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At Wrapbook, we pride ourselves on providing outstanding free resources to producers and their crews, but this post is for informational purposes only as of the date above. The content on our website is not intended to provide and should not be relied on for legal, accounting, or tax advice. You should consult with your own legal, accounting, or tax advisors to determine how this general information may apply to your specific circumstances.
Last Updated
April 3, 2024
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Montana
In addition to federal startwork forms, documents required to hire new employees in the state of Montana include:
Though new employees must fill out all federal startwork documents, the state of Nevada does not currently have an individual income tax. Therefore, the state does not require new employees to fill out an additional state tax withholding form.
Employers may be required to supply select policy notices to new employees upon hiring, including:
Though new employees must still fill out all federal startwork documents, the state of New Hampshire does not currently have an individual income tax. Therefore, the state does not require new employees to fill out an additional state tax withholding form.
The state of New Mexico utilizes the federal W-4 form to manage employee withholdings for the state’s individual income tax. As such, New Mexico currently requires no additional withholding form.
The state of North Dakota utilizes the federal W-4 form to manage employee withholdings for the state’s individual income tax. As such, North Dakota currently requires no additional withholding form.
All new employees must be reported to North Dakota Child Supportwithin 20 days of their first day of work.
Because Pennsylvania’s personal income tax is based on a flat tax rate, the state does not currently mandate the collection of a state tax withholding form.
However, for employees who have incurred no liability for income tax the previous year or anticipate that they will incur no liability for income tax in the current year, the state does allow the usage of a standardize state non-withholding form:
Though new employees must still fill out all federal startwork documents, the state of South Dakota does not currently have an individual income tax. Therefore, the state does not require new employees to fill out an additional state tax withholding form.
Though new employees must still fill out all federal startwork documents, the state of Tennessee does not currently have an individual income tax. Therefore, does not require new employees to fill out an additional state tax withholding form.
Though new employees must still fill out all federal startwork documents, the state of Texas does not currently have an individual income tax. Therefore, does not require new employees to fill out an additional state tax withholding form.
Employers may also be required to supply select policy notices to new employees upon hiring, including:
The state of Utah utilizes the federal W-4 form to manage employee withholdings for the state’s individual income tax. As such, Utah currently requires no additional withholding form.
Though new employees must still fill out all federal startwork documents, the state of Washington does not currently have an individual income tax. Therefore, the state does not require new employees to fill out an additional state tax withholding form.
However, employers may be required to supply select policy notices to new employees upon hiring, including:
Though new employees must still fill out all federal startwork documents, the state of Wyoming does not currently have an individual income tax. Therefore, the state does not require new employees to fill out an additional state tax withholding form.
Now that you know what’s required for your state, how do you manage it all?
As an employer, it’s likely that either you or a coordinator is responsible for creating and sending out this documentation each and every time a project begins, which can feel like a job in itself.
With Wrapbook’s digital startwork solution, though, startwork becomes faster, easier, and more efficient.
With a proper startwork solution, production can digitize the onboarding experience to virtually eliminate the most restrictive time and labor constraints of physical paperwork, as well as the legwork required to track people down.
Wrapbook enables you to create unique document templates, set your own Smart Fields, and collect legally binding signatures—all from a centralized production dashboard. You can also store templates and signed documents for easy, searchable reference in the future, which is a major advantage when rehiring the same crew members for future projects.
Of course, you don’t have to take our word for it. Check out our demo to see Wrapbook in action for yourself.
Wrapping up
The above breakdown only covers basic state-by-state startwork documents as required by law. However, your production, its cast, and crew might benefit from other items that do not appear on this list.
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The collection of startwork documents is a small but essential step in getting any film, commercial, or television project ready for principal photography.
But while the task itself is simple, the task of putting your startwork together does contain a hidden challenge. Depending on where you’re planning to shoot, the exact documents you’ll need to collect can vary dramatically.
This post breaks down startwork requirements state-by-state, giving you quick access to the resources you’ll need to make pre-production on your next project as smooth as possible.
Let’s kick things off with the basics.
What are startwork documents?
In film production, the term “startwork document” refers to any document necessary to legally hire any member of your project’s cast or crew.
Some startwork documents are optional or may only be necessary on a project-by-project basis. Crew Deal Memos, for instance, are a common sight in startwork packets, but the document’s precise details are not legally stipulated and can be modified to meet each project’s needs. Similarly, NDAs are a must when a production is dealing with sensitive intellectual property, but no laws dictate that an NDA needs to be included in your startwork packets.
However, some startwork documents are, in fact, legally required. These documents generally support federal and state tax obligations but may also correspond to labor laws or other mandates.
For ease of use, this post will only detail startwork documents required by each state, but it’s important to calculate your production’s full range of concerns when designing a startwork packet. To cover your basics, be sure to download our free collection of essential forms for film.
Now, let’s dive into our state-by-state breakdown of startwork requirements.
Federal startwork requirements
No matter what state you’re planning to shoot in, your production’s startwork requirements will be subject to federal mandates.
Before they begin work, every cast and crew member that you hire in any state will have to turn in the following federal startwork documents:
Beyond federal startwork forms, many states require their own individual documents. The following sections will break down startwork requirements for each state in alphabetical order.
Alabama
In addition to federal startwork forms, documents required to hire new employees in the state of Alabama include:
Though new employees must still fill out all federal startwork documents, the state of Alaska does not currently have an individual income tax. Therefore, the state does not require new employees to fill out an additional state tax withholding form.
Though new employees must still fill out all federal startwork documents, the state of Colorado does not mandate that new employees complete a state withholding form. Instead, the form is optional and only to be filled out at the individual employee’s discretion. You can find the form at here:
Though new employees will still have to complete all federal startwork forms, the state of Florida currently has no startwork document requirements for new hires.