Welcome to the Employment Development Department

New Hire Reporting

New Employee Registry - California's New Hire Reporting Program

As an employer, you play a vital role in the success of California's New Employee Registry.

Fact Sheet - Background and purpose of reporting
Reporting Requirements - Information that must be reported
Reporting Formats - Electronic and paper reporting options
Multistate Employers - Reporting choices for employers with employees in more than one state
New Employee Registry Hotline - Phone number and hours
Frequently Asked Questions - Answers to questions you may have

Fact Sheet

Children of child support debtors often become dependent on public assistance (welfare) because a parent does not provide financial support as obligated. Under the New Employee Registry program:

  • Employers report their newly hired employees to the Registry. California matches New Employee Registry reports against child support records to help locate parents in order to establish wage withholding orders or enforce existing orders.
  • The information is also sent to the National Directory of New Hires to locate delinquent debtors in other states. Nearly 30 percent of child support cases involve parents who do not live in the same state as their children.

Effective January 1, 2001, businesses and government entities are required to report specific independent contractor information to EDD. Like the New Employee Registry, Independent Contractor Reporting will increase child support collection by helping to locate parents who are delinquent in their child support obligations.

Reporting Requirements

All California employers must report all their new or rehired employees who work in California to the New Employee Registry within twenty (20) days of their start-of-work date. The start-of-work date is the first day services were performed for wages. Employers who file on magnetic media must submit two files each month.

The following information must be reported:

  • Employee's full name, social security number, address, and start-of-work date.
  • Employer's name, address, California employer account number, and federal employer identification number (FEIN).
Reporting Formats
  • Employers may use any of the following to report new employee information:
  • Submit a Report of New Employee(s) (DE 34) electronically with e-Services-File (Minimum browser requirements: Internet Explorer 6.0 or Netscape 7.2); or
  • Submit on magnetic media using a CD-R, 3 1/2 inch diskette, and IBM 3480 or 3490 tape cartridge. Please call the Magnetic Media Unit at (916) 651-6945 or if you have the Adobe Acrobat Reader, download the Magnetic Media Reporting Requirements for New Employee Registry Program (DE 340); or
  • Submit a paper Report of New Employee(s), DE 34. A fill-in DE 34 can be downloaded if you have the Adobe Reader. Forms may also be ordered on the Internet Order Form or by calling our toll-free number 888-745-3886 or visiting your nearest Employment Tax Office. You may also print your data directly from your computer to the DE 34 by following the Print Specifications; or
  • Submit a copy of the employee's W-4 form. You must add the employee's start-of-work date, your California employer account number and Federal employer identification number (FEIN) to the W-4. You may also create your own form as long as it has all the required information.

To report new employees, mail or fax information to:

Mail:
Employment Development Department
Document Management Group, MIC 96
P.O. Box 997016
West Sacramento, CA 95799-7016

Fax:
(916) 319-4400

Multistate Employers

Employers who hire employees in more than one state may elect to report, electronically or magnetically, all newly hired employees to one state in which they have employees. This will relieve employers of the need to report new hires to several different states. Multistate employers who choose to file to one state must notify the federal Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Child Support Enforcement. See Reporting Formats for information on electronic reporting.

For more information, visit the California Department of Child Support (DCSS) Employer Resource Center Web site.

To contact the New Employee Registry Hotline, call (916) 657-0529, Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (PST). For magnetic media reporting, call (916) 651-6945. NOTE: Offices will be closed on Fridays designated as Furlough Days. (July 10th, 17th, 24th and the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Fridays of each month until June 30, 2010.)

Frequently Asked Questions

Thank you for your support of the California New Employee Registry program. Your cooperation will make an important difference in the lives of many children in need.