Washington Payroll Agencies: Official Links for Employers
Last reviewed: July 2026
Every employer in Washington ends up dealing with the same short list of government offices: one for tax registration, one for unemployment insurance, one for reporting new hires, and one for wage rules. This page keeps the official links in one place so you never have to dig for them through search results and lookalike sites. Bookmark it; we keep it current.
| What you need | Official Washington resource |
|---|---|
| Tax / revenue department (withholding & registration) | Washington Department of Revenue (business license registration; Washington has no state income tax, so there is no withholding agency) |
| Unemployment insurance (SUI) registration & reporting | Washington Employment Security Department (ESD) |
| New-hire reporting | Washington Division of Child Support (DCS) |
| Labor department (wage & hour rules) | Washington Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) |
A note on lookalike sites: many well-ranked pages imitate state portals and charge fees for registrations the state handles free. The links above go to government sites only. If a site asks for payment just to give you an account number, close the tab.
Washington Payroll Quick Facts (2026)
| Minimum wage | $17.13 |
|---|---|
| State income tax withholding | None (no state income tax) |
| SUI new-employer rate | 1.00% minimum (new employers are assigned 115% of their industry's average rate, floor set at 1.00%) |
| SUI taxable wage base | $78,200 |
| Payday frequency rule | Wages must be paid on an established regular payday at least once a month; pay periods shorter than a month require a payday no later than 10 calendar days after the pay period ends (WAC 296-126-023). |
| New-hire reporting deadline | 20 days |
Verified 2026-07 against official Washington sources.