An employee onboarding checklist is the list of tasks, each with an owner and a due date, that takes a new hire from accepted offer to day 90.
This one comes as an Excel tracker with 40 tasks, built for the owner, office manager or part-time HR person at a small US business. The phase checklists further down this page print straight from your browser.
Employee onboarding tracker (Excel)
An Excel workbook with one row per task: phase, category, owner, status and a due date the formula works out from the start date. Drop-down lists keep the entries consistent.
Two federal deadlines fall inside the first month. Form I-9 Section 2 is due within three business days after the employee’s first day of employment. The state new-hire report is due within 20 days of hire, sooner in some states.
In This Article (9 sections)
The Employee Onboarding Checklist, Phase by Phase
The checklist runs in six phases, from before day one to days 61-90, and each task names its owner in parentheses. Legal items carry the official deadline; the rest is my recommended order.
Before day one
The employer must make the I-9 instructions and the Lists of Acceptable Documents available to new hires, so they go out early.
Before day one
- Confirm the offer, start date, schedule and manager (Hiring manager)
- Order the laptop, phone and other equipment (IT)
- Send the Form I-9 instructions and the Lists of Acceptable Documents (HR)
- Invite the hire to complete I-9 Section 1, allowed any time after accepting the offer (New hire)
- Send Form W-4 (HR)
- Prepare the desk or ship the remote kit (Hiring manager)
- Plan the first-day agenda and the first week (Hiring manager)
- Assign a buddy (Hiring manager)
- Create email and system accounts (IT)
- Send a welcome email with time, place or login, and the I-9 documents to bring (Hiring manager)
- Tell the team who is joining (Hiring manager)
If the role is not written down yet, open my job description template before you start this list.
Day one: orientation and paperwork
Section 1 of Form I-9 must be complete and signed no later than the first day of employment, so day one opens with paperwork.
Day one
- Confirm I-9 Section 1 is complete and signed (HR)
- Examine the original, unexpired I-9 documents: one from List A, or one from List B plus one from List C (HR)
- Collect Form W-4 if it is not back yet (HR)
- Hand over equipment and test every login (IT)
- Give a tour or a walkthrough of the tools (Buddy)
- Introduce the team (Hiring manager)
- Review the role, hours and who to ask for what (Hiring manager)
- Show where required workplace notices are posted (HR)
- Hold an end-of-day one-on-one (Hiring manager)
Posting duties vary by statute. The Department of Labor notes that some small businesses are not covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act, and its elaws Poster Advisor shows which federal posters apply.
Week one
The employer must complete I-9 Section 2 within three business days after the employee’s first day of employment: for a Monday start, on or before the Thursday of that week. By Friday the hire also has a training plan and a first assignment.
Week one
- Schedule role training (Hiring manager)
- Enter the payroll record and direct deposit (HR)
- Give a first small assignment (Hiring manager)
- Complete I-9 Section 2 if it was not finished on day one (HR)
- Introduce key colleagues outside the team (Buddy)
- Collect the policy and handbook acknowledgment (HR)
- Hold the end-of-week check-in (Hiring manager)
If you are still choosing a payroll tool, my Gusto pricing guide covers one option.
First 30 days
By day 30 the hire is reported to the state and the goals for days 30, 60 and 90 are written down.
First 30 days
- Agree goals for days 30, 60 and 90 (Hiring manager)
- File the new-hire report with the state where the employee works (HR)
- Finish core training (New hire)
- Hold the 30-day check-in with feedback both ways (Hiring manager)
- Confirm system access is right and remove what is not needed (IT)
Days 31 to 60
The second month moves the hire to independent work against the agreed goals and ends with a 60-day check-in.
Days 31-60
- Move to independent work on the agreed goals (Hiring manager)
- Adjust the training plan where the 30-day check-in showed gaps (Hiring manager)
- Ask the new hire for onboarding feedback (HR)
- Hold the 60-day check-in against the goals (Hiring manager)
Days 61 to 90: development goals
Onboarding closes at day 90 with a review, development goals for the next quarter and a tracker where every row reads Done or Not needed.
Days 61-90
- Hold the 90-day review (Hiring manager)
- Set development goals for the next quarter (Hiring manager)
- If Section 1 shows a date when work authorization expires, note it; you may remind the employee at least 90 days before that date (HR)
- Mark every row Done or Not needed and close the tracker (HR)
For the review that closes onboarding, see my performance review template.
New Hire Paperwork and Federal Deadlines
Three dates cannot slip, I-9 Section 1, I-9 Section 2 and the state new-hire report, and the table puts each beside its tracker row.
| Item | Who completes it | Deadline | Days from start in the tracker | Official page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Form I-9, Section 1 | New hire | No later than the first day of employment | 0 (invite sent at -7) | USCIS, Section 1 |
| Form I-9, Section 2 | Employer or authorized representative | Within 3 business days after the first day of employment | 3 | USCIS, Form I-9 instructions |
| Form W-4 | New hire | None stated on the IRS page | Set by you in the tracker; the IRS page states no deadline | IRS, About Form W-4 |
| State new-hire report | Employer | Within 20 days of hire; some states sooner | 20 | ACF, New Hire Reporting |
| Workplace posters | Employer | Varies by statute | 0 | DOL, Workplace Posters |
Sources: USCIS Section 1, USCIS Instructions for Form I-9, IRS, ACF, DOL, read on November 1, 2026.
Business days, not calendar days
The Section 2 clock counts business days; the tracker counts calendar days. For a Monday start both land on Thursday, the deadline the USCIS Form I-9 instructions give in their own Monday example. For any other start day, count three business days yourself.
The IRS page states no deadline for Form W-4, so the tracker sends it before day one as my recommendation.
The IRS asks employees to complete it so the employer can withhold the correct federal income tax, which makes the first payroll run the practical cutoff.
State rules sit on top: the DOL sends employers to state labor departments for state posters, and a shorter state report window means lowering the 20 in the tracker.
What’s in the Onboarding Tracker
The Tracker sheet holds nine columns, and a separate Setup sheet holds the start date that drives every due date.
| Field | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Task | The action, starting with a verb | Hand over equipment and test every login |
| Phase | When it falls (drop-down) | Day one |
| Category | The kind of work (drop-down) | Equipment and accounts |
| Owner | The role responsible (drop-down) | IT |
| Days from start | Calendar days from the start date; negative before day one | -3 |
| Due date | Nothing: a formula adds Days from start to the start date | Filled in by the formula |
| Status | Where the task stands (drop-down) | Not started |
| Done on | The date it was finished | The day you mark it Done |
| Notes | Anything the next person needs | Ship the laptop to a home address |
The drop-downs offer the six phases, six categories, five owner roles and four statuses (Not started, In progress, Done, Not needed). An Instructions sheet repeats the setup steps and the federal deadlines with their official URLs.
How to Use the Tracker to Create Each New Hire’s Plan
Setting the tracker up for one hire takes five steps, starting with a fresh copy.
- Save a copy of the workbook for each new hire, named after them.
- On the Setup sheet, enter the name, role, start date (cell B4), hiring manager, HR contact, IT contact and buddy. Every due date updates from the start date.
- Set Status to Not needed on rows that do not apply, and add tasks specific to the role. A new row gets its due date once Days from start is filled in.
- Check the two legal rows: count three business days for I-9 Section 2, and lower the state report row if your state sets a shorter window.
- At each check-in, filter by Owner and Status, update Status and fill in Done on. Close the file at day 90.
Example: A Sample New Hire’s First Week in the Tracker
Take an invented new hire, Jordan Rivera, a Customer Support Associate reporting to Sam Patel, who starts on Monday, November 16, 2026 (sample data). Each due date below is that start date plus the row’s Days from start.
| Task | Owner | Days from start | Due date | Status | Done on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Confirm the offer, start date and schedule | Hiring manager | -14 | Nov 2, 2026 | Done | Nov 2, 2026 |
| Order the laptop and headset | IT | -14 | Nov 2, 2026 | Done | Nov 3, 2026 |
| Create email and system accounts | IT | -3 | Nov 13, 2026 | Done | Nov 12, 2026 |
| Send the welcome email | Hiring manager | -3 | Nov 13, 2026 | Done | Nov 13, 2026 |
| Confirm the new hire’s own paperwork is signed | HR | 0 | Nov 16, 2026 | Done | Nov 16, 2026 |
| Hand over equipment and test every login | IT | 0 | Nov 16, 2026 | Done | Nov 16, 2026 |
| Review documents and finish the employer’s paperwork | HR | 3 | Nov 19, 2026 | In progress | Not yet |
| Hold the end-of-week check-in | Hiring manager | 4 | Nov 20, 2026 | Not started | Not yet |
Sources: sample data with fictional names; every date is worked out from the invented start date.
The employer’s paperwork row falls on Thursday, Monday plus three days, and it is the only row marked In progress, so chase it before Friday’s check-in.
How to Adapt the Checklist
A remote hire, a job under three business days and any hire at an E-Verify employer each change a legal step in the tracker.
Remote hire. Keep the day -14 equipment order. The employer must physically examine the I-9 documents or examine them under an alternative procedure authorized by the Secretary of DHS. When it uses one, it must check the box in Section 2’s Additional Information area.
A job under three business days. Section 2 is due no later than the first day of employment, so move that row to day 0.
An E-Verify employer. E-Verify needs the employee’s Social Security number to create a case, so every employee verified there must provide it. Any List B document presented to an E-Verify employer must contain a photo. Add both to the day-one document check.
Common Onboarding Mistakes
Two mistakes to avoid are miscounting the I-9 Section 2 deadline and treating onboarding as finished after day one.
- Counting Section 2 from the wrong day. The three business days run after the first day of employment, the first day the employee works for wages, not after the offer is accepted.
- Asking for List A anyway. If the employee presents acceptable List B and List C documentation, do not ask for List A documentation.
- Tasks without an owner. A row nobody owns is a task nobody chases.
- No check-ins after week one. Without the 30-, 60- and 90-day rows, problems first surface at the review.
When to Move Onboarding Into HR Software
Move onboarding into HR software when hires overlap, when paperwork needs e-signatures before day one, or when you copy the tracker by hand for every hire.
BambooHR is one documented example. Its onboarding page lists customizable onboarding checklists with automated tasks and reminders, pre-onboarding packets, and e-signatures for tax forms, I-9 verifications and direct deposit details before the first day.
Its self-onboarding emails the new hire to e-sign paperwork such as W-4s, which replaces the tracker’s send and collect rows.
For a business that hires a few people a year, the spreadsheet does that job. Software pays off when the tracker’s dates depend on someone remembering to open it.
Before a demo, see my BambooHR pricing guide.
If BambooHR does not fit, the BambooHR alternatives page covers other options.
My ranking of the best HR software for small business compares the wider field.
For single-vendor detail, I have also written a Rippling review.
My Justworks review covers one more vendor.
FAQ
What should be included in an onboarding checklist?
Every task from accepted offer to day 90, each with an owner and a due date, plus the legal paperwork with its deadline.
What is the 30-60-90 onboarding rule?
It is the practice of checking a new hire’s progress at days 30, 60 and 90 against goals agreed in the first month. The tracker builds in all three check-ins and a goal-setting row at day 10.
What are the stages of the onboarding process?
This checklist uses six phases. Splitting week one from day one keeps the I-9 Section 2 deadline in its own phase.
How long should onboarding last?
This tracker runs 90 days from the start date, plus two weeks of preparation before day one, and the 90-day review closes it.
Is there a Word version of this checklist?
No. Copy the checklists above into your own document, print this page from your browser for a paper copy, or edit the Excel file in Excel or Google Sheets.
