For Delaware Paid Leave Employers and Third-Party Administrators (TPAs) filing quarterly Hours & Wage reports in LaborFirst. Steps 1–11 walk through the process in order; the Reference section at the end is for looking things up as needed.

Important — TPA client authorization: Proper authorization must be on file for an Hours & Wage report to be accepted and for the associated payment to post. Reports filed without authorization are rejected and payments suspend, causing significant delays. To request a client authorization report, email PFML@delaware.gov.

On this page

Steps (do these in order)

• Step 1 — Confirm you need to file
• Step 2 — Get set up
• Step 3 — Choose how you’ll file
• Step 4 — Get the template
• Step 5 — Fill out your file
• Step 6 — No wages this quarter?
• Step 7 — Pre-check your file
• Step 8 — Submit your report
• Step 9 — Fix any errors
• Step 10 — Make your payment
• Step 11 — Amend later, if needed

Reference (look up as needed)

• Additional tips
• FAQs
• Downloads & resources
• Support

Step 1: Confirm you need to file (Employers & TPAs)

Employers enrolled in Delaware Paid Leave must file an Hours & Wage report every quarter detailing all wages earned and hours worked by each employee. These figures determine the employer’s total contribution due for the quarter and track each employee’s hours toward Paid Leave eligibility. Reports can be filed directly by the employer or by a TPA authorized to file on the employer’s behalf.

• Employers enrolled in Delaware Paid Leave must begin filing immediately.
• Employers exempt from the program do not need to file quarterly reports.
• Report hours for any employee who earns at least 60% of their wages in Delaware. (The source FAQ doesn’t spell out how to handle edge cases — e.g., an employee who splits time close to that 60% line across multiple states — so confirm unusual cases with DOL directly.)
• Report hours even for employees on a waiver. If a waived employee approaches the 1,250-hour threshold for Paid Leave eligibility, the employer will be notified to prepare for waiver removal.

Know your deadlines

Reports and payments are due 30 days after the end of each quarter.

Quarter	Period Covered	Report and Payment Due
Q1	January 1 – March 31	April 30
Q2	April 1 – June 30	July 30
Q3	July 1 – September 30	October 30
Q4	October 1 – December 31	January 30

Step 2: Get set up before you start

• Browser: Use Google Chrome. Firefox and Safari are not supported.
• Confirm liability: Confirm your account shows liability in LaborFirst before submitting. Liability is based on your payroll date — if both your payroll date and registration date are before 1/1/25, liability defaults to 1/1/25 (if otherwise eligible).
• Employee count: If the employee count on your report differs from what was provided at registration, liability will be based on the count in your Hours & Wage report (adjusted for any waivers/reclassifications).
• TPA–Employer relationship: Before a TPA can file for an employer, the relationship must be established in LaborFirst with the correct authorization type (see Step 8). Check entity relationships before attempting an upload.

Step 3: Choose how you’ll file

There are three ways to submit an Hours & Wage report:

Option	Who can use it	Notes
Manual entry	Employers	Up to 1,000 employees. For later quarters you can copy names/SSNs forward from a prior quarter. Use Tab (not Enter) to move between fields; a wider monitor or adjusted zoom helps.
Electronic upload — CSV or XML	Employers & TPAs (single employer)	Recommended for larger employee counts. File must be 5MB or smaller; stay below ~5,000 employees for the best experience.
Bulk upload (TPA only)	TPAs	One CSV or XML file covering multiple employers/clients at once. One file per upload. See Step 8.

Step 4: Get the template

Use these as your starting point rather than building a file from scratch:

• Hours & Wage Header Template (CSV) — column headers only.
• Hours & Wage Sample File (CSV) — populated example rows (you’ll replace the examples with your own data).
• Hours & Wage Sample File (XML) — if submitting via XML
• Wage Report File Formats and Error Processing (XSD schema) (TPA resource)

Note: The CSV template is recommended over XML for most filers, especially if you use Excel — it’s easier to prepare and validate.

Step 5: Fill out your file

Delaware DOL accepts both CSV and XML, each carrying the same data. Both formats support single-employer filers and TPA bulk filers.

CSV field specification

Field	Format	Required?	Notes
Total Record Count	Numeric, 5 digits	Yes	Total wage records in the file; must match on every row.
Preparer Legal Name	String, 200 char	TPA only	No special/accented characters. Do not include commas or hyphens.
Preparer FEIN	String, 9 digits	TPA only	Include leading zeros; no hyphens.
Employer Account Number	Numeric — see note below	Yes	Your LaborFirst account number — no leading zero, no letters/spaces.
Year	Numeric, 4 digits	Yes	Minimum value 2000; must be valid for the employer.
Quarter	Numeric, 1 digit	Yes	1–4; must be valid for the employer.
Social Security Number	String, 9 digits	Yes	No hyphens. First 3 digits can’t be “000”, “666”, or “900”; can’t be all zeros/consecutive digits. Use 999999999 for a person authorized to work but without an SSN yet. No duplicate SSNs in a file (except 999999999).
First Name	String, 40 char	Yes	At least 2 letters; no numbers, commas, or special characters. Enter “FNU” if no first name.
Middle Initial	String, 1 char	Optional	Single capital letter, or leave blank.
Last Name	String, 80 char	Yes	At least 2 letters; no numbers, commas, or special characters. Enter “LNU” if no last name.
Employer Contribution %	Numeric, 3 digits	Yes	Whole number, 50–100. No “%” sign or decimals.
FICA Wages	Numeric, 16,2	Yes	Delaware in-state wages after FICA rules. Zero is acceptable (0.00). No commas or “$”.
Combined Out of State Wages	Numeric, 16,2	Yes	Zero is acceptable (0.00). No commas or “$”.
Total Hours	Numeric, 4 digits	Yes	0 – 2,200 for the quarter.
Weeks Worked	Numeric, 2 digits	Yes	Cannot exceed 14 per quarter.
Adjustment Code	String, 3 char	No	Blank = original filing. See adjustment codes below. Leave blank for a standard original filing.

Adjustment codes

Code	Meaning
(blank)	Original filing
UP1	Update due to incorrect name
UP3	Update due to incorrect wages
DEL	Delete a record entered in error
ADD	Add an employee to a previously filed quarter

The system will not accept an original filing and an adjustment for the same SSN/quarter/year in the same file.

Other format rules

• XML: remove headers and footers before submitting; spell out “percent” rather than using “PCT”; every <Employer> element must have wage records underneath it (no empty employer blocks); structure follows Employer > Employees > Report details, per the DPL XSD schema.
• CSV: comma-delimited only — no commas embedded in string fields (e.g., business names like “Paychex, Inc.” will break the file); no control characters, accented characters, or embedded line feeds; save specifically as CSV (Comma Delimited) (*.csv) — not CSV UTF-8, Macintosh, or MS-DOS variants.
• SSNs starting with 0: format the SSN column as text in Excel before entering data, or the leading zero will be dropped.
• File size: 5MB maximum. Compressed files are not supported. If your file is too large, split it at the employer level (never split a single employer’s data across files).
• One file per employer per quarter is accepted at a time.
• Recommended file naming (not required): Employers — DEWH_EMP_ACCNO_MMDDYYYY_HH24MISS.csv; TPAs — DEWH_TPA_ACCNO_MMDDYYYY_HH24MISS.csv.
• Error threshold: file processing stops once record errors reach 25 in a single file.

Step 6: No wages this quarter?

If you have real wages to report, skip this step and go to Step 7. If you have no wages to report for a quarter, file a “zero wage report” as a single employee record with these exact values:

Field	Value
Record Count	1
Preparer Name / FEIN	Blank, or TPA name/FEIN if filed by a TPA
Employer Account Number	Your account number
Year / Quarter	Your liability year/quarter
SSN	777777777
First Name	FNU
Middle Initial	M
Last Name	LNU
Employer Contribution %, FICA Wages, Out of State Wages, Total Hours, Weeks Worked	0
Adjustment Reason	Blank

Don’t confuse the two placeholder SSNs: 777777777 is used only for the single zero-wage-report record above. 999999999 is used within a normal report for an individual employee who is authorized to work but doesn’t yet have an SSN.

Step 7: Pre-check your file

Before submitting to LaborFirst, run your file through this pre-check tool to catch formatting problems locally — note that this is not an official LaborFirst resource; its an unofficial helper built to catch the same issues described in the Fix any errors step below.

Browser-based file checker for CSV files

A single self-contained HTML file — Hours-Wage-File-Checker.html — with no other files or installation required.

• How to use it: open the file in any browser (double-click it, or drag it into a browser window), then drag your .csv file into the drop zone or click “Choose file.”
• What it checks: column count, required fields, SSN format (including the 999999999/777777777 placeholder distinction), name rules, Employer Account Number, Year/Quarter, wage/hour/week ranges, Adjustment Codes, duplicate SSNs within a quarter, Total Record Count consistency, and the 5MB file size limit.
• Results: a summary count of clean rows, warnings, and errors, plus a row-by-row table explaining exactly what’s wrong and why.
• Data handling: everything runs entirely inside the browser tab using JavaScript in that one file. There is no upload, no server, and no network call anywhere in the page — you (or your IT team) can confirm this by viewing the page source or watching the browser’s Network tab while it runs. Nothing is written to disk, cookies, or browser storage; closing or refreshing the tab discards the file contents. This makes it appropriate for files containing SSNs and wage data.
• Best for: any file size — there’s no practical row limit, so this is the better option for large TPA bulk files.

Note: This tool is a pre-submission aid only — passing every check here doesn’t guarantee LaborFirst will accept the file, since DOL’s own validation rules can change without notice. Always confirm the file uploads successfully in the portal.

Step 8: Submit your report

If you’re an employer

Once you have checked the file, and you feel confident it will pass, you are ready to Submit. From your Account Summary, select the “File Quarterly Report” action item, then “File Report” for the correct quarter/year.

• Download the Employer Submission Template from the Resources section rather than building your own layout, and keep a backup copy of everything you submit.
• Some users see a blank white screen after selecting “Next” following “Done” — this typically happens on files with fewer than 1,000 employees. Select “Done,” wait for the step ladder to populate additional steps, and the system will move forward on its own.
• If you receive errors, you’ll have the option to re-upload a corrected report.

If you’re a TPA filing in bulk

TPAs can file Hours & Wage reports for multiple employer clients in a single upload. Required authorization types (assigned by each employer when creating the TPA relationship): File/Amend Paid Leave Reports (files quarterly reports on behalf of the employer) and/or Administrator (full access to create, view, and manage records on the employer’s behalf). One file is allowed per upload, and Delaware DOL typically takes 2–3 business days to process a submitted bulk report — you’ll be notified by email either way.

8a — Request your Organization Entity Relationship Report

Email pfml@delaware.gov with subject line: TPA Entity Relationship Report Request: [your organization’s name] (body can be blank). PFML responds within 3 business days with an Excel attachment listing your employer relationships — this goes to the contact email on your LaborFirst account, which may differ from your own inbox.

8b — Review the Entity Relationship Report

Open the Excel file, select cells A1:J1, and apply Filter (Home tab → Sort & Filter → Filter) to review each column. Only include employers in your submission where:

• Authorization Type is “Administrator” or “File/Amend Paid Leave Reports”
• Relationship Status is “Approved”
• Employer Liability is “Liable” (not blank)
• Liability Date matches the current period
• Account Division Period matches the current period
• Report Status is “Not Filed”

8c — Prepare and submit

Use the CSV template, delete the sample data rows (keep the header row), and paste in your data using the column order in Step 5. Save exclusively as CSV (Comma Delimited) (*.csv) — not “CSV UTF-8,” “CSV (Macintosh),” or “CSV (MS-DOS).” Then:

1. Log into the MyDelaware portal using Chrome or Edge only.
2. Select “Bulk Reporting,” review the instructions, and select “Next.”
3. Select “Upload File,” choose your file, and wait for the upload progress bar to complete, then select “Done.”
4. Select “Next,” review and certify the report (checkbox, signature, date), then “Next” again.
5. Review the “Success” screen and select “Finish.”
6. Watch for a follow-up email confirming success or failure of the file.

Filing as an employer (not a TPA)? Leave both the Preparer Legal Name and Preparer FEIN fields blank in your submission.

Step 9: Fix any errors

Reviewing errors directly in LaborFirst (via “View Upload Errors” on the homepage) is the recommended way to troubleshoot a rejected file — TPAs also receive an email listing the specific errors. During manual entry, a red dot marks fields with errors. The most common issues:

Error	Cause / Fix
File format	Must be CSV or XML. If Excel added a blank row when you edited a CSV, copy the data into a fresh CSV rather than re-saving the same file.
Incorrect CSV headers	Required headers are missing — use the official header template.
Invalid Employer Account Number	Must match a registered LaborFirst account.
Invalid SSN	Must be exactly 9 digits, a valid SSN, no dashes/spaces, no duplicates (except 999999999), and any leading zero must be preserved (format the column as text).
Invalid First/Last Name	At least 2 characters; cannot contain an apostrophe.
Invalid Year	Numeric, between 2000–2050, and valid for the employer.
Invalid Quarter	Numeric, 1–4, and valid for the employer.
Invalid FICA / Out of State Wages	Must be positive and in valid currency format (no “$”, no commas).
Invalid Total Hours	Numeric, 0 – 2200
Invalid Weeks Worked	Numeric, must be between 1 and 14.
Missing required field	Commonly Employer Account Number or Quarter; TPAs must also supply Preparer FEIN and Preparer Name.
Comma in a business name	Invalidates the CSV (e.g., “Paychex, Inc.”). Remove commas from any string field.

If a TPA bulk submission fails

You’ll receive an email with an attached file identifying the specific cells that caused the failure. Correct those cells and resubmit — repeat as needed. For hands-on help: call the Support Desk at (302) 761-8375 or email PFML@delaware.gov.

Before resubmitting, double-check: correct permissions for every employer in the file; only “Approved”/”Liable”/”Not Filed” employers included; official CSV template used and saved correctly; Record Count sequential with no blank rows; all field formats from Step 5 followed; file under 5MB; logged in with Chrome or Edge only; filed in the correct liability period.

Step 10: Make your payment

Once an Hours & Wage report is accepted, an invoice is generated for the contribution due. Payments are made through the LaborFirst account, not by any other channel.

• Employers: from the Paid Leave Account Division screen, select “Make a Payment” under Action Items, choose “Division of Paid Leave,” and you’ll be routed to the GoDE Portal to pay by ACH, debit, or credit card.
• Confirmation: a successful GoDE payment returns a confirmation number, account division number, and payment amount in LaborFirst — save these for your records. A failed payment shows a Payment Error screen and prompts you to resubmit.
• TPAs — bulk payments: available via the ACH Credit process using NACHA files (see the Bulk Payment Specifications document).
• Payments cannot be modified once submitted. For payment errors, contact PFML@delaware.gov.
• Current amount due, past quarters due, and payment history are all visible in the Financial Summary section of the Paid Leave Account Division screen.

Step 11: Amend later, if needed

If you need to make changes to a wage report, you can use the “Amend Wage Report” workflow in LaborFirst. A wage report amendment is a formal correction to a quarterly wage report that has already been submitted through LaborFirst.

1. Go to your LaborFirst home page
2. Click the three-line Hamburger Menu in the upper left corner of the screen
3. Under Action Items click File Quarterly Report
   • If you’ve filed a quarterly report in the past, it will appear on this screen.
4. In the Actions Column click Amend Report, then follow the steps to make and submit any changes.

Reference: Additional tips

Tips that don’t map to one specific step:

• All ITINs are allowed; all 9-digit values are allowed for SSNs.
• Your covered wages equal FICA totals plus reclassified out-of-state wages minus any waivers.
• For files over ~1,000 employees, you’ll receive a downloadable error report identifying every rejected record.
• Confirm the TPA–employer relationship is established in LaborFirst before attempting an upload — this is the single most common avoidable delay.

Reference: Frequently asked questions

Question	Answer
Who must submit Hours & Wage reports?	Employers enrolled in Delaware Paid Leave, immediately. Approved private-plan employers aren’t required until April 30, 2026. Exempt employers don’t need to file.
How often are reports due?	Quarterly, 30 days after quarter-end (see Step 1).
What are my submission options?	Manual entry (up to 1,000 employees), electronic CSV/XML upload, or a zero wage report if no wages were paid.
Can a TPA upload in bulk?	Yes — bulk upload of Hours & Wage reports is available for TPAs with the correct authorization.
Will there be late-filing penalties?	None applied to Q1/Q2 2025 filings and payments, as an adjustment period for the new system. See the flag in Step 1 — current policy is unconfirmed.
What new TPA authorization types exist?	“File/Amend Paid Leave Reports” (file quarterly reports on the employer’s behalf) and “Paid Leave Make Payment” (make payments on the employer’s behalf).
Where can I view submitted report data?	The Account Division Summary’s “Account Periods” section — select a period to view what was submitted.
How many files can a TPA upload at once?	One file per upload.
What’s the standard processing time for a bulk report?	2–3 business days; contact PFML@delaware.gov if it runs longer.
Where can I find the reporting template?	On the LaborFirst Employer or TPA Resources page (linked in Downloads below).

Reference: Downloads & additional resources

Guides

• Quarterly Report File Specifications (full source document for the field specs in Step 5)
• Hours & Wage Reporting Tips & Tricks
• Hours & Wage Reporting Common Error Cheat Sheet
• Hours & Wage Reporting FAQs
• Bulk Hour & Wage Reporting FAQs (TPA)
• Step-by-Step Guide for Successful Bulk Quarterly Hours & Wage Reports (TPA)
• Make a Payment FAQ

Quick reference guide & video

• Amend a Wage Report — Quick Reference Guide 
• Amend a Wage Report — Employer video walkthrough
• Hours & Wage Guides overview — Employer video walkthrough
• Bulk Filing Hours & Wage overview — TPA video walkthrough

Full portal user guides (broader than Hours & Wage)

• Employer LaborFirst User Guide
• TPA LaborFirst User Manual

Spanish-language versions of most guides above are available on the original Employer and TPA Resources pages.

Reference: Support

• Email: PFML@delaware.gov
• Support Desk: (302) 761-8375