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Non-Compete Laws in Maryland

Maryland voids non-competes for employees earning 150% of the state minimum wage or less (the state minimum wage is $15.00 an hour), for licensed veterinary practitioners and technicians, and limits them for licensed health care workers in direct patient care.

Last checked . General information, not legal advice.

Maryland at a glance

Status
Restricted: banned for lower-wage workers
Void for workers at or below 150% of the state minimum wage, licensed veterinary practitioners and technicians, and direct patient care health workers earning $350,000 or less.
Enforceable against employees
Only above the wage threshold
Salary threshold
Above 150% of state minimum wage ($22.50 an hour)
150% of the $15.00 state minimum wage in effect since January 1, 2024.
Advance notice required
No
Lab. & Empl. 3-716 contains no advance notice requirement.

Sources

Last checked

The rules in Maryland

Are employee non-compete agreements banned, restricted or enforceable in Maryland?

Status in Maryland: Restricted: banned for lower-wage workers. Void for workers at or below 150% of the state minimum wage, licensed veterinary practitioners and technicians, and direct patient care health workers earning $350,000 or less.

Can an employer enforce a non-compete against an employee in Maryland?

Only above the wage threshold. Enforceable against employees in Maryland: only above the wage threshold.

Is there a minimum salary for a non-compete to be enforceable in Maryland?

Salary threshold in Maryland: Above 150% of state minimum wage ($22.50 an hour). 150% of the $15.00 state minimum wage in effect since January 1, 2024.

Does Maryland require employers to give advance notice of a non-compete?

No. Advance notice required in Maryland: no. Lab. & Empl. 3-716 contains no advance notice requirement.

Where do the Maryland non-compete laws come from?

The rules above come from Md. Code, Lab. & Empl. 3-716 and Md. Code, Lab. & Empl. 3-413. Each source is linked on this page. We last checked them in October 2026.

Good to know

For licensed health care workers in direct patient care earning more than $350,000, a non-compete may last no more than 1 year and cover no more than 10 miles from the primary place of employment.

What this means in practice

Read the restriction closely before signing. Note how long it lasts, the area it covers, which activities it bars and which state's law the contract says applies. A choice-of-law clause does not always control, because some states refuse to apply another state's law to their own residents or workers.

Salary thresholds are often adjusted every year for inflation. If a state uses a threshold, check the figure for the year the agreement was signed or is being enforced, and how the statute defines earnings.

A non-compete is different from a non-solicitation or confidentiality agreement. Many states that limit non-competes still allow narrower clauses that protect trade secrets or customer lists. An employment lawyer can explain how the rules apply to a specific agreement.

General information, not legal advice. Laws change, and cities can add their own rules, so check the current statute before you rely on it.