Payroll and Benefits Guide United States – Rhode Island
Last updated: Mar 03, 2026
Contribution
| Employer Payroll Contributions | |
| 1.10% – 9.70% | State Unemployment Insurance (SUI) – New Employer, applied on salary up to 29,800 USD per year and 31,300 USD per year for employers at the highest tax rate. |
| 1.00% | State Unemployment Insurance (SUI) – New Employer, applied on salary up to 29,800 USD per year and 31,300 USD per year for employers at the highest tax rate. |
| 6.20% | Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) - Social Security, applied on salary up to 176,100 USD per year. |
| 1.45% | Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) – Medicare. An additional 0.9% should be withheld from employees earning above 200,000 USD per year. |
| 0.60% – 6.00% | Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA), applied on salary up to 7,000 USD per year. Employers who pay their state unemployment tax in full and on time are eligible for a 5.4% tax credit, reducing the FUTA rate to 0.6%. |
| 10.44% – 24.44% | Total Employment Cost |
| Employee Payroll Contributions | |
| 6.20% | Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) - Social Security, applied on salary up to 176,100 USD per year. |
| 1.45% | Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) – Medicare.An additional 0.9% should be withheld from employees earning above 200,000 USD per year. |
| 7.65% – 8.55% | Total Employee Cost |
| Rhode Island State Income Tax | Annual |
| 5.99% | Supplemental Wage/Bonus Rate |
| State Tax–Single & Married Joint Filing | |
| 3.75% | Up to 79,900 USD |
| 4.75% | 679,900 – 181,650 USD |
| 5.99% | Above 181,650 USD |
| Standard Deduction and Personal Exemption | |
| Single | 10,900 USD |
| Couple/Married – Joint Filing | 21,800 USD |
| Head of Household | 16,350 USD |
| Personal exemption: | |
| Dependent | 5,100 USD |
| Federal Employee Income Tax | Annual |
| Federal Tax – Singles | |
| 10.00% | Up to 11,925 USD |
| 12.00% | 11,925 – 48,475 USD |
| 22.00% | 448,475 – 103,350 USD |
| 24.00% | 103,350 – 197,300 USD |
| 32.00% | 197,300 – 250,525 USD |
| 35.00% | 250,525 – 626,350 USD |
| 37.00% | Above 626,350 USD |
| Federal Tax – Married, Joint Filing | |
| 0.00% | Up to 23,850 USD |
| 12.00% | 23,850 – 96,950 USD |
| 22.00% | 96,950 – 206,700 USD |
| 24.00% | 206,700 – 394,600 USD |
| 32.00% | 394,600 – 501,050 USD |
| 35.00% | 501,050 – 751,600 USD |
| 37.00% | Above 751,600 USD |
| Federal Tax – Heads of Households | |
| 10.00% | Up to 17,000 USD |
| 12.00% | 17,000 – 64,850 USD |
| 22.00% | 64,850 – 103,350 USD |
| 24.00% | 103,350 – 197,300 USD |
| 32.00% | 197,300 – 250,500 USD |
| 35.00% | 250,500 – 626,350 USD |
| 37.00% | Above 626,350 USD |
| Standard Deduction and Personal Exemption | |
| 15,000 USD | Single |
| 30,000 USD | Married Filing Jointly |
| 22,500 USD | Head of Household |
Minimum Wage
General
The minimum wage in Rhode Island is 15.00 USD per hour.
The Federal minimum wage rate is 7.25 USD per hour.
Payroll
Payroll Cycle
Employees in Rhode Island are paid either semi-monthly or monthly with payments being made on set dates as stipulated in the contract, but no later than nine days before the end of the pay cycle.
There are also weekly payroll cycles for hourly-paid employees. With approval from the Director of Labour and Training, this can be set as semi-monthly.
13th Salary
There are no provisions in the law regarding 13th salaries.
Working Hours
General
The standard workweek consists of a maximum of 40 hours per week or eight hours per day.
Overtime
Rhode Island adheres to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and overtime is paid when an employee works more than 40 hours in a single work week.
The employer must pay 150% of the regular salary rate for the extra hours worked as overtime. Similarly, if employees are scheduled to work on weekends or rest days, no additional payment is required.
However, should an employer request an employee to work in exceptional circumstances on these days, then overtime will be payable at 150% of the regular salary rate for the extra hours worked.
Leave
Annual Leave (vacation)
Public holidays are not mandatory paid days off, but employers commonly allow workers to take federal holidays as paid days off.
Some companies might also agree to allow workers to take off state holidays; workers can find specific state holiday dates from their local government.
Usually when an agreed public holiday falls on a weekend, a day off in lieu is given on the Friday before or the Monday after the holiday.
| Date | Day | Holiday | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2026 | Thursday | New Year’s Day | Standard holiday |
| 19 January 2026 | Monday | Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day | Standard holiday |
| 16 February 2026 | Monday | Washington’s Birthday | Standard holiday |
| 4 May 2026 | Monday | Rhode Island Independence Day* | |
| 25 May 2026 | Monday | Memorial Day | Standard holiday |
| 19 June 2026 | Friday | Juneteenth National Independence Day | Standard holiday |
| 3 July 2026 | Friday | Independence Day (Observed)** | |
| 10 August 2026 | Monday | Victory Day | |
| 7 September 2026 | Monday | Labor Day | Standard holiday |
| 12 October 2026 | Monday | Columbus Day / Indigenous Peoples’ Day | Standard holiday |
| 3 November 2026 | Tuesday | Election Day*** | |
| 11 November 2026 | Wednesday | Veterans Day | Standard holiday |
| 26 November 2026 | Thursday | Thanksgiving Day | Standard holiday |
| 25 December 2026 | Friday | Christmas Day | Standard holiday |
Sick Days
State law offers one hour of paid sick leave for every three hours worked, up to an annual maximum of 40 hours of paid sick leave.
In addition, sick leave falls under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) which provides leave for an employee with a serious health condition that makes them unable to perform the essential functions of their job.
It is common for an employer to follow the FMLA, which provides certain employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year for certain family and medical reasons (maternity leave, serious illnesses, or if the employee needs to care for a spouse or child).
Employees are eligible for FMLA if they have worked for their employer for at least one year, completed a minimum of 1,250 hours over the past year, and worked at a location where the company employs 50 or more employees within 75 miles.
Maternity Leave
Maternity leave falls under the FMLA (see sick leave) which allows a mother:
- Twelve working weeks of leave in any one year for a child’s birth and to care for the newborn child within one year of birth.
In addition to the FMLA, Rhode Island’s Fair Employment Practices Act (FEPA) requires employers with four or more employees to provide reasonable accommodation to employees with conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition, including modified work environments, longer breaks, light duty, job restructuring, modification of equipment (including seating), etc.
Lastly, Rhode Island Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI) entitles employees who are temporarily unable to work due to pregnancy or childbirth to receive a portion of their regular salary pay up to 30 weeks, with an additional four weeks paid leave for new parents. This is part of the Rhode Island Temporary Caregiver Insurance.
Paternity Leave
Paternity leave falls under the FMLA (see sick leave), which allows fathers:
- Twelve working weeks of leave in any one year for a child’s birth and to care for the newborn child within one year of birth.
Parental Leave
Parental leave falls under the FMLA (see sick leave), which allows for:
- Leave for the adoption or foster care of a child and care for the newly placed child within one year of placement.
- Any qualifying necessity arising out of the fact that the employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a covered military member on covered active duty.
Rhode Island Family Leave laws (RIPFMLA) apply to employers with more than 50 employees, employees of the state, or any town or municipality that employs over 30 employees.
This law entitles the eligible employee (who worked an average of 30 or more hours per week and has been employed for at least 12 consecutive months) to 13 consecutive weeks of unpaid leave in any two years.
An employer can pay the employee for these weeks if stipulated in the contract.
Other Leave
Leave for the care of an employee’s spouse, child, or parent who has a severe health condition falls under the FMLA (see sick leave).
Alternatively, an employee may take 26 working weeks of leave during a single one-year period to care for a covered service member with a serious injury or illness.
The service member must be the employee’s spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin (military caregiver leave).
Other leave under Rhode Island law includes:
- Job-protected but unpaid leave for full-time employees for jury duty or as a witness in a case, responding to a subpoena, or acting as a plaintiff or defendant in the courts. Employees must provide a copy of the jury summons to the employer as evidence of requirement.
- Rhode Island has a state-run program that provides temporary disability insurance (TDI) for employees, paid for by a special tax withheld from employees’ pay. Rhode Island was the first state to provide a TDI program for employees. Eligible employees who are unable to work due to illness, injury, or pregnancy can get a cash benefit to partially replace their lost wages. The TDI program is operated by the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training. Some states have a program for SDI, or short-term disability insurance, but Rhode Island’s program is called TDI.
PAID MATERNITY LEAVE (DAYS)
Termination
Termination Process
Except in mass dismissals or as provided for in an employment contract or a collective bargaining agreement, U.S. law does not impose a formal notice period to terminate an individual employment relationship, and employment is stipulated at will.
This means that either the employer or the employee may end the employment relationship without giving either notice or reason, provided it is not illegal, notable discrimination on the grounds of a category protected by law, etc., and as per the Federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN).
The employment contracts of executives and other highly skilled individuals often incorporate a just cause termination clause which mandates that the employer may only terminate the employee for cause and lists the permissible grounds.
In such cases, the parties negotiate the foundations for a just cause termination case-by-case.
Notice Period
In Rhode Island, most employees are employed at will, and either party can terminate the employment relationship without notice.
In Rhode Island, PTO is considered wages and required to be paid out upon termination after one year of employment.
Still, employers will generally pay an employee for unused vacation days, provided the employee gave some advanced notice of resignation.
While there is no official notice period, general practice is two weeks notice as a minimum requirement.
In mass dismissal cases, the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) must be followed, and employers must give 60 days’ notice to impacted employees.
Severance Pay
Except as otherwise provided in an employment contract or collective bargaining agreement, employers are not required to provide severance pay.
Employers who choose to offer severance would need to have the provisions within the employee’s contract and agreed upon by both parties.
Many employers choose to offer severance pay based on the employee’s length of employment.
Probation Period
No legal provision governs a formal trial/probation period. However, it is common practice for employers to set a performance evaluation after an initially stated employment period of 90 days.
Minimal Statutory Termination Costs
Some states require PTO balances to be paid out during termination, also any bonuses or commissions that were promised in the employment contract
Immigration
Foreign nationals without permanent resident status or a work visa are not permitted to work in the United States.
An employer seeking to hire a foreign national may file a petition with the United States Department of Homeland Security/United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for an employment visa on behalf of the prospective employee.
If the petition is approved, the prospective employee must obtain a visa stamp from a United States embassy or consulate (Canadian citizens are exempt from this requirement).
To get a temporary U.S. work visa, an employer must file a petition with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). An approved petition must be part of the visa request. The types of visas include:
- H-1B – For applicants with a college degree hired to do specialized work. The visa is valid for three years and can be extended for an additional three years. The visa is connected to the employer that filed the petition. If there is a change of employer, the new employer must repeat the process. There are 65,000 H-1B visas available each year.
- H-1B1 – For applicants with a college degree from Chile and Singapore. The US government grants up to 1,400 visas to Chilean citizens and 5,400 from Singapore each year.
- H-2A – For temporary or seasonal agriculture work. It is limited to citizens of qualified countries. Usually valid for up to one year and can be extended to a maximum of three years.
- H-2B – For temporary non-agricultural work. These visas are limited to citizens of qualified countries. Usually valid for up to one year and can be extended to a maximum of three years.
- L – For intercompany transfers (people transferred from a foreign company to a U.S. branch of the company.) The applicant must have been employed at the company for a year before the transfer and work in a managerial-level position or higher with specialized knowledge.
- 0 – For people with extraordinary ability in science, arts, education, business, or athletics.
The standard procedure is to obtain a short-term work visa and then apply for an immigrant visa after the employee has started working in the United States.
For those seeking employment-based immigrant visas:
- E-1 – Highest priority employment for those with extraordinary ability in science, arts, education, business, and athletics.
- E-2 – For those with advanced degrees or exceptional ability.
- E-3 – For skilled workers and professionals, as well as unskilled workers.
- E-4 – Members of certain immigrant groups.
- E-5 – Immigrant investors in US companies (substantial investment).
Alternatively, an employer may sponsor a potential employee’s application for permanent resident status, referred to as a green card, if the employer can establish that the potential employee is a multinational executive/manager transferee, has unique skills, or has been offered a job in the United States.
The employer must have been unable to recruit a U.S. worker who meets the position’s minimum requirements.
All employers are obligated to verify that all individuals they employ are authorized to work in the United States.
VAT
General
The State sales tax in Rhode Island is 7%. There are no additional Local sales taxes applied.
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Payroll and Benefits Guide
in United States – Rhode Island
What’s covered in this guide:
- Employer/employee contributions
- Minimum wage
- Working hours
- Visa requirements
And more...
Public Holidays Calendar
| Date | Day | Holiday | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2026 | Thursday | New Year’s Day | Standard holiday |
| 19 January 2026 | Monday | Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day | Standard holiday |
| 16 February 2026 | Monday | Washington’s Birthday | Standard holiday |
| 4 May 2026 | Monday | Rhode Island Independence Day* | |
| 25 May 2026 | Monday | Memorial Day | Standard holiday |
| 19 June 2026 | Friday | Juneteenth National Independence Day | Standard holiday |
| 3 July 2026 | Friday | Independence Day (Observed)** | |
| 10 August 2026 | Monday | Victory Day | |
| 7 September 2026 | Monday | Labor Day | Standard holiday |
| 12 October 2026 | Monday | Columbus Day / Indigenous Peoples’ Day | Standard holiday |
| 3 November 2026 | Tuesday | Election Day*** | |
| 11 November 2026 | Wednesday | Veterans Day | Standard holiday |
| 26 November 2026 | Thursday | Thanksgiving Day | Standard holiday |
| 25 December 2026 | Friday | Christmas Day | Standard holiday |
Questions & Answers