New hiring laws in Delaware for 2027: Paid Leave notices at hire, pay ranges from September 2027, portable background checks and what employers do next

As of November 2026, Delaware's largest hiring changes for 2026 and 2027 are two. Delaware Paid Leave benefits began January 1, 2026, and every covered employer must give each new hire a written Paid Leave notice. From September 26, 2027, employers with 26 or more employees must put the pay range and a general description of benefits in every internal and external job posting. In 2026 the General Assembly also made general contractors liable for a subcontractor's misclassification penalties (SB 63, January 28, 2026), let a health care Background Check Center report be reused by another employer for a year (SB 67 substitute, May 14, 2026), ended the private school opt-out from fingerprint checks (HB 47 substitute, July 1, 2026), and renamed physician assistants "physician associates" (HB 325, in place by May 12, 2027 at the latest).

The minimum wage stays at $15.00, and Delaware passed no AI hiring, E-Verify or new non-compete rule. Each item below links to the chapter in Volume 85 of the Laws of Delaware or the Delaware Code. The standing checklist (One Stop registration, the pay notice at hire, the salary history ban, new-hire reports) is in our Delaware hiring hub; this page is the dated list of what is new.

Which Delaware hiring laws changed in 2026, and what changes in 2027?

Delaware laws and the federal rules that apply to Delaware employers, sorted by date.

What must Delaware employers do now that Paid Leave benefits have started?

The Department of Labor's Delaware Paid Leave page says contributions began January 1, 2025 and the program "went into full effect on Jan. 1, 2026," when employees began filing claims. Coverage depends on size: employers with fewer than 10 employees in Delaware are exempt, those with 10 to 24 are subject only to parental leave, and those with 25 or more owe parental, family caregiving and medical leave coverage. An employee is eligible after 12 months and 1,250 hours with the employer, and the weekly benefit is 80% of average weekly wages, capped at $900 in 2026 and 2027 under 19 Del. C. ch. 37.

The hiring step is the notice. Section 3710 requires a written notice to each employee "on hiring of the employee" covering the right to benefits and how it may be used, the benefit amount, the claim procedure, job protection under section 3707, the ban on retaliation, the right to complain, and whether coverage runs through the state plan or an approved private plan. The poster must be displayed in English, Spanish and any first language of at least 5% of the workforce, if the Department has provided it. Add the notice to onboarding packets and keep proof it was delivered, and tell the new hire whether coverage runs through the state plan or your approved private plan.

What will Delaware's pay transparency law require from September 26, 2027?

House Substitute 2 for House Bill 105, approved September 26, 2025, adds 19 Del. C. 709C and "takes effect 2 years after its enactment into law." From September 26, 2027, an employer with 26 or more employees must include the hourly or salary compensation, or a good-faith range, and a general description of benefits and other compensation in internal and external postings for jobs located in Delaware and for non-international remote jobs offered by a Delaware-based employer. Roles paid on commission disclose that fact, tipped roles give the base wage, and a first violation draws a written warning before civil penalties of $500 to $10,000. The full rule, its exemptions and the record-keeping duty are in Delaware pay transparency law. Build ranges into job templates during 2027 budgeting so they are ready before the date.

What changed for background checks in Delaware health care and schools?

• Portable health care checks. Senate Substitute 1 for Senate Bill 67, approved May 14, 2026, amends 16 Del. C. 1141 and 1145. A criminal history report "obtained through the BCC's criminal history screening process is valid for any prospective employer for a period of 1 year from the date of the applicant's last fingerprinting," and a current employee seeking a promotion is no longer an "applicant." A long-term care or home health employer hiring someone fingerprinted within the year can rely on that report instead of starting over.
• Private schools and youth camps. House Substitute 1 for House Bill 47, effective July 1, 2026 with compliance due by September 1, 2026, repeals the options that let private schools and youth camps use a name-based check or skip checks with parental acknowledgment. New 31 Del. C. 309A requires a fingerprint-based Delaware and FBI check and a Child Protection Registry check for all employees, contractors and volunteers of private schools, and the school decides eligibility under the prohibitions in section 309(d).
• Mentors and sports officials. HB 443 requires fingerprint checks for Department of Education student mentoring volunteers from July 1, 2026, and HB 452 requires them for interscholastic sports officials by July 1, 2027.

The wider rules (expunged records, State Bureau of Identification checks, health care service letters) are in Delaware background check laws.

What changed for construction contractors and licensed professionals?

SB 63 became law on January 28, 2026 without the governor's approval. In the Workplace Fraud Act, which targets misclassification in construction, it says "a general contractor is responsible for a subcontractor's violations" and is "jointly and severally liable for a subcontractor's penalties and restitution," though not for debarment. Debarment now follows a successor business with the same principals in the same trade, and the Delaware Contractor Registration Act lets the Department deny or revoke a registration for using an unregistered subcontractor on a public works contract. Ask subcontractors and labor suppliers how they classify workers before they start; see worker misclassification for staffing agencies.

On licensing, HB 325, approved May 12, 2026, changes the title "physician assistant" to "physician associate," to be implemented within a year or sooner when the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline approves the enabling regulations. The act says the change does not alter the rights of people who hold themselves out as physician assistants, and that any law saying "physician assistant" also means "physician associate," so use both titles in postings during the changeover. The respiratory care, cosmetology and athletic trainer compacts take effect only on the terms each compact sets (the respiratory care compact, for example, once seven states enact it), so confirm with the board before relying on a compact privilege.

What did not change in Delaware?

• Minimum wage. Still $15.00 an hour, the last step in 19 Del. C. 902, effective January 1, 2025.
• Salary history questions remain banned; see Delaware's salary history ban.
• Criminal history. Delaware's ban-the-box rule still covers public employers only; see Delaware ban-the-box. With the EEOC guidance rescinded, a job-related review using the Green factors from the 1975 Eighth Circuit case (the nature and gravity of the offense, the time since it and the nature of the job) is still a sound way to decide and document.
• E-Verify is not required by Delaware law; see E-Verify requirements in Delaware. The FAR clause, FAR 52.222-54, still binds covered federal contractors.
• AI in hiring. The 2025 act on the state's Artificial Intelligence Commission (85 Del. Laws c. 17) concerns the commission itself, not hiring tools; see AI hiring laws by state.

What should Delaware employers do before January 1, 2027?

1. Add the Paid Leave notice to every onboarding packet and check the poster's languages.
2. Draft pay ranges for each job template so postings are ready for September 26, 2027.
3. Long-term care and home health employers: update screening steps to accept a Background Check Center report under a year old and drop re-checks for promotions.
4. Private schools and youth camps: confirm fingerprint checks for every employee, contractor and volunteer.
5. Check Form I-9 versions and EAD reverification dates under the federal changes in the table; see Form I-9 reverification.
6. Remove references to the 2012 EEOC guidance from background check procedures.

What does this mean for staffing agencies in Delaware?

An agency that employs its temporary workers is their employer for Paid Leave and gives the notice at hire, while the act treats a client company in a professional employer organization arrangement as the employer. Health care agencies can reuse a Background Check Center report for a year, which shortens time to start for aides and nurses moving between facilities. Agencies supplying labor to construction subcontractors should expect general contractors to ask for classification proof, since the contractor now carries the subcontractor's penalties. A Delaware-based agency's remote postings will fall under the 2027 pay range rule if it has 26 or more employees. Licensing is covered in our Delaware staffing agency guide and employer of record in Delaware; other states are in new hiring laws for 2027.