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For information purposes only. Employers should consider seeking the assistance of experienced employment law attorneys before implementing policy changes.

New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu signed into law H.B. 2101, which effective September 10, 2024, increased from $300 to $3,000 the wage amount that employers can directly pay to the descendants of deceased employees in the absence of a probate proceeding notice.

Under the law, New Hampshire employers can pay a deceased employee's wages (up to $3,000) directly to a descendant upon demand for payment. If multiple descendants make claim to the wages, payments should be made to them in the order specified in RSA 561:1.

Background

All wages and other monetary benefits owed to a deceased employee can automatically become property of the employee's estate, thereby subjecting the compensation to complex state probate procedures that apply in the deceased employee's state of residence.

These probate procedures can delay payment to the employee's survivors. Accordingly, in lieu of paying final wages to the estate of the deceased employee, many states allow employers to make direct payment to designated relatives, such as the surviving spouse or children. Direct payment to designated beneficiaries is often subject to restrictions, in particular a dollar limit and/or disclosures by beneficiaries prior to accepting payment.

For example, Connecticut allows employers to make direct payment of up to $40,000 of a deceased employee's wages to a surviving spouse, or if no surviving spouse, any of the decedent's next of kin. (Conn. Gen. Stat. Section 45a-273.)

Texas allows direct payment only to the decedent's spouse if the surviving spouse provides the employer with a signed and notarized affidavit that states:

• The person swearing under oath (the affiant) is the employee's surviving spouse
• No person has qualified as an executor of the will or is an administrator of the employee's estate (Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Payment of Final Wages to the Estates of Deceased Employees)

Ernst & Young LLP insights

Employers should develop policies concerning the payment of deceased employees' wages with the assistance of qualified legal advisors. These procedures should include all elements of information beneficiaries must provide before payments are made.