Overtime Salary Threshold in 2026: What Employers Need to Check

For 2026, the standard federal salary threshold for executive, administrative and professional overtime exemptions is $684 per week, equivalent to $35,568 annually. Salary alone does not establish exemption: employers must also evaluate the applicable duties and salary-basis requirements. The vacated 2024 rule does not supply the operative threshold.

The federal threshold employers should use

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) generally requires overtime pay for covered, nonexempt employees who work more than 40 hours in a workweek. The standard rate is at least one and one-half times the regular rate. The law does not generally prohibit working more than 40 hours; it establishes pay requirements when covered, nonexempt employees do so.

The Department of Labor (DOL) lists the operative figures in its salary-level guidance. For 2026, the highly compensated employee total annual compensation threshold is $107,432, including at least $684 per week on a salary or fee basis. That alternative has its own duties conditions and does not mean that every employee above the amount is automatically exempt.

Why older articles give different numbers

This post originally discussed a rule scheduled for December 2016. That rule never took effect. Subsequent rulemaking and litigation produced other headlines, so a publication date or the word final is not enough to establish which standard applies to a payroll decision. Keep the rule's legal status and effective date attached to the number.

DOL’s May 14, 2026 technical-amendment announcement explains the restoration. Employers who increased pay or reclassified workers during earlier changes should review those decisions with counsel. A lower legal minimum does not automatically undo a wage commitment, contract or employee notice, and it does not authorize a retroactive reduction in earned pay.

Three separate tests, not a job-title shortcut

The DOL executive, administrative and professional exemption fact sheet explains that job titles do not determine exemption. Where applicable, the analysis includes a minimum salary level, payment on the required salary basis and the actual primary duties. Paying a salary or calling someone a manager does not replace the duties analysis.

Executive, administrative and professional exemptions have different duties requirements. Routine clerical work is not transformed into exempt administrative work by a more impressive title. Similarly, supervising a task is not necessarily the same as satisfying the executive exemption. Document what the person actually does, the authority exercised and how the role operates in practice.

Special rules apply to some occupations, including certain teachers, doctors, lawyers, outside sales employees and computer employees. This standard EAP threshold is not a universal test for every possible exemption. Employers with employees outside Texas must also review the law where the employee works, including more protective state salary or overtime requirements where applicable.

An employer classification checklist

1. List each role's work location, actual duties, pay method and expected workweek.
2. Identify the specific exemption being considered rather than beginning with a salary label.
3. Check its salary level, salary-basis and duties requirements against actual practices.
4. Review timekeeping, after-hours work and regular-rate calculations for nonexempt roles.
5. Have employment counsel review uncertain classifications and any proposed pay or policy change.
6. Communicate prospective changes clearly, train managers and retain the classification rationale.

A policy requiring advance approval for overtime can help manage schedules, but it does not remove the obligation to pay for compensable work actually performed. Managers need a process for reporting unscheduled work, remote messages and other work outside the planned shift. A timekeeping system is useful only if employees can record their actual hours and supervisors do not discourage accurate entries.

Connect payroll changes with benefit administration

Hypothetical example: A salaried coordinator earns above the standard 2026 salary threshold but mainly performs routine scheduling and data entry. The employer should not assume exemption based on pay alone. A duties review may lead to nonexempt treatment, hour tracking and overtime budgeting rather than an unnecessary salary increase intended to solve a different problem.

If a role changes from exempt to nonexempt, review benefit eligibility definitions separately. FLSA classification and a health plan's eligibility rules are not interchangeable. Check the governing documents before changing coverage, employee contributions or leave communications. The ERISA wrap document guide explains how plan documents fit together.

Primary Care Insurance Solutions (PCI Solutions) offers HR compliance support for employer benefits. Use that support to coordinate records and vendor questions, with employment counsel making legal classification determinations. This explanation covers the federal framework as of October 21, 2026 and is not a substitute for reviewing the facts of a particular role.