Compliance
FLSA Overtime-Exemption Salary Thresholds in 2025 and What Comes Next
The FLSA overtime-exemption salary threshold landscape is in a period of active reversal. The DOL's 2024 rulemaking, which would have raised the standard salary level significantly, was vacated by a federal district court in November 2024, leaving employers navigating conflicting signals from federal regulators, state agencies and the judiciary. For HR and payroll leaders, the operative question is no longer just "what is the current threshold?" but "which threshold applies, under which authority, and for how long?"
What's Moving
Federal threshold rulemaking is in a reversal cycle
The DOL's 2024 rule raising the salary level was vacated by a Texas federal court. The new administration's regulatory agenda may signal withdrawal or revision, making any single threshold figure unreliable for forward planning.
State-level thresholds now exceed the federal floor in multiple jurisdictions
California, New York, Washington and Colorado have established exempt salary thresholds above the federal baseline, several indexed to state minimum wage with annual automatic updates.