What it means for you
A 2026 law lifts the state minimum wage from $12.77 to $13.75 on Jan. 1, 2027, and to $15 on Jan. 1, 2028. After that, it adjusts annually based on inflation.
Who benefits: Workers covered by Virginia's minimum wage law who earn less than $15 an hour, including covered domestic workers.
If you earn the minimum wage in Virginia, your pay floor goes up twice in the next two years. It is $12.77 an hour in 2026. On Jan. 1, 2027, it becomes $13.75, and on Jan. 1, 2028, it becomes $15. Starting in 2029, the state adjusts it every year to keep up with rising prices. You don’t have to apply; employers must pay at least the new rate to workers covered by the law.
That’s $2.23 more per hour by 2028, or roughly $4,600 a year for someone working 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year.
The law builds on a 2020 law that first lifted Virginia off the $7.25 federal minimum. Del. Jeion Ward carried bills to reach $15 in 2024 and 2025, and Sen. Louise Lucas carried the 2024 Senate version, but Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) vetoed them. In 2026, Ward and Lucas carried the bills again. HB 1 passed the House of Delegates 64–34 and the Senate 21–19, and Gov. Abigail Spanberger approved it on April 8, 2026. She approved separate legislation the same day that removes the blanket minimum-wage exemption for farmworkers starting in 2027.
Work and wagesLower costs
Where it stands, and how we know
Source for this status, checked November 11, 2026.
Sources
- Code of Virginia § 40.1-28.10: Minimum wageVirginia Legislative Information System
- Governor Spanberger signs bills to raise minimum wage, boost workforce training, and support economic growthOffice of the Governor of Virginia, April 9, 2026
- Virginia to raise minimum wage to $15 by 2028 under new lawWHRO, April 10, 2026
- Youngkin vetoes minimum wage hike, prescription affordability board billsVirginia Mercury, March 24, 2025
- HB 1, 2024 Session: bill historyVirginia Legislative Information System
- SB 1, 2024 Session: bill historyVirginia Legislative Information System
- Youngkin vetoes minimum wage hike, prescription affordability board billsWHRO, March 25, 2025
- 2026 Acts of Assembly, Chapter 358Virginia Legislative Information System, April 8, 2026
How we checked this
Drafted by Claude Opus 5.5 (Anthropic) on November 11, 2026. Checked against its sources by GPT-5.6-sol (OpenAI) on November 11, 2026, which corrected it. Confirmed the enacted wage schedule, sponsors, signing date, existing roll calls, and current status. Added the companion bill’s missing final-passage votes and narrowed the farmworker statement to match the law’s retained exemptions.
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