There is no single federal checklist for hiring your first employee. What you owe depends on the state they work in, and getting it wrong costs real money. We track it per state so you do not have to.
Eight states of correct, cited, dated data beats fifty states of plausible guesses. More states land as they clear the same bar as these.
Checklist not yet published
Checklist not yet published
Checklist not yet published
Checklist not yet published
Checklist not yet published
Checklist not yet published
Checklist not yet published
Checklist not yet published
Reference material, not legal advice. Every item above carries the primary source it was checked against and the date it was last verified — confirm anything time-sensitive there before you rely on it. This list covers state-level new-hire paperwork only; federal requirements (I-9, tax withholding) apply everywhere and are not repeated per state.
Less onboarding, more of what you built this for
RosterClear turns this list into one link: send it to a new hire and every form, every signature, and every deadline above comes back filed and timestamped. Free for 2 hires, then $5 per person per month.