Most states have laws that require employers to pay employees their wages with some minimum frequency—usually either twice a month (semi-monthly) or every other week (bi-weekly)—and some states require weekly or monthly payment of wages.

These laws are known as payday laws and also dictate when an employee who has been fired/terminated or quit must be paid their final paycheck—in some states, immediately; in some states within a certain number of days; and in some states on the next regularly-scheduled payday.

Payday laws vary from state to state and are usually included in a state’s statutes—often in the labor code or other statutes governing employer-employee relations.

In Iowa, the state's payday laws are outlined in the Iowa Code, specifically in Chapter 91A, the Iowa Wage Payment Collection Law. Employers are required to pay their employees at least in monthly intervals, and they must pay wages within twelve days of the end of the pay period in which the wages were earned. However, by written agreement, employees may be paid less frequently, though not less than once every thirty-one days. When an employee is terminated or quits, Iowa law mandates that the final paycheck must be issued by the next regular payday, either through the usual paying channels or by mail if requested by the employee. There are no provisions in Iowa law that require an employer to pay a terminated employee immediately or within a certain number of days after the termination, except for certain contractual or collective bargaining agreements that may stipulate otherwise.