How long do I have to file an employment claim in California?

Deadlines are where strong employment cases are most often lost. The time limits below come from the California codes and from the state agencies that handle these claims. They are general rules: the right deadline for you depends on the facts, the type of claim and when each event happened. For an overview of the claims themselves, see our employment law page.

How do I work out my deadline, step by step?

1. Name each claim. One firing can raise several claims at once, such as discrimination, unpaid wages and retaliation, and each has its own clock.
2. Find the starting date. For a discrimination claim it is the last harmful act; for wages it is each payday that came up short; for a retaliation complaint it is the date of the retaliation.
3. Check for a required agency step. A lawsuit under the Fair Employment and Housing Act needs a Civil Rights Department complaint and a right-to-sue notice first. A Labor Commissioner retaliation complaint is optional (Labor Code section 98.7(g)).
4. Count, then mark the earliest date. Use the table below and treat the shortest deadline that could apply as the real one.
5. Write down every new notice. A right-to-sue notice or a Labor Commissioner decision starts a fresh, shorter clock.

What are the main deadlines for California employment claims?

Deadlines are sometimes extended or paused, and a few of those rules are explained below. Do not count on an exception without advice: the safe course is to treat the shortest deadline that could apply as the real one.

When does the Civil Rights Department deadline start?

The Civil Rights Department (CRD) says that in employment cases you must submit an intake form within three years of the date you were last harmed. Under Government Code section 12960(b), filing the intake form counts as filing the complaint, and the verified complaint relates back to that date. The CRD adds that an unfinished complaint stays in its online system for 30 days, so starting the form is not the same as filing it.

A change that took effect on January 1, 2026 pauses the time to file a civil action under the statutes that section lists, such as California's Equal Pay Act (Labor Code section 1197.5), while the CRD complaint is pending, until one year after the department closes its investigation (section 12960(f)). It does not revive claims that had already expired. We walk through the filing steps on our page about filing a discrimination complaint with the Civil Rights Department.

What happens after the right-to-sue notice?

A lawsuit under the Fair Employment and Housing Act must be filed within one year from the date of the right-to-sue notice (Government Code section 12965(c)(1)(D)). If you do not ask for a notice, the CRD must issue one when it completes its investigation and no later than one year after the complaint was filed (section 12965(c)(1)(A)). If the same charge was also filed with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the one-year period can be extended in the situations described in section 12965(e) and (f). Write the date of your notice down the day it arrives.

An immediate right-to-sue notice ends the CRD's role: the department says it will not investigate the complaint, even if you later decide not to sue, and it will not file the complaint with the federal agency for you.

Which deadlines apply to wage claims?

The Labor Commissioner lists three years for minimum wage, overtime, unpaid rest and meal breaks, sick leave, illegal deductions and unreimbursed expenses; two years for an oral promise to pay more than the minimum wage; four years for a written contract; and one year for penalties for a bounced check or for refusing access to payroll or personnel records. Penalties tied to wages follow the wages: the waiting time penalty can be sued for any time before the deadline on the underlying wages expires (Labor Code section 203(b)), and the same is true of liquidated damages for unpaid minimum wage (Labor Code section 1194.2(a)).

Because older pay periods drop off as time passes, waiting usually means recovering less, not just risking the whole claim. If you are deciding where to file, read our comparison of a Labor Commissioner wage claim and a lawsuit.

What are the deadlines for retaliation and wrongful termination?

If you were fired or punished for asserting a right the Labor Commissioner enforces, you can file a retaliation complaint with that office within one year of the violation, and the period can be extended for good cause (Labor Code section 98.7(a)(1)). While that complaint is pending, any time limit for you to bring the claim in court is paused until the Labor Commissioner issues its determination (section 98.7(d)(1)). The law also says you are not required to use that administrative process before going to court (section 98.7(g)).

Wrongful termination in violation of public policy is a claim the courts created for firings that break a fundamental public policy, such as firing someone for refusing to break the law. The Judicial Council's jury instruction on this claim (CACI 2430) cites the California Supreme Court's description of it as a tort action, and Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1 sets two years for an injury caused by another's wrongful act. Treat two years as the deadline to watch. Firings for reporting illegal conduct can also be brought under Labor Code section 1102.5; see what a California whistleblower has to prove.

Where are these cases filed in Los Angeles County?

The Los Angeles Superior Court's filing location form (LASC CIV 109, revised April 2026) lets wrongful termination and other employment complaints be filed in the Central District downtown or in the district where the claim arose. Class actions must be filed at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse in the Central District, and our guide to a civil case at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse explains the first months after filing. An appeal from a Labor Commissioner award is filed according to the location of the Labor Commissioner office that heard the claim. Our page for employment claims in Los Angeles County lists the agencies and courts in one place.

What changes the answer?

The table gives the starting point. These facts can move a deadline earlier, later, or onto a different track.

When you learned the facts

The CRD filing period can be extended by up to 90 days for a person who first learned the facts of the unlawful practice during the 90 days after the deadline passed (Government Code section 12960(e)(6)(A)). That is a narrow rule, not a general discovery delay, and it should not be relied on without advice.

Your age when it happened

For a person who was a minor, the filing period can be extended to one year after turning 18 (section 12960(e)(6)(D)). Workers 40 and older face a different question: whether an age claim also belongs with the federal agency, which our page on age discrimination in a layoff covers.

Whether you also file a federal charge

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says a federal charge must generally be filed within 300 days in a state like California that has its own enforcing agency, and that the deadline usually applies to each discriminatory event separately. In a harassment case, the federal clock runs from the last incident. Federal deadlines are much shorter than the state's three years, so a person who wants both options has to move early.

Whether the claim is about unequal pay

Since January 1, 2026, a civil action under California's Equal Pay Act may be brought no later than three years after the last date of the violation, and an employee may recover for the whole period of the violation up to six years (Labor Code section 1197.5(i)). The federal agency describes a separate federal Equal Pay Act deadline of two years, or three for willful violations.

Whether something is already pending

A pending CRD complaint can pause the time to sue under the statutes section 12960(f) lists, and a pending Labor Commissioner retaliation complaint pauses the court deadline for that claim (section 98.7(d)(1)). Neither rule mentions severance talks or an employer's internal investigation, so do not assume either one pauses a deadline.

A worked example

For example, imagine a hypothetical bookkeeper in Glendale who is fired on March 2, 2026, two weeks after telling human resources that a supervisor had made repeated comments about her national origin. She also believes she was not paid overtime for the last two years.

Her clocks differ. Her CRD intake form is due within three years of the last harmful act, the firing, so by early March 2029. A federal charge would generally be due within 300 days, in late December 2026. Her overtime claim runs three years from each short payday, so the oldest weeks are already expiring one by one. If she gets a right-to-sue notice, a new one-year clock starts that day. None of this says whether any claim would succeed; it shows that the earliest date, not the latest, sets the pace.

Common mistakes with employment deadlines

• Waiting for the internal investigation. None of the pause rules on this page covers the employer's own process.
• Assuming severance talks stop the clock. They do not; our page on whether to sign a severance agreement explains what to watch while you negotiate.
• Asking for an immediate right-to-sue notice too early. The CRD says suing on your own is advisable only with an attorney, and the one-year clock starts on the notice date.
• Counting wage deadlines from the firing. Each payday has its own deadline, so delay shrinks the claim.
• Missing the short appeal window. A Labor Commissioner award can become final if no appeal is filed within the period in section 98.2.

What to do this week

1. Write down the date of the last harmful act, the date you were fired, and your recent paydays.
2. List every claim you think you may have, and put each one in the table above.
3. Circle the earliest deadline, including the federal 300 days if you may want a federal claim.
4. Gather your notices: any CRD letters, right-to-sue notice, or Labor Commissioner decision, with the dates on them.
5. If you were just let go, work through our checklist for the first week after being fired.
6. Talk with an employment lawyer before the earliest date, not the latest.

Frequently asked questions

Does filing an internal complaint with HR stop any deadline?

Do not count on it. The pauses described on this page come from a pending CRD complaint or a pending Labor Commissioner retaliation complaint, not from a complaint made inside the company.

Can I still file if the three years have passed?

Usually not with the CRD, apart from the narrow extensions in section 12960(e)(6). Other claims with longer periods, such as a written contract wage claim, may still be open, so have the facts reviewed.

What if the CRD closes my case and I disagree?

The CRD says a complainant may appeal the closure of an investigated case by submitting its appeal form within ten calendar days of the date on the Notice of Case Closure letter. Keep the closure letter, because it may also start the one-year period to sue.

Is the deadline different for a wage claim at the Labor Commissioner?

The Labor Commissioner applies the same periods it lists for wage claims: one, two, three or four years depending on the claim. Our guide to a wage claim at the Labor Commissioner's Los Angeles-area offices explains what happens after you file.

Does the waiting time penalty have its own deadline?

No. Under Labor Code section 203(b), a suit for the penalty may be filed at any time before the deadline on the wages it comes from expires. Our page on final paycheck rules in California explains how the penalty is counted.

How can Glendale Law help me meet the deadline?

We guide clients through the administrative steps, prepare the necessary filings and keep track of each deadline so rights are preserved. If you think a deadline may be close, call our Glendale office at (818) 244-9000 as soon as you can. We can usually tell you quickly which time limits apply and what needs to happen first.