As more states move to regulate earned wage access (EWA), providers are adjusting to a shifting legal and operational environment. In an interview, ZayZoon CEO Darcy Tuer discussed navigating through the evolving EWA landscape and what broader implications it may have for employers and workers.
Expanding state regulation
“When [ZayZoon] started, I always said, the best thing, the best result we could hope for, was that this would be a regulated industry, because we’re certainly advocates of that,” Tuer said. He noted that EWA-related legislation has already been implemented in more than 10 states, with several more having either passed or proposed bills “in flight, if you will.”
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, at least 20 states have pending EWA legislation in 2025. While the specifics vary, many of these laws stop short of classifying EWA as a form of credit-an approach Tuer supports.
He expects the market to mature further through legislation that “(A) recognizes the importance of EWA, (b) puts some guardrails in, certainly to protect consumers, and then (c) is nuanced to the extent that it allows for the flexibility of EWA and the intention to provide employees with optionality on how they choose to receive their earned income.”
Federal lag behind state momentum
Tuer also addressed the possibility of federal regulation. “We would love to see the federal government participate in the development of legislation,” he said, though he acknowledged that progress is likely to continue to come from states first. “It’ll likely take activity, manifesting state by state, and really ideally, getting to the critical mass where the federal government sees this signal that this is something that could be regulated.”
While the federal government has taken steps toward regulating earned wage access, no measures have yet been finalized. A bill introduced in Congress — H.R.7428, the Earned Wage Access Consumer Protection Act — would clarify that EWA products are not considered consumer credit under the Truth in Lending Act. The bill would also require providers to disclose all fees, inform users of their rights, and establish formal dispute resolution procedures.
Separately, the U.S. Treasury Department’s fiscal year 2025 revenue proposals include a provision to clarify the tax treatment of on-demand pay arrangements. The proposal seeks to amend sections of the Internal Revenue Code related to constructive receipt, but Congress has not acted on it to date.
In addition, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) proposed an interpretive rule in 2024 that would have classified many EWA products as consumer credit under federal law. However, in May 2025, the CFPB formally withdrew that and other guidance documents, including its 2020 advisory opinion on EWA, as part of a broader rollback of non-binding regulatory interpretations.
Connecticut’s course correction on EWA
But not all state-level efforts have been welcomed either. Tuer pointed to Connecticut’s 2024 law as an example of overreach. “Connecticut rolled out legislation…that effectively precluded our ability to operate,” he said. “Connecticut’s legislation at the time made it impossible for us, and effectively, every other EWA provider [was] prohibited from offering our service.”
A University of Connecticut study found that after the law took effect, users turned to more expensive alternatives like payday loans and credit cards. “They didn’t end up over drafting their bank accounts more. They did end up getting drawn into much more expensive payday predatory loans,” Tuer said.
He noted that this consequence prompted lawmakers to draft a more workable version of the legislation. “It’s not perfect, but much more viable for EWA providers,” Tuer added.
Connecticut’s new EWA law, Senate Bill 1396 , takes effect on October 1, 2025, establishing licensing requirements, consumer protections, and limits on advance amounts and fees for EWA providers.
Managing compliance across jurisdictions
As more states implement their own EWA regulations, providers are adjusting their operations to stay compliant across jurisdictions. Tuer explained that like many in the industry, his company works with many payroll providers and businesses nationwide.
“We effectively take on the responsibility of offering this product within the frameworks of each respective state,” he said. While state laws differ, Tuer said that the variations have not significantly complicated operations. “We don’t see a tremendous amount of nuance between the various states… it hasn’t been a huge burden for us to be plugged into all of these scale companies operating in every state.”
Employer adoption and financial impact
For employers considering EWA, tools are available to help estimate the potential return on investment. Tuer noted that such tools can help quantify the bottom-line effect of offering EWA.
He said employers can estimate the potential financial impact of EWA by analyzing projected improvements in retention and productivity. Tuer stressed, for small businesses with notable annual payroll expenses, even modest improvements in retention and productivity can translate into substantial cost savings.
Larger employers can also see significant benefits. “McDonald’s offers their own wage access… they get double the number of inbound applicants,” he said. “We see an improvement in retention of more than 25%. We see higher productivity rates at employers because their employees are getting this pressure relief… this ability to effectively feel empowered by way of being able to access their own hard-earned wages.”
Recent research from the American Fintech Council found that eight in 10 U.S. voters support access to EWA services, and 87% believe that losing access would likely push workers toward high-cost alternatives like payday loans or credit cards. For employers, tools that estimate the financial impact of EWA can help assess whether offering the benefit makes business sense.
Expanding EWA beyond on-demand pay
Tuer additionally discussed expanding EWA offerings into financial education, tax filing, and insurance products. “We partnered with a tax provider, and they gave us a pretty big swath of free licenses for our customers to file their taxes,” he said. “Thousands of customers that were able to file their taxes for free, that may not have filed their taxes, that may have filed their taxes late.”
Artificial intelligence and machine learning are other tools that can be integrated with EWA. “I think AI has a ton of applications within the customers that we’re dealing with,” Tuer said.
He explained that many customers may lack financial education or make urgent decisions that aren’t in their long-term interest. By analyzing data such as employment type, income patterns, and job history, providers can identify usage trends and offer timely, relevant financial tools to help users make better-informed choices.
Tuer added that these technologies also support customer service and reduce friction in accessing earned wages, with the broader goal of delivering contextual support that aligns with users’ financial needs and behaviors.
Tuer concluded that a guiding principle for EWA is to be agile. “We actually-a word we use often is just flexibility-like let’s give them options to leverage their hard-earned work, to leverage this relationship they have with their employers.”
