Oregon Non-Compete Agreement
Oregon enforces employee non-competes only above an inflation-adjusted salary floor and for up to 12 months under ORS 653.295. Attorney review available.
Introduction
A non-compete agreement is a contract in which an employee agrees not to compete with a business after the job ends, and Oregon pins that promise to an inflation-adjusted salary floor, a two-week hiring notice, and a strict twelve-month ceiling. In Oregon these agreements are enforceable, but only within the strict limits of ORS 653.295. A non-compete an employer enters into on or after January 1, 2022 is void and unenforceable unless every statutory condition is met. The employer must inform the employee, in a written employment offer received at least two weeks before the first day of work, that a non-compete is required, or the agreement must follow a bona fide advancement. The employee must be an exempt salaried administrative, executive, or professional worker under ORS 653.020(3). The employer must have a protectable interest, meaning the employee has access to trade secrets or to competitively sensitive confidential business, professional, or technical information. The employee's annual gross salary and commissions at termination must exceed a floor set in the statute at $100,533 and adjusted every year for inflation, so the current figure is higher and must be confirmed. The employer must also give the employee a signed, written copy of the terms within 30 days after termination, and the restriction may not last more than 12 months. An employer can bind a lower-paid worker only by using a garden-leave option and paying during the restricted period. This page explains Oregon's rules and offers a template scoped to what Oregon actually permits. It is a state-law overview, not a promise that any given clause will hold up.
Key Things to Know
- 1
A non-compete agreement is a contract in which one party, usually an employee, agrees not to compete with a business for a set time and area after the relationship ends. In Oregon it is enforceable only within the strict limits of ORS 653.295.
- 2
Oregon voids a non-compete unless every statutory condition is met. Under ORS 653.295 an agreement entered into on or after January 1, 2022 is void and unenforceable unless it satisfies the salary floor, notice, exempt-employee, protectable-interest, 30-day-copy, and 12-month rules together.
- 3
There is a salary floor and it rises every year. The employee's annual gross salary and commissions must exceed a figure the statute sets at $100,533 and adjusts annually for inflation (CPI-U, West Region), so the current-year floor is higher, reported near $119,541 for 2026. Confirm the current figure and do not use another state's number.
- 4
The restriction cannot run longer than 12 months from the date of termination (ORS 653.295), a cap HB 2992 reduced from 18 months in 2022. The employer must also have a protectable interest, and courts in Oregon generally require the geographic scope and restricted activity to be no broader than necessary.
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Notice and timing are strict. The employer must tell the employee in a written job offer, received at least two weeks before the first day of work, that a non-compete is required, or the agreement must follow a bona fide advancement, and the employer must give a signed written copy of the terms within 30 days after termination.
- 6
Only exempt salaried administrative, executive, or professional workers under ORS 653.020(3) can be bound. A lower-paid or below-threshold worker can be held to a non-compete only if the employer chooses the garden-leave option and pays, during the restriction, the greater of 50 percent of the worker's base salary and commissions or 50 percent of the adjusted floor.
- 7
Bonus restriction agreements and covenants not to solicit employees or customers sit outside ORS 653.295, so Oregon employers often protect confidential information with a nondisclosure agreement and the Oregon Uniform Trade Secrets Act (ORS 646.461 to 646.475) instead of, or alongside, a non-compete.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Non-Compete Agreement in Oregon, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Non-Compete Agreement guide walks through them.
Open the Non-Compete Agreement guideCustomize your Non-Compete Agreement Template with DocDraft
Oregon Requirements for Non-Compete Agreement
In Oregon an employee non-compete is enforceable, but only within ORS 653.295. A non-compete entered into on or after January 1, 2022 is void and unenforceable unless it satisfies every statutory condition together: the notice rule, the exempt-employee rule, a protectable interest, the salary floor, the 30-day copy rule, and the 12-month cap. A covenant that misses any one of these cannot be enforced in Oregon.
The employee's annual gross salary and commissions at termination must exceed a floor the statute sets at $100,533 and adjusts every year for inflation (CPI-U, West Region), so the current-year figure is higher, reported near $119,541 for 2026 (ORS 653.295). Confirm the current amount before relying on it, and do not substitute any other state's salary number.
A non-compete may not last more than 12 months from the date of termination (ORS 653.295), a cap HB 2992 reduced from 18 months for agreements entered into on or after January 1, 2022. A restriction written to run longer than 12 months exceeds what Oregon permits. Courts in Oregon generally also require the geographic scope and restricted activity to be reasonable and no broader than necessary.
The employer must inform the employee in a written employment offer received at least two weeks before the first day of work that a non-compete is required, or the agreement must follow a bona fide advancement (ORS 653.295). The employer must also provide a signed, written copy of the terms within 30 days after the employment ends. A covenant missing either step is unenforceable in Oregon.
Only an exempt salaried administrative, executive, or professional employee described in ORS 653.020(3) can be bound, and only when the employer has a protectable interest such as access to trade secrets or competitively sensitive confidential business, professional, or technical information. Hourly and non-exempt workers generally cannot be held to an Oregon non-compete.
An employer can enforce a non-compete against an employee who earns below the salary floor only through a paid garden-leave option: the employer must agree in writing to pay, during the restricted period of up to 12 months, the greater of 50 percent of the employee's annual gross base salary and commissions at termination or 50 percent of the adjusted $100,533 amount (ORS 653.295). Without that paid commitment, the covenant is void.
Because a non-compete is void unless every ORS 653.295 condition is met, Oregon employers commonly protect confidential information with a nondisclosure agreement backed by the Oregon Uniform Trade Secrets Act (ORS 646.461 to 646.475) and with a covenant not to solicit customers or coworkers. Bonus restriction and nonsolicitation agreements sit outside ORS 653.295 and are not subject to its salary floor or 12-month cap.
The 2024 Federal Trade Commission non-compete rule was set aside by a federal court before it took effect, so it is not currently binding, and its status remains unsettled. Oregon does not depend on it: ORS 653.295 independently governs non-competes in Oregon, enforcing them only above the inflation-adjusted salary floor, for 12 months or less, and only when properly noticed and tied to a protectable interest.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, but only within strict limits. Under ORS 653.295 a non-compete entered into on or after January 1, 2022 is void and unenforceable unless the employer gave the required two-week written notice or the agreement followed a bona fide advancement, the employee is an exempt salaried administrative, executive, or professional worker, the employer has a protectable interest, the employee's pay exceeds an inflation-adjusted salary floor, and the employer provides a signed copy within 30 days after termination. A covenant that misses any of these is unenforceable in Oregon.
No more than 12 months from the date the employee's employment ends. ORS 653.295 caps the term at 12 months, a limit HB 2992 lowered from 18 months for agreements entered into on or after January 1, 2022. A restriction written to last longer than 12 months exceeds what Oregon allows. Even within the cap, courts in Oregon generally require the geographic area and restricted activity to be reasonable and no broader than necessary to protect the employer's legitimate interest.
The employee's annual gross salary and commissions at termination must exceed an inflation-adjusted floor. ORS 653.295 sets the base figure at $100,533 and adjusts it every year for inflation using the Consumer Price Index for the West Region, so the current-year number is higher; secondary sources report it near $119,541 for 2026. Confirm the current figure before relying on it. Below that floor, the non-compete is void unless the employer uses the garden-leave option and pays the worker during the restricted period.
Under ORS 653.295 the employer must inform the employee, in a written employment offer received at least two weeks before the first day of work, that a non-compete is a condition of employment. If that two-week advance notice was not given, the agreement is enforceable only if it was entered into upon a later bona fide advancement of the employee. Separately, the employer must provide a signed, written copy of the terms within 30 days after the employment ends. Missing either step makes the covenant unenforceable in Oregon.
Only through the garden-leave option. ORS 653.295 lets an employer enforce a non-compete against a below-threshold worker for up to 12 months if the employer agrees in writing to pay, during the restricted period, the greater of 50 percent of the employee's annual gross base salary and commissions at termination or 50 percent of the adjusted $100,533 amount. Without that paid garden-leave commitment, a non-compete against an employee who earns under the Oregon salary floor is void.
Only exempt salaried administrative, executive, or professional employees described in ORS 653.020(3), and only when the employer has a protectable interest such as access to trade secrets or competitively sensitive confidential information. Hourly and non-exempt workers generally cannot be bound. ORS 653.295 also does not reach bonus restriction agreements or covenants not to solicit an employer's employees or customers, which Oregon treats separately and does not subject to the salary floor and 12-month cap.
They use a nondisclosure or confidentiality agreement backed by the Oregon Uniform Trade Secrets Act (ORS 646.461 to 646.475), and often a covenant not to solicit customers or coworkers. These tools protect confidential information and customer relationships without restraining where a former employee can work, and because they sit outside ORS 653.295 they are not subject to the salary floor or the 12-month cap, which makes them a common alternative when an Oregon non-compete would be void.
No. In 2024 the Federal Trade Commission issued a rule that would have banned most non-competes nationwide, but a federal court set it aside before it took effect, so it is not currently in force and its status has remained unsettled. Either way, non-competes in Oregon continue to be governed by ORS 653.295 and Oregon common law: enforceable only above the inflation-adjusted salary floor, for 12 months or less, and only when properly noticed and tied to a protectable interest.