The final phase-in step happened this week
Florida's minimum wage reached $15 an hour September 30, 2026, completing the phase-in voters approved in 2020. The state's official employee notice set out that date in advance, and September 30 payroll guidance now describes the rate as in effect.
The previous statewide floor was $14. The new tipped cash minimum is $11.98 for workers covered by the permitted tip credit, according to current payroll guidance. Cash wages and qualifying tips together still need to meet the full applicable minimum. A lower base wage does not remove that test.
A tipped cash wage is not the whole requirement
The state notice says employers may not retaliate against people exercising minimum-wage rights. It describes a civil-claim route after notifying the employer and allowing fifteen days to address unpaid wages. Specific facts and applicable rules still matter; the headline is not a personalized determination of back pay.
Compare actual hours, cash wages and tips on records after the effective date. Do not treat the cash-only figure as the full wage floor or assume every salaried job follows the same calculation. The scheduled $15 step is current this week. Future inflation adjustments are a separate annual process, not a reason to substitute an unannounced future rate for the one now in force.