A non-compete agreement restricts an employee from working for competitors or starting a competing business for a set time after leaving. Used carefully, it protects trade secrets and client relationships.
Most non-compete templates online are dangerously out of date. The top-ranking ones still describe the FTC ban as pending, miss Wyoming's 2025 ban entirely, and know nothing about Florida's CHOICE Act.
This page gives you the current template and the current law: where non-competes are void, where income floors apply in 2026, and the clauses specific states require.
Is a non-compete enforceable in your state? (June 2026)
| Jurisdiction | 2026 rule | Key figure or condition |
|---|---|---|
| California, Minnesota, North Dakota, Oklahoma | Void for employees | Narrow exceptions (sale of business, partnership dissolution) |
| Wyoming | Void since July 1, 2025 | Exceptions: business sale, trade secrets, executive and management personnel |
| Washington | Income floor; full ban enacted | $126,858.83 (2026); total ban takes effect June 30, 2027 |
| Colorado | Income floor | $130,014 non-compete; $78,008.40 non-solicit (2026) |
| Washington DC | Income floor | $162,164; $270,274 for medical specialists (2026) |
| Oregon | Income floor | $119,541 (2026) |
| Illinois | Income floor | $75,000; out-of-state choice of law banned from Jan 2026 |
| Virginia | Low-wage ban, expanded | Banned for all overtime-eligible employees since July 1, 2025 |
| Maryland | Income floor | $49,920 (from July 1, 2026); higher caps for healthcare |
| Maine | Income floor | $63,840 (400 percent of federal poverty level) |
| Rhode Island | Income floor | $39,900 (2026) |
| New Hampshire | Income floor | $30,160 (2x federal minimum wage basis) |
| Nevada | Hourly ban | Void for employees paid solely on an hourly basis |
| Massachusetts | Strict requirements | 12-month cap, garden leave or agreed consideration, 10 business days notice |
| Florida | Expanded (CHOICE Act) | Up to 4 years for earners above 2x county mean wage; 7-day notice |
| All other states | Reasonableness test | 6 to 24 months typical; narrow territory and scope required |
Sector rules add another layer: physician and healthcare non-competes are now banned or capped in Pennsylvania (from January 2025), Wyoming, Maryland, and a growing list of states.
What happened to the FTC non-compete ban?
This is the single most common error on competing template pages: most still describe the ban as pending or recently blocked. If a page's FTC section ends in early 2025, treat its legal guidance as stale.
Case by case is not theoretical. In April 2026 the FTC ordered Rollins, the pest-control group, to stop enforcing non-competes against more than 18,000 workers, its first major action under the new approach. Broad non-competes for ordinary employees can still draw an FTC challenge under Section 5 of the FTC Act, even with no blanket rule in force.
How to fill this template out
Overreach is the main way employers lose. A nationwide territory for a regional salesperson, a five-year period, or a ban on working in the entire industry invites a court to void the whole covenant in states that refuse to rewrite agreements.
Pair this agreement with an employment NDA for confidentiality and keep the two documents separate: NDAs remain enforceable everywhere, including the five ban states.
Non-compete agreement FAQ
Are non-competes enforceable?
In most states yes, if reasonable in duration, geography, and scope, and supported by valid consideration. They are void for most employees in California, Minnesota, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Wyoming, and unenforceable below income thresholds in 11 more jurisdictions.
Did the FTC ban non-competes?
It tried in 2024, lost in court, abandoned its appeals in September 2025, and removed the rule in February 2026. There is no federal ban; state law governs.
How long can a non-compete last?
Six to twelve months is the defensible norm. Massachusetts caps most at 12 months, many courts presume more than 24 months unreasonable, and Florida's CHOICE Act now allows up to 4 years for high earners who get its protections.
What makes a non-compete invalid?
Overbroad territory or duration, vague definitions of competition, missing consideration (especially for existing employees in Pennsylvania and Massachusetts), skipped notice requirements, or an employee below the state's income threshold.
Is a non-compete enforceable if you are fired?
Often yes, but it depends on the state and the agreement. Massachusetts voids non-competes for employees terminated without cause, and courts elsewhere weigh involuntary termination against enforcement.
Can I use one agreement for every state?
No. The five ban states void it, threshold states need the income check, Massachusetts needs the garden-leave clause and notice, and Illinois voids out-of-state governing law. Generate a state-specific version instead of reusing one form.
Sources and references
FTC rule status: FTC press release, September 5, 2025 and the Federal Register removal, February 12, 2026. Wyoming ban: Littler, 2025. Florida CHOICE Act: Littler and DLA Piper, 2025.
2026 income thresholds: Epstein Becker Green and the Fair Competition Law chart, January 21, 2026. Massachusetts requirements: M.G.L. c. 149, s. 24L. Pennsylvania consideration rule: Socko v. Mid-Atlantic Systems (Pa. 2015). Virginia expansion: Duane Morris, April 2025. Laws change; verify your state's current rule before signing.
This template and page are general information, not legal advice. Non-compete law is changing fast at the state level; confirm your state's current statute or talk to an employment attorney before relying on this. Related: employment NDA template and the employment templates library.
