Wage Payment Deadlines by Wage Period

Every wage-payment deadline in one table

The Code on Wages sets a hard last date to pay wages, and a separate, shorter deadline when someone leaves. Both are below, with the governing section.

A wage period can be daily, weekly, fortnightly or monthly, but never longer than one month (section 16).

The rule in plain words

Section 16 lets the employer fix the wage period as daily, weekly, fortnightly or monthly, subject to one limit: it can never be longer than a month. Section 17 then fixes the last date to actually pay. For monthly-paid staff, that date is the seventh of the next month. When employment ends, whether by removal, dismissal, retrenchment, resignation or closure, the clock is much shorter: wages must be settled within two working days.

A worked example

An employee on a monthly wage period resigns on 20 September and serves the last day on 25 September. The September wages that would ordinarily be paid by 7 October are now due within two working days of 25 September, so by about 29 September once non-working days are excluded. Wages may be paid in cash, by cheque, by bank credit or electronically; the appropriate government can require bank or electronic payment for notified establishments.

Exceptions and fine print

• "Two working days" excludes weekly holidays and closed days, so the calendar date depends on your working week.
• The appropriate government may set a different time limit where it is reasonable in the circumstances.
• Any shorter deadline in another law continues to apply; section 17 does not override it.

What an employer must do

• Fix and document the wage period for each category of employee.
• Run a fast full-and-final settlement process; the two-working-day rule applies to exits of every kind, including resignation.
• Use a payment mode the code allows, and the notified mode where one is prescribed for your establishment.
• Keep proof of the date and mode of payment.

What a worker can do

• Expect monthly wages by the 7th of the next month at the latest.
• On exit, expect wages within two working days, separate from any gratuity or notice-pay timeline.
• Delayed wages can be claimed; keep your offer letter and payslips.

How wages may be paid

Section 15 allows payment in current coin or currency, by cheque, by credit to the employee's bank account, or by electronic mode. The appropriate government can go further and require, for notified establishments, that wages be paid only by cheque or bank credit. So the lawful mode can depend on where you operate as well as on what you choose.

What counts as a working day

The two-working-day deadline on exit turns on working days, not calendar days, so weekly holidays and closed days do not count. An employee who leaves the day before a two-day closure will see the clock pause across those days. This is why full-and-final settlement has to be a ready process rather than an end-of-month task: the trigger is the exit, and the window is short.

When a different time limit applies

Two carve-outs exist. The appropriate government may set a different time limit where it is reasonable in the circumstances, and any shorter deadline in another law continues to apply, because section 17 does not displace it. Where two rules point at different dates, the earlier date is the safe one to work to.

Frequently asked questions