How to Do Payroll in Nevada in 9 Steps

Nevada does not have a state income tax, and its overall reporting requirements are easy to follow. It does not require state disability insurance but does charge state unemployment taxes (SUTA) quarterly.

You may prefer to find a payroll software or service that handles all the rules and filings for you. QuickBooks Payroll covers Nevada along with the other 49 states and stays up-to-date on state compliance rules. You can pay your employees via direct deposit at no additional cost, and employee health benefits available. Click below to start a 30-day free trial.

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Step by Step Instructions to Running Payroll in Nevada

Below are the basic steps for managing payroll in Nevada. For more guidance on the general payroll process, check out our article on how to do payroll.

Step 1: Set up your business as an employer. At the federal level, you need your employer identification number (EIN) and an account in the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS).

Step 2: Register with the state of Nevada. Use your federal EIN to register for a Nevada Unemployment Insurance tax account. Go to the Employer Self Service section of the state’s UI website, and under “I want to,” click on “Create a new online user account.”

If you want to pay by ACH Debit, you need to fill out the ACH Debit Authorization Form and fax it to the state for approval.

Step 3: Create your payroll process. You may have inherited a payroll process if your business is established. However, if your company is brand-new, you may need to start your payroll process, which includes deciding when and how often you’ll be paying employees and how you’ll track and calculate hourly employees’ work time. You can opt to do payroll yourself by hand, set up an Excel payroll template, or use a payroll service to help you handle your Nevada payroll.

Step 4: Collect employee payroll forms. It is ideal to do this during onboarding. Some of the most common payroll forms that small businesses need include W-4, I-9, and direct deposit information. Nevada does not have additional forms, although you will want to report your new hires.

Step 5: Collect, review, and approve time sheets. Several days before your payroll is due collect and review documented work time from hourly and nonexempt employees so you can speak with anyone who might have made mistakes. There are numerous ways to track employee time—including using one of our free time sheet templates. If you have employees who work or live out of state, tracking where they perform the bulk of their work is important as it can affect whether or not you are liable for state unemployment insurance (UI).

Step 6: Calculate employee payroll and taxes. Try to use a standard process or payroll software to calculate pay—not only will this be easier, but it will reduce inaccuracies. There are many ways to calculate payroll, and it’s up to you to decide which one is best for your business. Keep in mind, manually calculating Nevada payroll taxes could lead to problems. Calculations are complex, so errors are easy to make.

Step 7. File payroll taxes with the federal and state governments. Follow the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) instructions for federal taxes, including unemployment. Nevada requires you to file the NUCS 4072 quarterly even if you do not need to pay anything. The state should send you a preprinted form; if you don’t receive it, call the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation to get one.

For Wages Paid During	Calendar Quarter Ends	Must be Filed and Paid By
Jan, Feb, Mar	March 31	April 30
Apr, May, Jun	June 30	July 31
Jul, Aug, Sep	Sept. 30	Oct. 31
Oct, Nov, Dec	Dec. 31	Jan. 31

You may file on the next business day if any of these dates fall on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday. It is possible to pay with a check if you owe less than $10,000. If you exceed that, you need to file and pay electronically. To pay by paper, send the form and check to:

Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation
Employment Security Division, Contributions Section
500 East Third Street
Carson City, Nevada 89713-0030

Make sure to always be on time.

Nevada charges a $5 late fee, plus 1% interest for each month or partial month you are overdue.

Step 8: Document and store your payroll records. Nevada requires you to retain records for all employees, even those terminated, for at least two years. Learn more in our article on retaining payroll records.

Step 9: Do year-end payroll tax reports. These are the federal Forms W-2 (for employees) and 1099 (for contractors.) Employees and contractors must have these by Jan. 31 of the following year.

Nevada Payroll Laws, Taxes & Regulations

Nevada requires employers to pay for state unemployment insurance taxes (SUTA) and workers’ compensation insurance but not state income taxes or disability insurance. The rules are similar to federal laws, and filing is quarterly.

Nevada SUTA

With some exceptions, if you pay more than $225 in wages during a calendar quarter, you are liable for state UI tax withholdings. The tax rate for new employers is 2.95% of taxable wages. After that, the state determines your rate for you and sends it to you on your preprinted Form NUCS 4072. Nevada’s UI tax rates range from 0.25% to 5.4% of employee wages up to $36,600 for 2022. If you pay less than 5.4%, you’ll also pay a Career Enhancement Program tax of 0.05%.

Most employers have to pay SUTA. Even agricultural employers are liable if they paid wages of over $20,000 or employed 10 or more people. Nevada exempts:

Domestic workers in private homes
Family
Workers on a foreign vessel or aircraft abroad
Certain nonprofits or charities
Patients working in the hospital
Students in student programs
Spouses working in schools in exchange for financial assistance
Minors delivering newspapers
Agent-drivers, commission-drivers
Some salespeople working on commission

Did You Know?

You’re in luck! There are no state income taxes in Nevada, so you don’t need to worry about state income tax withholdings. You still need to calculate, file, and pay federal income tax withholdings, however.

Workers’ Compensation Insurance

Nevada requires employers to have workers’ compensation insurance for all workers, even noncitizens and minors, but excludes casual or theater performers, domestic workers in the home, volunteers, clergy, real estate brokers, workers doing direct sales via phone, and commission workers like salespeople. You can get your own policy, but it should include at least the following:

Medical treatment
Lost time compensation (Temporary total disability/temporary partial disability)
Permanent partial disability
Permanent total disability
Vocational rehabilitation
Dependent’s benefits in the event of death
Other claims-related benefits or expenses (e.g., mileage)

Minimum Wage Rules

The current minimum wage in Nevada is $9.75 ($8.75 per hour if you provide health care benefits). However, Nevada is increasing minimum wages every year through 2024.

Date	Wage w/o healthcare	Wage w/healthcare
July 1, 2022	$10.50/hour	$9.50/hour
July 1, 2022	$11.25/hour	$10.25/hour
July 1, 2024	$12/hour	$11/hour

The following employees are exempt from minimum wage requirements:

Workers employed under a valid collective bargaining agreement where minimum wage, tip credit, or other minimum wage provisions have been waived in clear and unambiguous terms
Employees younger than 18 years of age
Workers employed by a nonprofit organization for after-school or summer employment
Paid trainees for a period of up to 90 days

Overtime Regulations

Nevada sets a standard overtime rate of time-and-a-half of the employee’s wage rate when the employee works more than 40 hours in a workweek or more than eight hours in a day, unless the agreed-upon schedule is four days at 10 hours a day. Nevada’s overtime minimum wage is $14.63 per hour (it will go up to $15.75 when the new 2022 minimum wage rates go into effect July 1). The following are exemptions:

Employees of businesses earning less than $250,000 per year in gross sales volume
Employees in retail or service if their regular rate is already more than 1.5 times the minimum wage and over half their compensation comes from commissions
Bona fide executive, administrative, or professional employees
Employees covered by collective bargaining agreements that provide for overtime in other ways
Drivers, drivers’ helpers, loaders, and mechanics for motor carriers subject to the Motor Carrier Act of 1935
Railroad workers
Aircraft employees
Drivers and drivers’ helpers making local deliveries and paid by trip or other payment (like mileage)
Taxi and limo drivers
Agricultural employees
Auto salespeople and mechanics of auto dealers
Domestic workers

Reporting Out-of-State Employees

In some cases, out-of-state employees still count for Nevada tax filing. It’s similar to other states:

If a worker performs all or most of their work in Nevada, wages must be reported to Nevada.
If a worker performs some work in Nevada, but most elsewhere, all wages should be reported in the state where their “base of operations” lies. A base of operations is the place from which the employee works, whether an office or a home.
If the employee lacks a “base of operations” or a specific location from where they get direction and control, wages should be reported to Nevada if that is the worker’s residence.

Different Ways To Pay Employees

Nevada does not require you to pay employees in a specific manner, but you cannot discriminate against those without a bank account.

Since there are no specific rules that dictate how your employees need to be paid, it might be a good idea to offer a check or pay card option for those that prefer to not use direct deposit.

To learn more about the types of payments you can make, check out our suggestions on the different ways to pay your employees.

Pay Stub Laws

You need to provide employees with pay stubs that itemize their paycheck, including details on gross pay, deductions, net cash wages/salary, date of payment, and hours worked. Failure to do so can result in a $5,000 administrative fine and even misdemeanor charges.

If you’re doing payroll on your own and need a quick way to print a pay stub, download one of our free payroll stub templates.

Minimum Pay Frequency

Nevada requires you to pay employees semimonthly at least. You can agree on a different schedule, but cannot make that agreement a term of employment. Wages earned before the first of the month must be paid by 8 a.m. on the following 15th. Wages earned on the first through the 15th must be paid by 8 a.m. on the last day of the month.

Exceptions include those in an executive, administrative, or professional capacity, outside salespersons, or supervisors as defined in the National Labor Relations Act.

Non-wage compensation, such as lodging or meals, may be considered part of wages. Lodging cannot constitute more than five times the minimum hourly wage each week. Breakfasts and lunches cannot be counted at more than 25% of minimum wage, and dinner, no more than 50%.

Paycheck Deduction Rules

Your employees will most likely never take home the exact amount they earn. Most people are required to pay taxes, so you’ll at least have to deduct money to cover what they owe. There are other reasons you may find yourself needing to withhold funds from your employees’ paychecks. Some expenses are allowed, but others can get you in trouble.

Specifically, you may deduct the following:

Garnishments from legal judgements, including unpaid taxes and child support
Tax, Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA), and State Unemployment Tax Act (SUTA)
Employee’s share of health insurance and other benefits
Recompense for damages caused by the employee in the workplace

Legal garnishments cannot exceed 82% of the take-home pay for any workweek if the employee’s gross weekly pay when the most recent writ of garnishment issued was $770 or less, or 75% of the take-home pay for any workweek if the gross weekly pay exceeded $770. If the employee’s weekly take-home pay is less than 50 times the federal minimum hourly wage, the entire amount may be exempt.

You also cannot charge workers for required uniforms or accessories if they are distinctive in style, color, or material.

Final Paycheck Laws

Termination pay must be paid immediately if you discharge an employee. If the employee quits, you must pay final wages no later than their usual payday or seven days after the employee quits, whichever is earlier.

Accrued Paid Time Off

In Nevada, you have the choice of front-loading leave at the start of the year or letting leave accrue. You must let leave carry over into the next year unless it exceeds 40 hours in a benefit year. You can institute a use-or-lose policy for PTO over 40 hours.

If you front-load leave, have a clear, written policy about reimbursement if the employee quits. Nevada does not require you to pay front-loaded leave if the employee quits. If you fire the person, you cannot deduct untaken paid leave from the final paycheck.

Nevada HR Laws That Affect Payroll

Nevada is relatively easy when it comes to payroll laws—many align with federal rules—but you do need to stay abreast of them. The state Department of Labor (DOL) made changes in recent years to the minimum wage and PTO requirements, and other regulations may be next.

New Hire Reporting

You must report new hires within 20 days of their hire dates. This includes rehires if they have been separated from your employment for more than 60 days. While the state does have a new hire form, it’s not required. However, you must include the following details:

Employee’s full name
Employee’s Social Security number
Employee’s address (city, state, and ZIP)
Federal EIN
Employer’s Name
Employer’s address (city, state, and ZIP)
Employee’s start date
Date of birth (optional)
State of hire (optional)

You can send the information electronically, by mailing in the W-4 form to the Employment Security Division, or by faxing in a new hire form or the information listed above.

Time Off Requirements

Typically, you pay employees for the time they work but not when they don’t. However, there are more specifics around breaks and PTO that you may need to comply with.

Employees must get a 30-minute lunch break every eight hours, plus 10 minutes for every four hours worked or major fraction thereof. These rules do not apply:

If the employee works less than 3.5 hours in a day
If the employee is the only person at the location
If the employee is included in a collective bargaining agreement

Nursing mothers must be given sufficient break time and a private area to express breast milk.

Nevada leave laws apply to employers with 50 or more employees. You must allow at least 0.01923 hours of paid leave for each hour of work performed. Nevada requires you give paid leave at the pay rate the employee is compensated for at the time they take leave. If the employee earns commissions, salary, or piece-rate earnings other than hourly, calculate leave pay by dividing total wages paid for the 90 days preceding the leave divided by the number of hours worked in that period. Do not include bonuses given in that period.

If an employee leaves, you are not required to compensate them for unpaid leave, unless you rehire them within 90 days of termination and the employee did not leave by choice.

Nevada law allows for 160 hours of leave for an employee who is a victim of domestic violence or whose family member was a victim of domestic violence (and the employee was not the perpetrator). This can be paid or unpaid and applies to up to 12 months after the violence occurred. Read Nevada Revised Statutes 608.0198 for more details.

As with PTO, this applies to employers with over 50 employees. Nevada closely follows federal laws when it comes to this kind of leave. The employee must have worked at least 1,250 hours in the 12 months prior to the leave and may have up to 12 weeks of family medical leave for:

Birth of the employee’s child and care of the newborn
Placement of the child with the employee for adoption or foster care
Care for the employee’s spouse, parent, or child with a serious health condition
Employee’s own serious health condition

Accrued leave may be used as well, and leave can be taken intermittently.

Employers must give employees sufficient time off to vote. You cannot deduct pay for taking time off to vote, but you can designate what time the employee takes.

Distance to voting station	Time allotted
< 2 miles	1 hour
2 to 10 miles	2 hours
> 10 miles	3 hours

State Disability Insurance

Nevada does not require you to pay disability insurance, nor does it have a state disability insurance program. However, such policies protect both you and your employees plus make you a more attractive employer to applicants.

Tip Earnings

Tips are recorded separately when filing SUTA. While they are considered for the employee’s compensation, they are not part of the maximum weekly benefit amount. Per NRS 608.160, you may not take all or a part of any tips or gratuities or apply them as a credit toward the payment of the minimum wage.

Child Labor

NRS 609.240 defines provisions for working minors. Children under 16 may not work more than eight hours in a day or 48 hours in a week. A child being in their place of employment during working hours will be considered working.

Children under 14 are not allowed to work unless they have written permission from a district judge or his designee. Farmwork, housework, and acting in a motion picture are the exceptions. Only child actors are exempt from working during public school hours unless excused by the school district or by order of juvenile court.

For more information about payroll and HR laws employers need to know, check out our payroll compliance guide.

Payroll Forms

Nevada has few payroll forms, making paperwork easier. Of course, there are federal forms to keep track of as well.

Nevada Form W-2

No state income taxes, no state W-2. That was easy!

Other Nevada Withholding Forms

Form NUCS 4072, Employer’s Quarterly Contribution and Wage Report: For filing UI taxes by paper. You should get a pre-filled copy from the state each quarter. Access the Nevada Unemployment Insurance site if you need to download the form.
ACH Debit Authorization: for paying UI taxes via ACH debit.
State of Nevada New Hire Report: Useful, but not required.

Federal Payroll Forms

W-4 Form: To help employers calculate taxes to withhold from employee paychecks
W-2 Form: To report total annual wages earned (one per employee)
W-3 Form: To report total wages and taxes for all employees
Form 940: To report and calculate unemployment taxes due to the IRS
Form 941: To file quarterly income and FICA taxes withheld from paychecks
Form 944: To report annual income and FICA taxes withheld from paychecks
1099 Forms: To provide non-employee pay information that helps the IRS collect taxes on contract work

For a more detailed discussion of federal forms, check out our guide on federal payroll forms you may need.

Nevada Payroll Tax Resources and Sources

Unemployment Insurance Information: FAQs, schedules, links to forms
NAC 612: Nevada unemployment compensation regulations
NRS 612: Nevada unemployment compensation statutes
Nevada Department of Taxation: Forms, online services, COVID-19 tax credit information, and more
Nevada Department of Labor: Rules about workers’ comp and more

Bottom Line

Nevada has straightforward payroll laws, but you should carefully consider requirements as there are fines and penalties for not adhering to them—plus, the state has recently made some changes. In addition, federal payroll and HR laws must still be followed.