Pennsylvania New Hire Report in QuickBooks: What Employers Need to Know

QuickBooks Desktop includes a built-in New Hire Report for Pennsylvania employers, but the tool’s usefulness depends on understanding which fields the software populates automatically and which ones require a closer look before the report goes to the state.

The Filing Requirement

Pennsylvania requires employers to submit new hire information to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania New Hire Reporting Program within 20 days of an employee’s hire date, rehire, or return to work. The obligation covers a broad range of employment events — not just first-time hires.

Who Counts as a New Hire

The definition extends well beyond someone joining a company for the first time. Employers must report any former employee who returns after a termination, separation, layoff, or unpaid leave of absence lasting more than 30 days. The rules also apply to several specific categories of workers:

Substitute teachers must be reported at initial hire and again if rehired after termination, layoff, separation, or an unpaid leave exceeding 30 days.
Teachers on 9-month or 12-month pay schedules are reported at initial hire and only need re-reporting under the same rehire or extended-leave conditions.
Seasonal employees follow the same re-reporting triggers — termination, layoff, separation, or unpaid leave over 30 days.
Farm workers who receive any form of compensation must be reported.

When an employee returns from a layoff, the hire date on the report should reflect the return-to-work date, not the original hire date.

What the State Requires

Pennsylvania asks for the following on each new hire filing:

Employer name and address
Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN)
Employer contact name and phone number
Employee name and address
Employee Social Security number
State of hire
First day of work

The state also encourages — but does not require — the employee’s date of birth.

Fields QuickBooks Handles Automatically

QuickBooks pulls several data points directly from employee records, which means the accuracy of the report depends on how completely each employee was set up in the system.

Date of Birth — If the employer entered a date of birth during employee setup, QuickBooks imports it into the report. Because the field is optional for Pennsylvania, employers can delete it before submitting if they prefer not to share that information.

Date of Hire — QuickBooks imports the hire date from the employee record. Pennsylvania defines this as the first day the individual performs services for wages or any other compensation. If the date in the system does not match that definition, it can be edited directly on the report.

Date Started to Work or Recalled — This is a mandatory field. The first day of work is defined as the date the employee actually begins performing services.

Why Setup Accuracy Matters

The report is only as reliable as the underlying employee data. Employers who leave fields blank during setup — particularly the hire date — will see gaps on the generated report that need manual correction before filing. Reviewing each entry against Pennsylvania’s definitions before submission is the practical safeguard.

For broader QuickBooks payroll help, including setup and reporting troubleshooting, additional resources are available.

A Practical Note on the Report Window

QuickBooks provides a Help button within the New Hire Report form window itself. For questions about navigating the form or resolving specific display issues, that built-in help is the first stop — it covers the mechanics of the report interface and common field-level problems.

The Pennsylvania New Hire Report is one of those compliance tasks that QuickBooks can streamline significantly, but only when the employer understands the state’s specific definitions and reviews the auto-populated fields rather than trusting them blindly. The 20-day window leaves little room for corrections after a late or inaccurate filing.