Colorado · Unpaid wages · Updated Oct 2026

Colorado wage claims: how to get your unpaid pay

Not paid for all your hours, no overtime, or no final paycheck? Here is Colorado’s minimum wage, the final-paycheck rules, the deadlines and where to file, in plain English.

$15.16minimum wage in 2026
$12.14tipped cash wage
Yesdaily overtime
Immediatelyfinal pay if fired
2 yearstime limit to file (see details)

Where to file in Colorado

Wage claims in Colorado go to this state office. Filing is usually free.

Office
Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE), Division of Labor Standards and Statistics
Phone
303-318-8441
Languages
Complaint form and wage demand form in Spanish; Spanish site at LeyesLaboralesDeColorado.gov
Claim limit
$7,500 in unpaid wages per Division claim (higher amounts can be sought in court). The limit does not apply to penalties, fines, or retaliation remedies.
File onlineOfficial wage claim page

For federal minimum wage and overtime you can also contact the US Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division: 1-866-487-9243. How federal claims work.

How to file a wage claim in Colorado

  1. Gather your records

    Dates and hours worked, your pay rate, pay stubs or bank deposits, texts or schedules, and the employer's name and address.

  2. Ask in writing first (optional)

    A demand letter gives your employer a deadline to pay and shows you tried. Use the free letter on this page.

  3. File with Colorado Department of Labor and Employment

    First, consider sending your employer a written demand for your wages (by mail, email or text); CDLE has an optional 'Demand for Payment of Wages' form. To start an investigation, file a Labor Standards Complaint Form online or by mail, fax or email, with copies (not originals) of your pay records; you do not have to wait 14 days after your demand. The Division investigates as a neutral party, sends your employer a Notice of Complaint, and issues a decision that can order wages and penalties; either side can appeal to a Division judge. The service is free and can take several months.

  4. Watch the deadline

    2 years after the wages were due, or 3 years if the violation was willful (C.R.S. § 8-4-122).

Minimum wage and overtime in Colorado

Colorado's minimum wage is $15.16 an hour in 2026. It rises to $15.71 on January 1, 2027. Some cities and counties set higher local minimums; for example, Denver's minimum wage is $19.29 in 2026 and $19.84 in 2027. Boulder, Boulder County and Edgewater also have local minimum wages.

Minimum wage (2026)
$15.16
Tipped cash wage
$12.14
Next change
$15.71 on January 1, 2027 (tipped cash wage $12.69)

Overtime

You get 1.5 times your regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek, over 12 in a workday, or over 12 consecutive hours, whichever pays you more. Your employer cannot average hours over two weeks or give comp time instead of overtime pay (private employers). Some jobs, like agriculture, have different overtime rules.

Paydays: At least once a month (pay periods of no more than one calendar month or 30 days), paid no later than 10 days after the pay period ends, unless you and your employer agree otherwise (C.R.S. § 8-4-103(1)(a)).

Your final paycheck in Colorado

If you are fired or laid off
Immediately when you are fired or laid off. If the payroll office is closed, within 6 hours after it next opens (or within 24 hours if payroll is off-site, delivered to the work site, local office, or your mailing address).
If you quit
On the next regular payday.
Law
C.R.S. § 8-4-109(1)

When was your final paycheck due in Colorado?

Enter how your job ended and your last day of work. We show your state’s rule and, when the rule is a simple number of days or your next payday, the date.

Enter your last day of workThe result appears when you pick a date.

Dates are approximate: we skip weekends for business and working days but not holidays. Nothing you type here is sent anywhere.

Penalties your employer may owe

If your employer does not pay within 14 days after your written demand or a Notice of Complaint, it can owe a penalty of double the unpaid wages or $1,000, whichever is greater; if the violation was willful, triple the wages or $3,000, whichever is greater (C.R.S. § 8-4-109(3)). If the employer does not pay within 60 days of a Division order, penalties go up by 50% or $3,000 (C.R.S. § 8-4-111).

Retaliation and immigration status

Your employer may not threaten, fire, blacklist or punish you for filing a wage complaint or testifying; you can sue for back pay and other relief (C.R.S. § 8-4-120).

Federal law also makes it illegal to fire or punish you for filing a wage complaint or cooperating in an investigation (US DOL Fact Sheet #77A).

CDLE says its free wage complaint process is open to current and former Colorado private-sector employees regardless of immigration status.

The US Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division enforces federal wage law without regard to immigration status, and its services are free and confidential whether you are documented or not (US DOL).

Deductions and tips

Deductions are only legal in five categories in C.R.S. § 8-4-105 (such as taxes, items mainly for your benefit by written agreement, or theft reported to police). Deductions for poor work, lost sales, quitting without notice, or damage to company property are illegal even if you agreed. Tipped workers can be paid $12.14 an hour in cash wages only if tips bring them up to the full minimum wage.

Good to know in Colorado

  • A written demand for your wages matters: if your employer does not pay within 14 days, it can owe you penalties of at least $1,000 on top of the wages.
  • Denver has its own minimum wage ($19.29 in 2026) enforced by Denver Labor; tipped food and beverage workers in Denver must get at least $16.27 an hour in cash wages.

Forms

Wage-theft calculator for Colorado

Work out what you should have been paid: at least the minimum wage for every hour, plus overtime. Then compare it with what you got.

If a higher city or county minimum wage applies where you work, enter that rate if it is more than you were promised.

Before taxes, if you know it. Leave it empty to see only what you were owed.

Or enter the hours you worked each day in a typical workweek

Fill these in to count Colorado’s daily overtime. Leave days off empty. If you fill in days, the weekly total above is not used.

Day 7 is the seventh day of your workweek.

Fill in your pay, hours and weeksThe result appears as you type.

Colorado overtime rule: You get 1.5 times your regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek, over 12 in a workday, or over 12 consecutive hours, whichever pays you more. Your employer cannot average hours over two weeks or give comp time instead of overtime pay (private employers). Some jobs, like agriculture, have different overtime rules.

Penalties your employer may also owe in Colorado: If your employer does not pay within 14 days after your written demand or a Notice of Complaint, it can owe a penalty of double the unpaid wages or $1,000, whichever is greater; if the violation was willful, triple the wages or $3,000, whichever is greater (C.R.S. § 8-4-109(3)). If the employer does not pay within 60 days of a Division order, penalties go up by 50% or $3,000 (C.R.S. § 8-4-111).

Tipped workers: this calculator does not count tips. In many states your employer may pay a lower cash wage if your tips make up the difference to the minimum wage; see your state’s page.

An estimate from the numbers you enter and Colorado’s rules, not legal advice. Nothing you type in this calculator is sent anywhere.

Free demand letter for unpaid wages

A short, firm letter asking your employer to pay what it owes by a deadline. Many workers get paid at this step, and in some states a written demand starts penalties or makes the employer pay your attorney fees later. Fill this in, then download the letter as PDF or Word (or copy it), sign it, keep a copy and send it in a way you can prove, such as certified mail or an email you keep.

When you download or copy the letter, the details you typed are saved on our server. See our privacy policy.

The name on your pay stubs, checks or the business sign. If you only know the owner’s name, use that.

Use the calculator above if you are not sure.

We suggest 10 days.

What were you not paid? (required)

One or two sentences with dates, hours and amounts.

Questions about wage claims in Colorado

Where do I file a wage claim in Colorado?

With Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE), Division of Labor Standards and Statistics. Phone: 303-318-8441. First, consider sending your employer a written demand for your wages (by mail, email or text); CDLE has an optional 'Demand for Payment of Wages' form. To start an investigation, file a Labor Standards Complaint Form online or by mail, fax or email, with copies (not originals) of your pay records; you do not have to wait 14 days after your demand. The Division investigates as a neutral party, sends your employer a Notice of Complaint, and issues a decision that can order wages and penalties; either side can appeal to a Division judge. The service is free and can take several months.

What is the minimum wage in Colorado in 2026?

Colorado's minimum wage is $15.16 an hour in 2026. It rises to $15.71 on January 1, 2027. Some cities and counties set higher local minimums; for example, Denver's minimum wage is $19.29 in 2026 and $19.84 in 2027. Boulder, Boulder County and Edgewater also have local minimum wages.

Does Colorado have daily overtime?

You get 1.5 times your regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek, over 12 in a workday, or over 12 consecutive hours, whichever pays you more. Your employer cannot average hours over two weeks or give comp time instead of overtime pay (private employers). Some jobs, like agriculture, have different overtime rules.

When is my final paycheck due in Colorado if I'm fired?

Immediately when you are fired or laid off. If the payroll office is closed, within 6 hours after it next opens (or within 24 hours if payroll is off-site, delivered to the work site, local office, or your mailing address).

When is my final paycheck due in Colorado if I quit?

On the next regular payday.

How long do I have to file a wage claim in Colorado?

2 years after the wages were due, or 3 years if the violation was willful (C.R.S. § 8-4-122).

What can my employer owe besides my wages in Colorado?

If your employer does not pay within 14 days after your written demand or a Notice of Complaint, it can owe a penalty of double the unpaid wages or $1,000, whichever is greater; if the violation was willful, triple the wages or $3,000, whichever is greater (C.R.S. § 8-4-109(3)). If the employer does not pay within 60 days of a Division order, penalties go up by 50% or $3,000 (C.R.S. § 8-4-111).

Can my employer fire me for filing a wage claim in Colorado?

Your employer may not threaten, fire, blacklist or punish you for filing a wage complaint or testifying; you can sue for back pay and other relief (C.R.S. § 8-4-120).

Employer still won't pay? Small claims court is often the next step for amounts under the state limit.

Small claims in Colorado
Sources

Last checked: Oct 2026.

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