QuickBooks New Hire Report for Alaska: Mandatory Fields and Manual Entries
QuickBooks users generating Alaska New Hire Reports must verify mandatory fields like date of birth and first day of work, since some data requires manual confirmation or entry.
QuickBooks includes built-in New Hire Report templates designed to help employers comply with state-specific reporting requirements. For Alaska employers, the report must be filed with the Alaska New Hire Reporting Section within 20 days of an employee’s date of hire. Users generating this report should understand which fields QuickBooks populates automatically, which require manual verification, and which demand additional input.
Alaska Filing Requirements
Both Alaska and federal law require employers to report new hires. Employers who file electronically may transmit twice monthly, with submissions spaced no fewer than twelve and no more than sixteen days apart. The report itself must capture several core data points: the employee’s name, address, Social Security number, date of birth, first day of work, and whether the individual is a rehire or recall — alongside the employer’s company name, address, and Federal Employer Identification Number. Alaska also encourages — though does not require — employers to include the hire date, medical benefit availability, and rehire status.
Fields QuickBooks Populates Automatically
QuickBooks can streamline the New Hire Report by pulling information directly from each employee’s setup record. Two fields in particular benefit from this automation, though both still warrant a quick review before filing.
Employee Date of Birth
Date of birth is a mandatory field on the Alaska report. QuickBooks will import it automatically, but only if the employer has entered it during employee setup. If the field is blank on the report, the underlying employee record likely needs updating first.
Employee Date of Hire or Rehire
QuickBooks imports the hire date from the employee record as well. Alaska defines “date of hire” as the first day an individual performs services for wages. If the imported date does not align with this definition, users can edit it directly on the report form.
Fields Requiring Manual Entry or Review
Several fields on the Alaska New Hire Report call for closer attention. Some are mandatory, others optional, and a few involve logic that QuickBooks applies automatically but may need adjustment depending on circumstances.
First Day of Work
This is a mandatory field, defined as the date an employee first performs paid work. Because most employers treat the hire date and the first day of work as the same thing, QuickBooks automatically transfers the value from the Date of Hire field into the First Day of Work field. Users should confirm this is accurate for each employee before submitting.
Rehired or Recalled
Employers must indicate whether the employee was rehired or recalled. Enter “yes” if so and “no” if not. This field is required and must be completed for every report.
Medical Benefits Availability
This optional field asks whether health insurance benefits are available to the employee. Enter “Yes” if they are and “No” if they are not. While Alaska encourages this information, it is not legally mandated.
Getting Help Within QuickBooks
Users who run into trouble with the form window itself can use the Help button located on that screen for general guidance or troubleshooting specific to the form. The in-product help covers navigation, field explanations, and common issues that arise during report generation.
Best Practices for Alaska Employers
Completing employee records fully at the time of setup prevents most gaps on the New Hire Report. Date of birth and hire date are the two fields most commonly missing, and both are mandatory for Alaska filings. Employers should also review the automatically transferred First Day of Work value rather than assuming it is correct — particularly when orientation or training days precede the actual first paid shift. For broader guidance on managing employee data and payroll compliance tasks, QuickBooks offers resources that walk through setup and reporting workflows.
The Alaska New Hire Report is one of many state-specific templates available in QuickBooks, and understanding its particular requirements helps ensure timely, accurate filings without unnecessary manual cleanup at submission time.