Final Paycheck Deadline in Michigan

The Michigan rule

Michigan is a one-deadline state: the manner of leaving does not change the date. The date that matters is the employer's regular payday schedule, which the worker should confirm in writing at separation — the next payday after the last day worked is the deadline, and a payday that falls the day after separation makes the deadline the day after separation.

The claim clocks that actually decide cases

The pay deadline is rarely the dispute in Michigan; the complaint deadline is. The Wage and Hour Division's complaint page states the clocks plainly:

A worker owed a final paycheck who waits 13 months has lost the agency route for the unpaid-wages complaint even though the pay deadline itself was a single payday. File the complaint within 12 months of when the wages were due, with pay statements and hours records attached. The Division charges nothing and does not guarantee payment. The federal FLSA clock — two years, three if willful — runs alongside and does not extend the state 12-month clock.

Deductions and the final check

Michigan's wage-payment rules govern what may be deducted from the final check and what counts as wages due, including fringe benefits. The complaint form is the vehicle for disputing both the timing and the amount: a final check that arrives on time but short, or with an unlawful deduction, is complained about on the same form and the same 12-month clock. Keep the last pay stub, the final pay stub, the hours record for the last period, and any written policy on vacation or fringe-benefit payout — the Division decides on the documents, not on the worker's recollection of them.

For the complaint process in full, see How to File a Wage Claim in Michigan. For other states, see the Final Paycheck Laws by State directory. For the calendar date, use the Final Paycheck Deadline Calculator.

Source

Sources: MCL 408.478 final-pay rule (next regularly scheduled payday) as stated in secondary summaries of Michigan wage-payment law read 2026-11-01; Michigan Wage and Hour Division complaint deadlines (12 months unpaid wages and fringe benefits; three years minimum wage, overtime, and earned sick time; no charge; no guarantee) as stated on the Division's complaint pages read 2026-11-01. Facts verified 2026-11-01. Open flags: the MCL 408.478 text was not opened on the Michigan Legislature site in this run — the rule is secondary-sourced and is flagged for primary re-verification; no penalty figure for late final pay is stated on the pages opened, and none is carried.

This page explains how the process works and what the official rules say. It is general information, not legal advice. For a dispute about your specific situation, talk to the Michigan Wage and Hour Division or a lawyer.