railroads →Eight dollars seventy five cents, with a training wage below it
Every employer shall pay each employee wages at a rate not less than eight dollars seventy five cents per hour after 31 December 2015, and the rate rises automatically if the federal minimum ever exceeds it. An employer may pay a subminimum training wage of six dollars forty cents to an employee first hired after 31 December 2014, but not to anyone who reaches the age of twenty and not for more than ninety days in total.
West Virginia Code 21-5C-2 - Minimum wages →The wage law only reaches sites with six or more employees
For the purposes of the minimum wage and maximum hours article, an employer is one who employs during any calendar week six or more employees in any one separate, distinct and permanent location or business establishment. A five person shop in West Virginia therefore falls outside the state rate entirely and is left to the federal act.
West Virginia Code 21-5C-1 - Definitions →
02 — Local rates
Local rates above the West Virginia minimum
No city or county rate above the West Virginia minimum is listed here. Where one exists it is set by a local ordinance, so an employer in a city with its own should check that ordinance before relying on the state figure.
03 — What we calculate
What this generator calculates for West Virginia
| Withholding line | Source | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Federal income tax | irs.gov | Calculated |
| Social Security | ssa.gov | Calculated |
| Medicare | ssa.gov | Calculated |
| WV state income tax | tax.wv.gov | Calculated |
State withholding for West 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.
See the West Virginia withholding tables and work out take-home pay →04 — Questions
Frequently asked questions
- Does West Virginia require a pay stub?
- It requires an itemized statement of the deductions made from your wages, for each pay period in which deductions were taken. The statute stops there: gross pay, hours worked and net pay are not part of the duty, though most employers show them because federal recordkeeping makes the figures necessary anyway.
- How often does West Virginia require employers to pay?
- At least twice every month, with no more than nineteen days between settlements unless a special agreement says otherwise. Railroad companies are carved out and governed by their own section. The nineteen day cap is the part that bites, because it prevents a semimonthly schedule drifting on long months.
- What is the West Virginia minimum wage in 2026?
- Eight dollars seventy five cents an hour, in force since the end of 2015, and it rises automatically only if the federal minimum wage passes it. Employees first hired after 31 December 2014 who are under twenty may be paid a training wage of six dollars forty cents for up to ninety days.
- Does the West Virginia minimum wage apply to small employers?
- Not to the smallest ones. The article defines an employer as someone employing six or more employees during a calendar week in any one separate, distinct and permanent location or business establishment. Below that headcount at a site, the state rate does not apply and only the federal act is left.
- What must my West Virginia employer tell me when I am hired?
- In writing, the rate of pay and the day, hour and place of payment. Any later change to those arrangements has to be notified in writing or by a posted notice before it takes effect, and the employer must also make its policies on vacation pay, sick leave and comparable matters available in writing or on a notice.
- Can my West Virginia employer pay me on a payroll card?
- Yes, with conditions. It must disclose in writing any fees that apply to the card, must ensure you can withdraw or transfer the full amount on the card at least once per pay period at no cost, and must ensure in network withdrawals are free. Cards are also the fallback where an employee never nominates an account for deposit.
Sources
- West Virginia Code 21-5-9 - Notification, posting and records
- West Virginia Code 21-5-3 - Payment of wages by employers other than railroads
- West Virginia Code 21-5C-2 - Minimum wages
- West Virginia Code 21-5C-1 - Definitions
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.