New Hire Checklist Template

A successful onboarding process depends on how well you can track specific tasks that need to be done once a candidate has accepted an offer leading up to their joining.

For HR managers, a New Hire Checklist is a roadmap of all documentary requirements that must be met for every new hire: from legal requirements such as proof of citizenship status and tax forms to a company’s hiring SOPs, a structured checklist is the best way to make sure no important detail is missed out.

Our template covers four different types of documentation, including (a) employee verification documents such as previous employment checks, (b) employment documents such as payroll forms, (c) legal compliance documents such as proof of eligibility to work & required tax forms, as well as documents pertaining to available benefits and allowances.

While different industries and state jurisdictions have different legal & regulatory requirements, our checklist is only based on the most common and frequently used documents when hiring a new employee in the US. In addition to helping HR keep an official internal record, our checklist is also a great way to ensure all new employees are subjected to the same onboarding treatment.

You can easily customize our checklist to suit your own organizational needs & local contexts.

Now, let’s walk you through each part of our Checklist:

Employee Verification Documents

This first part of our checklist allows you to verify the work history of applicants, confirming that all personal and professional details provided on their resumes are true.

Collect background check consent form

HR must obtain prior consent from a new hire to run any background checks deemed necessary in light of a specific job role. A formal consent form typically includes the employee’s full name, date of birth, and Social Security Number. 

By signing this form, a new hire authorizes an employer to contact previous employers/schools, and holds harmless any party that conducts the background check. They also acknowledge that the information provided in their application is true and correct to the best of their knowledge.

Verify previous employment

Once you have formal consent from your prospective hire, it’s time to dig deeper into their professional history by running some necessary background checks. 

In this step, an HR official formally reaches out to a past employer to verify details such as designation, job tenure, salary, and conduct and behavior. Doing this ensures that the new hire is a good fit for the organization. For roles that involve finances or handling money, you may also need to run credit checks. 

Collect social security or national insurance numbers

In this step, HR confirms that an individual’s identity credentials are authentic. This means collecting government-issued identification documents, such as a social security card (in the US), or a national insurance card (in the case of the UK). This step ensures regulatory compliance and prevents a case of identity or tax-related fraud.

For those who don’t know, Social Security number (SSN) is a unique identifier assigned to U.S. citizens and residents to track their income and process government benefits & services. HR departments need the SSN of all employees for tax reporting and withholding purposes.  

If you are taking on a new employee in the UK, you will need to ask them for their National Insurance number. Doing this will verify that they have the right to work in the UK and ensure that National Insurance contributions are recorded against their name only.

Proof of immunization records

Check this box once you have all the necessary immunization (or vaccination) records of a new hire. This may be a legal requirement in specific industries such as healthcare and child care. Note that as per the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, employers can require you to get a vaccine (a flu shot, for example) in order to protect their employers, but employees must also be given relevant information describing how vaccines benefit them and their workplace.  

This section can also refer to any medical note or certificate by a registered doctor or pharmacist that speaks to a candidate’s physical suitability for a specific kind of job. For instance, a motor vehicle operator or a pilot may be required to meet certain vision requirements, say, in the United States, pilots flying for airlines are required to have 20/20 vision to see near, corrected, or uncorrected.

Offer and Employment Documents

For this part of our checklist, HR must keep a record of the new employee’s offer acceptance as well as collect payroll and personal information forms such as medical information forms.

Receive offer acceptance documentation

HR must keep a record of the new hire’s acceptance of the job offer. This written and formal communication must include the agreed-upon terms and conditions pertaining to salary, job title, and other benefits. Acceptance may be shared in the form of a hand-signed letter, or an email including the employee’s electronic signature.

Collect the payroll form

Payroll is the process of paying a company’s employees. A payroll form allows you to track the pay of each new employee as well as calculate how much federal income tax and Social Security/Medicare taxes (FICA) need to be withheld from their paychecks.

Every new hire must complete and sign a W-4 Payroll Form to provide their employer with information about how much federal income tax to withhold. 

Collect personal information forms

In this step of our onboarding journey, we collect personal information that goes beyond mere identification and reference checks. In particular, HR must ensure new hires fill out emergency contact forms to be used in case of a workplace accident or other emergency. This should contain the names of at least two emergency contacts (such as family members, friends, or other trusted individuals) along with their email addresses and phone numbers.

It is also common practice for new employees to fill out a medical information form designed to streamline employee health data collection and management within an organization. This form is used to submit details about their medical history, obtain consent for a pre-employment physical examination, and apprise HR of any special workplace measures needed to create a welcoming environment. 

Legal and Compliance Documents

When you hire a new worker, you need to be familiar with the documents you’re legally required to file, such as proof of eligibility to work, signed contracts, confidentiality agreements, and tax forms.

Now let’s go over each of these in more detail:

Receive proof of eligibility to work

All new hires must prove they’re eligible to work in that respective country. In the US, this is usually done by filling out an I-9 Form. Both employees and employers work together to complete the form where an employee must submit relevant documents as evidence of identity  (such as a Social Security Card, US Passport, etc.) and employment authorization. HR then examines these to gauge whether they reasonably appear to be genuine, and record the information on the employee’s form as proof of their eligibility to work.

Receive a signed copy of the employment contract

HR must have a copy of the final employment contract signed by the employee. A signed copy serves as a legally enforceable document stating that both parties agree to be bound by contract terms and conditions, and are fully aware of any legal or disciplinary consequences resulting from a breach of contractual duties.

Confirm a non-disclosure or confidentiality agreement

Confidentiality agreements are important for all companies as they help protect sensitive information and trade secrets. HR must ensure that new hires sign a permanent non-disclosure agreement to safeguard any confidential information or data revealed by the Company during employment (even after the period of employment has ended).

Receive required tax forms

When you hire a new employee, tax forms are required by law. In the US, every new hire must complete and sign a W-4 Form. This form includes information such as marital status and number of dependents, and authorizes you to collect and withhold federal income tax from your employee’s wages.

Benefits Enrollment

For most organizations in the USA, a new hire has a window period of up to 30 days for new hires to enroll in benefits. Before this grace period is over, HR must verify and guide new hires about the benefits available to them such as health insurance and retirement plans.

Confirm provision of allowance

In this part, HR must confirm if the new hire is eligible for any special allowance to cover any specific expenses related to their jobs, such as travel or equipment costs.

Collect benefit forms

Benefits are a form of indirect compensation that organizations offer to their employees. Benefit forms are a vital tool used by companies to streamline their employee benefits process by capturing essential information accurately and ensuring compliance with legal standards.

The most common of these forms is a health benefits form which allows an employee to enroll or waive health insurance coverage.  While the starting date for benefits may vary depending on the company’s policies, most health benefits forms will specify the type of coverage offered (say,  Employee Only or Employee + Spouse), and applicable benefits, such as wellness programs, and gym memberships.

Who Can Benefit From Our Checklist?

While managers typically supervise the onboarding process, new-hire checklists can also be used by other team members and departments in your company:

• HR teams can use new hire checklists to make sure all necessary documentation complies with hiring requirements.
• Training and development teams can use employee onboarding checklists to plan and track the training sessions needed for the role.
• Employees themselves can use the checklist to help them navigate through the hiring process, allowing them to take ownership of certain tasks and responsibilities.

To Sum Up

A new hire checklist of things to do is a valuable tool to help you address the problem of tracking multiple hiring steps while ensuring compliance with legal and organizational requirements. By following a structured template, HR can efficiently onboard new employees, making sure no tasks are overlooked.

Spearhead a successful onboarding process that makes an impact with our fillable New Hire Checklist, which is available in Word, Google Docs, and PDF formats.

Feel free to check our pre-boarding and onboarding checklist to help you more effectively integrate new employees into your workplace!

Frequently Asked Questions