Hiring employees in Indiana: the 2026 compliance checklist for employers and recruiters

As of October 2026, an employer hiring in Indiana has to register an unemployment insurance account with the Department of Workforce Development (DWD), add withholding tax to its Department of Revenue registration, carry workers' compensation insurance, have the new hire complete the state WH-4, and report the hire electronically to the Indiana New Hire Reporting Center within 20 days, including the job's occupational code and starting pay. Indiana is a one-party consent state for recording, bars refusing to hire someone for off-duty tobacco use, and since July 1, 2026 makes knowingly employing an unauthorized worker unlawful for every employer. We found no statewide pay-range, salary history or private-employer ban-the-box law, and Indiana stopped licensing employment agencies in 2023.

This page is the Indiana hub: one table with every item and its official source, then a short section on each. Where we already have a full guide to an item, the section summarizes it and links there.

The Indiana hiring checklist at a glance

What must be in place before the first Indiana hire?

Two registrations and an insurance policy. Unemployment insurance accounts are opened through DWD's Uplink Employer Self Service portal, which asks for the FEIN, legal name, industry code, Indiana work location and the date of the first payroll. The Department of Revenue says employers register through INBiz, and a business already registered with DOR must add the withholding tax type when it hires its first employee.

Workers' compensation is required by IC 22-3-5-1: every employer under the act, except those exempted by IC 22-3-2-5, must "insure and keep insured" its liability with an authorized carrier or prove to the Worker's Compensation Board that it can pay claims directly. The federal layer (an EIN, Form W-4 and Form I-9 by the third business day) applies on top.

Does a staffing or recruiting agency need an Indiana license?

Not anymore. The private employment agency law that ran through the Department of Revenue was repealed effective July 1, 2023, and DOR's private employment agency page says agencies no longer need to register or renew a license. The same 2023 act created an annual registration with the Department of Health for agencies that place temporary nurses, aides and other health care staff in facilities, and professional employer organizations register with the Department of Insurance. Details are in our guide to Indiana staffing agency rules.

What must an Indiana job posting include, and can you ask about pay history?

Indiana adds nothing to the federal rules here. Searching the 2026 Indiana Code's labor title, Title 22, we found no requirement to post a pay range and no ban on asking about salary history as of October 2026. Indiana also limits what its cities and counties can add: under IC 22-2-16-3, a local unit may not require an employer to provide a benefit, term of employment or working condition beyond federal or state law. A posting that reaches candidates in Colorado, Illinois or another pay-transparency state may still need a range; see our pay transparency laws by state.

When can you ask about criminal history or run a credit check?

Indiana has no ban-the-box law for private employers, and it stops local ones. IC 22-2-17-3, added in 2017, says a political subdivision may not prohibit an employer from using criminal history information during hiring as far as federal or state law allows, or from asking about it, or requiring disclosure, on the initial application. IC 22-2-17-4 adds a protection: an employee's criminal history may not be introduced against the employer in a civil suit over that employee's conduct if, for example, the history has no direct relationship to the facts of the case or the record was sealed, expunged, pardoned or reversed before the events.

Indiana is not among the states with an employer credit-check statute in our credit check laws guide, so the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act sets the steps: a stand-alone disclosure, written authorization, and the pre-adverse and adverse action notices in the FTC's employer guidance. Our FCRA background check process walks through them.

Can you record or transcribe a job interview in Indiana?

Yes, as a participant. Indiana defines interception narrowly: IC 35-31.5-2-176 covers recording an electronic communication "by a person other than a sender or receiver of that communication, without the consent of the sender or receiver." An interviewer on a phone screen or video call is a receiver, so recording or transcribing their own interview is not interception. Unlawful interception by an outsider is a Level 5 felony. In-person interviews fall to federal law, which also lets a participant record. Our Indiana recording consent guide has the detail, and recording calls across state lines covers candidates in all-party states.

Does Indiana regulate AI in hiring?

Not specifically. As of October 2026, Indiana does not appear in our state-by-state AI hiring tracker, and the labor title of the 2026 Code contains no provision on automated screening or AI interview analysis. Federal anti-discrimination law still applies to a decision made with a tool; see EEOC guidance on AI in hiring. If the candidate is in Colorado, Illinois or New York City, those rules can apply to an Indiana employer.

Can you drug test applicants or screen out tobacco users in Indiana?

Drug testing, generally yes; tobacco screening, no. Indiana's disability discrimination chapter takes a neutral position on testing: IC 22-9-5-24 says a test for the illegal use of drugs is not a medical examination, and nothing in the chapter encourages, prohibits or authorizes drug testing of applicants. The unemployment law backs a pre-employment test: under IC 22-4-15-2(g), a person whose offer is withdrawn after testing positive, or after refusing a required test without good cause, is treated as having refused suitable work.

Off-duty tobacco is protected. IC 22-5-4-1 bars requiring an employee or prospective employee, as a condition of employment, to refrain from using tobacco products outside work, and bars discriminating in pay or terms over it. Wellness incentives tied to health benefits are allowed. Our drug testing laws guide covers the federal baseline.

Does Indiana require E-Verify?

For public work, yes; for everyone else, it now matters more. Under IC 22-5-1.7, state agencies and local governments use E-Verify for their own hires and require it from contractors on public contracts for services and public works. Since July 1, 2026, IC 22-5-9, added by Senate Enrolled Act 76, makes it unlawful for any Indiana employer to knowingly recruit, hire or keep an unauthorized worker, with E-Verify as the clearest defense and the attorney general as enforcer. It is not a direct mandate. See E-Verify requirements in Indiana.

Which state withholding form does a new hire complete?

The WH-4, Employee's Withholding Exemption and County Status Certificate. It does two jobs: it records the exemptions the employee claims and the county where the employee lives and works, which sets the county income tax rate. The Department of Revenue says "Both the employer and the employee should keep a copy of the WH-4 for their records," and the employee updates it when the information changes.

Which notices must a new Indiana employee get at hire?

Indiana's individual notice list is short. The newest item is a poster: since 2024, IC 22-2-19-4 requires every employer under the Department of Labor's jurisdiction with more than 50 full-time employees or their equivalent to display the veterans' benefits and services poster the department distributes, covering treatment, disability compensation, education, employment rights and the Veterans Crisis Line. We did not find an Indiana statute requiring an individual pay notice at hire like those in Maryland or Minnesota, so check the Department of Labor's current poster list for the rest.

How do you report a new hire in Indiana?

Electronically, to the Indiana New Hire Reporting Center at in-newhire.com. DWD says reports are due "within 20 days of the hire or rehire date"; the statute, IC 22-4-10-8(h), says 20 business days, so filing within 20 calendar days satisfies both. Indiana asks for more than most states. Since a 2024 amendment, the statute requires the employee's primary standardized occupational classification (SOC) code and starting compensation alongside name, address, Social Security number, employer details and the first day worked, and DWD's guide adds date of birth, medical insurance eligibility, current job title and rate of pay. A rehire counts after 60 consecutive days away. DWD may fine $25 for each failure, or $500 where employer and employee conspired not to report.

The Indiana hiring steps in order

1. Before the first hire: open the DWD unemployment account in Uplink, add withholding in INBiz, and bind workers' compensation coverage. Health care staffing agencies register with the Department of Health.
2. Posting: no state pay-range rule; follow the stricter state's rule if candidates elsewhere can apply.
3. Screening: criminal history questions are allowed under state law; run background and credit checks through the FCRA steps; do not screen out off-duty tobacco users.
4. Interview: a participant may record; ask first if the candidate is in an all-party state.
5. Conditional offer: run any drug test as a condition of the offer.
6. First day: Form I-9, W-4 and WH-4; E-Verify if you have public contracts, and as the clearest defense under SEA 76 for everyone else.
7. Within 20 days: file the new hire report electronically with SOC code and starting pay.

Hiring in more than one state? The same checklist is available for Massachusetts, Tennessee, Maryland, Colorado, Minnesota and California.