Peolet Independent PEO comparison

New Hampshire PEO Laws: Registration, Bonding and Payroll Requirements

New Hampshire licenses employee leasing companies under RSA 277-B and Lab 1500 with $100,000 working capital or bond and annual renewal. The 2026 SUI wage base is $14,000 and new employers pay 1.7% (2.7% less the 1.0% trust fund reduction); the minimum wage is $7.25, and no paid leave is mandated.

Written by · Reviewed by Peolet Editorial · Last verified

New Hampshire: PEO regulatory and payroll facts. Each populated field links to the statute, agency page or filing it came from.
PEO registration or licensing requiredYes - 'The State of New Hampshire requires all Employee Leasing Companies to be licensed by the NH Department of Labor' under RSA 277-B and administrative rules Lab 1500; Lab 1503.01 bars engaging in employee leasing without a license. Out-of-state companies may hold a restricted license under reciprocity conditions. source (opens in new window)
Regulating agencyNew Hampshire Department of Labor - Employee Leasing unit (licensing under RSA 277-B / Lab 1500); NH Employment Security for unemployment insurance. source (opens in new window)
Bond or security requirement$100,000 surety bond option for non-domiciliary licensees relying on bond in lieu of domiciliary good-standing evidence (Lab 1506.01(d)); all licensees must file audited GAAP financials showing $100,000 minimum working capital (RSA 277-B:6,I), with a $100,000 bond, irrevocable letter of credit or securities as an approved alternative, increased by any working-capital deficit; the commissioner may require additional deposits on a case-by-case basis (RSA 277-B:6,II). source (opens in new window)
Registration renewal cycleAnnual - one-year license (Lab 1504.01), renewal application at least 60 days before expiration (Lab 1506); after five continuous years of licensure, renewals run for two-year terms; $100 application fee and $500 annual fee (domiciliaries). source (opens in new window)
SUI taxable wage base$14,000 (2026, unchanged) - the new employer rate applies to the first $14,000 in annual wages paid to each employee. source (opens in new window)
New-employer SUI rate1.7% net for 2026 - the 2.7% statutory new employer rate less the 1.0% Trust Fund Reduction in effect for 2026 (RSA 282-A:82 requires the trust fund to hold at least $350 million; the reduction applies to positive-rated and new employers). Experience-rated range 0.1%-7.5%. source (opens in new window)
State workers' comp fundNo - no state fund. NH DOL: workers' compensation insurance is written by licensed carriers with premiums based on the NCCI classification system. source (opens in new window)
State paid leave mandateNo state-mandated paid family, medical or sick leave. The Granite State Paid Family and Medical Leave program is voluntary for employers ('required of none' - paidfamilymedicalleave.nh.gov). New for 2026: RSA 275:37-f requires employers with 20 or more employees to allow up to 25 hours of unpaid leave for childbirth/postpartum and infant pediatric medical appointments. source (opens in new window)
State minimum wage$7.25 - RSA 279:21 ties the New Hampshire minimum wage to the federal minimum wage. source (opens in new window)
PEO SUI reporting basisLicensing requires letters of good standing from NH Employment Security (UI) and the Dept. of Revenue Administration (Lab 1503.02(b)(8)); licensees file quarterly CPA certifications that all federal and state payroll taxes were timely paid and report client additions/terminations to NH DOL within 20 business days, with a quarterly client list (Lab 1505.01, 1505.02). source (opens in new window)

Sources

What we know about New Hampshire

New Hampshire is a full licensing state for employee leasing. Every Employee Leasing Company - the statutory term for what the industry calls a PEO - must be licensed by the Department of Labor under RSA 277-B and the administrative rules in chapter Lab 1500; Lab 1503.01 provides that no person shall engage in the business of employee leasing without a license (dol.nh.gov/workers-compensation/employee-leasing; gc.nh.gov/rules/state_agencies/lab1500.html). Out-of-state companies can qualify for a restricted license when their domiciliary state offers reciprocal terms, they maintain no New Hampshire office or sales force, and they lease no more than 100 employees in the state. The financial bar is explicit in RSA 277-B:6: every application for issuance or renewal must carry an audited GAAP financial statement showing minimum working capital of $100,000, or - with the commissioner's approval - a surety bond, irrevocable letter of credit, or securities with a minimum market value of $100,000, increased by any working-capital deficit; a licensee falling below $100,000 at renewal gets 180 days to cure with quarterly financial statements and a CEO attestation, and the commissioner may require additional deposits where a company has lost or limited licenses elsewhere or has a history of unpaid wages or payroll taxes (law.justia.com/codes/new-hampshire/title-xxiii/chapter-277-b/section-277-b-6/; Lab 1506.01(d)).

Licenses run one year, renew at least 60 days before expiration, and convert to two-year terms after five continuous years of licensure; fees are $100 application and $500 annual (non-domiciliaries pay the greater of $500 or their domiciliary state's fee) (Lab 1504.01, Lab 1506). Operations are monitored tightly: client additions and terminations are reported within 20 business days, a client list is due quarterly, a CPA must certify each quarter that all federal and state payroll taxes were paid, and licensing itself requires UI good-standing letters from NH Employment Security and a tax good-standing letter from the Department of Revenue Administration (Lab 1503.02(b)(8), Lab 1505.01-1505.02).

Unemployment insurance for 2026 is easy to state: a $14,000 taxable wage base, and a 2.7% new employer rate that nets to 1.7% because RSA 282-A:82's $350 million trust fund balance triggers a 1.00% Trust Fund Reduction applied to positive-rated and new employers through the 2026 quarters (nhes.nh.gov/employers/employer-claims-taxes; tax rate chart). Experience-rated employers sit between 0.1% and 7.5%. Workers' compensation is a private-carrier market with no state fund - NH DOL states coverage is written by a carrier with premiums based on NCCI classifications, and the department lists licensed carriers on its Insurance Carriers page (dol.nh.gov workers' comp insurance FAQ). The minimum wage is $7.25 because RSA 279:21 ties the state rate to the federal minimum (gc.nh.gov/rsa/html/XXIII/279/279-21.htm).

Paid leave: nothing is mandated. The Granite State Paid Family and Medical Leave program is a voluntary insurance product - the program's own FAQ describes it as 'required of none' - with 60% wage replacement up to six weeks per year and a BET tax credit for employers purchasing the six-week MetLife plan (paidfamilymedicalleave.nh.gov). Two new leave laws took effect January 1, 2026: RSA 275:37-f requires employers with 20 or more employees to grant up to 25 hours of unpaid, job-protected leave for the employee's own childbirth and postpartum appointments or the child's pediatric appointments within the first year of birth or adoption, and a new family military leave law protects employees whose spouse is involuntarily mobilized (gc.nh.gov 275:37-f; Alight 2026 leave update).

Nearby states

All 50 states · How we verify this data

Related tools: New Hampshire PEO FAQs · estimate what a PEO costs for employees in New Hampshire · get matched with providers that can operate here · download the full 50-state dataset

Find PEOs registered in this state

Registration status changes what a provider can legally do for you here. Tell us your situation and we will shortlist providers that can operate in your states.

Get matched

You choose which providers may contact you before anything is sent.