Find and Claim Your Unpaid Wages

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The Wage and Hour Division (WHD) enforces key labor laws to protect workers' rights. When we find violations, we work to recover unpaid wages on behalf of employees. We make every effort to locate and notify every employee due back wages. If we cannot find an employee, we hold their back wages for three years while we continue our efforts to locate them. After this period, if we remain unable to find the person, we are required to send the money to the U.S. Treasury.

Ready to Find Your Unpaid Wages?

If you think we may have recovered unpaid wages for you, use the Workers Owed Wages (WOW) application to search and claim them.

Begin Here

How to Claim Your Owed Wages

  1. Search for your employer: Enter your employer's name in the WOW application to locate your company.

  2. Verify your name: Search for yourself within the system. WOW will confirm if we have wages owed to you.

  3. Submit contact information: Provide contact details so we can send you the Back Wage Claim Form and instructions.

  4. Upload signed claim form and documents: Check your email for the Back Wage Claim Form (WH-60). Complete and sign it, then create a login.gov account to securely upload your form.

    Include a copy of one of the following to verify your identity:

    • Social Security card
    • Individual Taxpayer Identification (ITIN) card
    • Driver's license or State ID
    • W-2, pay stub or other documentation

  5. Processing and payment: After you submit your Back Wages Claim Form, WHD will process it within approximately six weeks and send you a check for the owed wages.

Start Your Claim for Unpaid Wages

Now that you know the steps, it's time to start your claim and recover any back pay you're owed.

Start Your Claim

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