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

As of October 2026, an employer hiring in Tennessee has to register an unemployment insurance tax account with the Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD), carry workers' compensation insurance once it has five or more employees (one or more in construction), verify work authorization under the Tennessee Lawful Employment Act (E-Verify is mandatory at 35 or more full-time-equivalent employees), display the required posters, and report the hire to the Tennessee New Hire Reporting Program within 20 days. Tennessee has no state income tax on wages, so there is no state withholding form. It is a one-party consent state for recording, and we found no statewide pay-range, salary history or private-employer ban-the-box law.

This page is the Tennessee 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. Tennessee's list is shorter than most, and the gaps are part of the answer.

The Tennessee hiring checklist at a glance

What must be in place before the first Tennessee hire?

An unemployment insurance account and, depending on headcount, workers' compensation. TDLWD's instructions for new employers without an account number are to go to e-Services, choose "Register my business," create a logon and answer the business questions.

Workers' compensation turns on industry and size. The Bureau of Workers' Compensation says employers outside construction "with five or more employees must secure workers' compensation insurance coverage," by buying a policy or qualifying to self-insure, while construction employers need it from the first employee. Part-time employees, minors and working family members count toward the five; owners of sole proprietorships, LLCs and partnerships do not, and full-time corporate officers do. 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 a Tennessee license?

No. Tennessee stopped licensing personnel services, temporary help firms and recruiting services in 1996; the old rules chapter is marked repealed in the state rules index. What replaced it, the Tennessee Employment Agency Act, sets fee and refund rules for agencies that charge candidates and requires no license. Professional employer organizations are a separate case. Our guide to the Tennessee staffing agency license rules covers both.

What must a Tennessee job posting include, and can you ask about pay history?

As of October 2026 we found no Tennessee statute that requires a pay range in job postings or bars questions about salary history. The most recent bill we found that would have done both, HB 417 of the 113th General Assembly, would have barred employers from asking for compensation history and required notice of openings to current employees; it was deferred to summer study in the House Banking and Consumer Affairs Subcommittee on March 12, 2024. Recruiters filling Tennessee roles from a multistate posting should still check the rules where the job or the candidate is, using our pay transparency laws by state and salary history ban states guides.

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

For private employers we found no state limit on timing as of October 2026. Tennessee's ban-the-box law, Public Chapter 813 of 2016, covers state employers only: they may not ask about criminal history on the initial application for a job that is not a "covered position" (one where federal law requires a background check or an offense is disqualifying), must let an applicant explain, and must weigh factors such as the job's duties, the time since the offense and evidence of rehabilitation. The act expressly excludes contractors and political subdivisions.

Tennessee 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 for any background or credit report: a stand-alone disclosure, written authorization, and the pre-adverse and adverse action notices in the FTC's employer guidance.

Can you record or transcribe a job interview in Tennessee?

Yes, as a participant. Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-601(b)(5), in the Tennessee Code, a person may intercept a call or conversation where they are a party or one party has consented, unless the purpose is a criminal or tortious act. Two Tennessee details matter: the legislature deleted the state's civil damages section for wiretapping in 2024, and a separate statute on cell phone calls counts someone as a party only if the others know they are there. Our Tennessee recording consent guide covers both. If the candidate is in an all-party state, the stricter rule is the safe one; see recording calls across state lines.

Does Tennessee regulate AI in hiring?

Not specifically. As of October 2026, Tennessee does not appear in our state-by-state AI hiring tracker, and we found no Tennessee statute aimed at automated screening, scoring or video interview analysis. Federal anti-discrimination law applies to a hiring decision whether a person or a tool made it; the EEOC's position is summarized in EEOC guidance on AI in hiring. A Tennessee employer recruiting candidates in Colorado, Illinois or New York City should check those rules, which follow the candidate or the job.

Can you drug test applicants in Tennessee?

Yes. Tennessee's main framework is the Drug-Free Workplace Program run by the Bureau of Workers' Compensation, which employers choose to join. For participating employers, the Bureau's program FAQs say on-site point-of-collection testing "is restricted to those job applicants that have been offered employment conditioned upon the results of the test," that any positive screen must be confirmed by a certified laboratory, and that a medical review officer should review positives with the applicant before the employer learns the result. The program rules are in chapter 0800-02-12. Our drug testing laws guide compares other states.

Does Tennessee require E-Verify?

Yes, at 35 employees. TDLWD says that since January 1, 2023, "private employers with 35 or more full-time equivalent employees under the same FEIN are required to use the federal E-Verify" process, including for employees working outside Tennessee. Smaller employers choose between E-Verify and keeping copies of documents from the state's list, which excludes Social Security cards and Form I-9. A first knowing violation costs $500 plus $500 for each worker not verified. Cities face their own E-Verify rule from July 1, 2026; see E-Verify requirements in Tennessee.

Which state withholding form does a new hire complete?

None. The Department of Revenue says "Tennessee has no state income tax on earned income and therefore has no withholding requirements." New hires complete the federal W-4 and Form I-9. The Hall income tax on interest and dividends, which never reached wages, was repealed January 1, 2021.

Which notices must a new Tennessee employee get at hire?

The workplace posters. TDLWD says "Employers are required by law to share information with their employees on employment laws" in a prominent place employees can reach, and it provides the state posters free to download. We did not find a Tennessee statute requiring an individual pay notice at hire like those in Maryland or Minnesota, so confirm your industry's rules before treating posters as the whole list.

How do you report a new hire in Tennessee?

TDLWD says "Employers must report their newly hired or rehired employees within 20 days of the date they are hired," through the Tennessee New Hire Reporting Program, which works for the Department of Human Services. The required fields are the employer's FEIN, name and address, and the employee's name, mailing address, Social Security number or ITIN and date of hire. Rehires count once they return after 60 days away, and a temporary agency reports each worker once rather than at every new client. Electronic filers send two monthly transmissions no more than 16 days apart.

The Tennessee hiring steps in order

1. Before the first hire: register the TDLWD unemployment insurance account and, at five employees (one in construction), bind workers' compensation coverage.
2. Posting: no state pay-range rule, but follow the stricter state's rule if the role is open to candidates elsewhere.
3. Screening: no state limit on criminal history or pay history questions for private employers; run background and credit checks through the FCRA steps.
4. Interview: a participant may record under one-party consent; ask first if the candidate is in an all-party state.
5. Conditional offer: run any applicant drug test after the offer, with confirmation and medical review if you are in the Drug-Free Workplace Program.
6. First day: Form I-9 and W-4 (no state form), then E-Verify if you have 35 or more full-time-equivalent employees, or the listed documents if smaller and not enrolled.
7. Within 20 days of hire: report to the Tennessee New Hire Reporting Program.

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