State file — District of Columbia
Severance itself is almost never required by law — but the paper around your exit is. In District of Columbia, three state rules shape your negotiation: when your last paycheck must arrive, whether a non-compete can follow you to your next job, and what notice a layoff required. If you are 40 or older, the federal clocks (21 or 45 days, plus 7 days to change your mind after signing) apply on top of everything here.
Federal rule only - no DC law giving a general time to consider or revoke a severance/settlement agreement was found. (DC's 14-day advance-delivery rule at 32-581.02 is for non-compete agreements for highly compensated employees, not a severance clock.)
Run the deadline checker — it counts the federal clock and District of Columbia's clock together and gives you the dates.
Banned below an earnings threshold, capped above it. Official DOES notice (Jan. 1, 2025 figures, CPI-adjusted each Jan. 1): non-competes are prohibited for employees earning less than $158,363 and for medical specialists earning less than $263,939. Above the threshold, a written non-compete is allowed only if it specifies the functional scope and the geographic limits, lasts no more than 365 calendar days from separation (730 days for medical specialists), and is given to the employee at least 14 days before employment starts (or, for a current employee, at least 14 days before the agreement starts). Employers may not retaliate against a covered employee who refuses to sign, does not comply, or questions a non-compete. Broadcast employees are separately barred from non-competes regardless of pay (secondary sources). 2026 FIGURES FLAGGED UNVERIFIED: law-firm sources (Epstein Becker Green, JD Supra salary-threshold round-ups) report Jan. 1, 2026 thresholds of $162,164 and $270,274 for medical specialists - those figures were NOT seen on a DOES page in this run.
Why it matters at the exit table: a non-compete you sign on the way out can matter more than the severance check. If the clause would block your next job, narrowing it is one of the most common — and most granted — negotiation asks.
Discharged: pay wages earned not later than the working day following the discharge. Exception: for an employee responsible for monies belonging to the employer, the employer gets 4 days from discharge/resignation to determine the accuracy of the employee's accounts, then must pay all wages earned. (Quit/resign, no written contract over 30 days: next regular payday or within 7 days of quitting, whichever is earlier.) The statute says 'unless otherwise specified in a collective agreement.'
Unused vacation: 'Wages' in DC includes bonuses, commissions, fringe benefits paid in cash, overtime premium and other remuneration promised or owed under an employment contract (D.C. Code 32-1301(3)). Secondary sources read this, with DC case law, to mean vacation/PTO promised by policy or contract is generally due with final pay unless a written policy/agreement clearly provides otherwise.
Final pay is owed whether or not you sign anything. If the date passes without your money, your state labor agency takes these complaints — and many states add penalties for every day of delay.
District of Columbia has no state layoff-notice law of its own, so the federal WARN Act is the rule: employers with 100+ workers generally owe 60 days' notice of a plant closing or mass layoff (50+ jobs at one site).
Notice failures have their own remedies (back pay for each day of missed notice, in the federal law's case) — separate from the severance agreement, and worth a question if your layoff was large and sudden.
Included in the $49 SeveranceDecoded Kit
One payment. Yours to keep. Works for any severance agreement, any state.
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