How to recover unpaid wages or a withheld final paycheck in New Hampshire
Under New Hampshire law, employers must pay wages on regular paydays and must pay final wages quickly when an employee is discharged or resigns. If wages are withheld or a final paycheck is late, the state labor commissioner can investigate, hold hearings, and adjudicate wage claims, and an employee may also bring an action in court. Remedies can include payment of the wages owed and, in some cases, additional liquidated damages for willful failure to pay as required.
A common path people take is to first send a written demand to the employer and then file a wage claim with the New Hampshire Department of Labor. The department can subpoena records, take testimony, and pursue enforcement. Time limits apply to bringing claims, so claims are often filed sooner rather than later.
Current New Hampshire law
Every answer cites the statute
Free with a CiteLaw account
Get this handled for free in CiteLaw
Create a free CiteLaw account and run the Recover Unpaid Wages workflow in our AI Navigator. It asks a few questions about your situation, then prepares a demand letter and a state wage-claim filing, grounded in the exact New Hampshire law below.
Why CiteLaw instead of ChatGPT or Claude?
Real law, not guesses. Grounded in the actual New Hampshire statutes and cases below, verified against CiteLaw's corpus. General chatbots can cite statutes and cases that do not exist.
A workflow for your exact problem. The curated Recover Unpaid Wages workflow walks you through your situation and prepares a demand letter and a state wage-claim filing, not a generic wall of text.
A premium AI built for the law. Purpose-built to retrieve real legal authorities and apply them to any set of facts, not a general chatbot answering law questions on the side.
Free with a CiteLaw account. Takes about 3 minutes. New Hampshire is already selected for you.
The deadline that matters
A wage claim may be filed with the Department of Labor no later than 36 months from the date the wages were due.
What New Hampshire law says
Employers must pay wages on regular paydays and pay discharged employees within 72 hours, or employees who quit by the next regular payday (with a 72-hour rule if the employee gives one pay period's notice), under N.H. Rev. Stat. § 275:44. The statute sets regular pay timing rules under N.H. Rev. Stat. § 275:43. If an employer willfully fails to pay required wages, the employer may be liable for liquidated damages as described in N.H. Rev. Stat. § 275:44. The labor commissioner has authority to investigate, hold hearings, subpoena documents and witnesses, and adjudicate wage claims, and the department or an employee may file a wage claim no later than 36 months from the date the wages were due, under N.H. Rev. Stat. § 275:51. Civil actions to recover unpaid wages and liquidated damages have limitations described in N.H. Rev. Stat. § 275:41. Additional rules govern disputes over amounts and require employers to pay any conceded wages while disputes continue, under N.H. Rev. Stat. § 275:45.
What to do
A common first step is to send a clear written demand to the employer stating the amount owed and the date payment is due (a demand letter).
A common next step is to file a wage claim with the New Hampshire Department of Labor, which can investigate and hold hearings.
Some people gather and keep pay stubs, timesheets, employment agreements, and copies of communications to support a claim.
Filing a civil action is another option that some employees pursue when administrative remedies do not resolve the dispute.
In disputes over amounts, employers often pay any portion they concede is due while the remaining dispute is resolved.
Let CiteLaw do this for you
Skip the manual work. The free Recover Unpaid Wages workflow walks these steps for you and prepares a demand letter and a state wage-claim filing, grounded in New Hampshire law. Run it now in the AI Navigator →
Common questions
How quickly must an employer pay a final paycheck?
If an employer discharges an employee, wages must be paid within 72 hours; if an employee quits, wages are due by the next regular payday unless the employee gave at least one pay period's notice, in which case payment is due within 72 hours, under N.H. Rev. Stat. § 275:44.
Can the Department of Labor force my employer to produce records?
Yes, the labor commissioner has power to enter and inspect workplaces, question employees, issue subpoenas, and compel production of payroll records in investigations and hearings under N.H. Rev. Stat. § 275:51.
Can I get extra damages if my employer willfully withheld wages?
If an employer willfully and without good cause fails to pay wages as required, the employer may be liable for liquidated damages calculated under N.H. Rev. Stat. § 275:44.
How long do I have to bring a claim for unpaid wages?
A wage claim with the department must be filed no later than 36 months from when wages were due, per N.H. Rev. Stat. § 275:51, and civil claims have limitations set out in N.H. Rev. Stat. § 275:41.
Every legal statement on this page links to the primary source, verified against CiteLaw's corpus. This page updates automatically when the law changes.
Ready to solve this?
Run the Recover Unpaid Wages workflow free in CiteLaw's AI Navigator and get a demand letter and a state wage-claim filing prepared for you. All you need is a free CiteLaw account.
This page provides legal information about New Hampshire law, not legal advice. CiteLaw is not a law firm and does not represent you. For advice about your specific situation, consult a licensed attorney.
