How to Do Payroll in Alaska: A Step-by-Step Guide

Last reviewed: July 2026

Alaska employers spend less time on state tax paperwork than employers almost anywhere else in the country. There is no state income tax and no state withholding form to configure. That simplicity can trick new employers into skipping steps that still apply: SUI registration, new hire reporting, and the timing rules for paydays and final wages. Here is the order those pieces come in, and what each one actually requires.

Step 1: Get a Federal EIN

Every employer needs an Employer Identification Number from the IRS before the first payroll runs. It identifies your business on federal tax deposits, W-2s, and quarterly returns, and most state agencies ask for it during registration too.

Apply free at IRS.gov/EIN. The online application issues a number immediately, so there is no reason to pay a third party to get one for you.

Step 2: State Registrations You Actually Need

Alaska keeps the registration list short compared with income tax states. Before you hire, plan on these three steps:

• Register for an SUI account with the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Employment Security Division.
• Set up new hire reporting through the Alaska Child Support Services Division's New Hire Reporting Program, which every employee must be reported to within 20 days of their start date.
• Confirm any local business license requirements with your municipality, since Alaska does not have a general state business license tied to payroll.

If your business also owes other Alaska taxes (mining, fisheries, or fuel taxes, for example), you would register separately with the Alaska Department of Revenue, Tax Division. That agency does not touch payroll withholding, because there is none to administer.

From the Payroll Desk

Start SUI registration the week you accept your first job offer, not the week payroll is due. Processing can take longer than new employers expect, and you need your account number before your first quarterly report is due.

Step 3: Why There Is No State Withholding

Alaska is one of a handful of states with no personal income tax, so there is no state withholding form for new hires to complete and no state withholding tax to calculate, deposit, or reconcile. Your new-hire paperwork boils down to the federal Form W-4, an I-9, and whatever state new hire report you file for child support enforcement purposes.

This does not mean payroll compliance disappears. It means the compliance work in Alaska sits almost entirely on the federal side (income tax withholding, Social Security, Medicare, and FUTA) plus the state's unemployment insurance system, covered next.

Step 4: Unemployment Insurance, Including the Employee Share

Alaska's SUI program works differently from most states in one important way: employees contribute to it too. Your payroll software needs to withhold the employee share from every paycheck in addition to remitting the employer share, so this is not a tax you can simply absorb quietly like you might elsewhere.

New employers start at the standard rate and move to an experience rate once the state has enough wage history to calculate one, usually after a few years of quarterly reporting. Some new employers are instead assigned an industry-average rate depending on their classification, so confirm your assigned rate directly with the Employment Security Division rather than assuming the standard figure applies. For a full breakdown of how the experience system works, see our Alaska SUI Rates guide.

Step 5: Pay Frequency and Final Pay

Alaska law lets employees choose monthly or semi-monthly pay periods, so most employers standardize on a semi-monthly or biweekly schedule and let new hires know at onboarding. Once a schedule is set, paychecks need to arrive on time, every time. Employees notice slow pay faster than almost anything else you do.

Final pay rules depend on who ends the employment. If you terminate someone, their final wages are due within three working days. If an employee quits, you owe their final paycheck at the next regular payday that falls at least three days after they gave notice. Build both rules into your offboarding checklist so a termination on a Friday does not turn into a payroll surprise on Monday.

Step 6: Deposit and Filing Calendar

With no state withholding to track, your recurring calendar is mostly federal, plus one quarterly state report:

• Federal income tax, Social Security, and Medicare deposits, on a monthly or semi-weekly schedule based on your lookback period.
• Form 941 filed quarterly to reconcile those deposits. Our Form 941 guide walks through the schedule and common line-item mistakes.
• FUTA deposits, generally quarterly once your liability passes $500.
• Alaska quarterly wage and contribution reports, due the last day of the month following each quarter (April 30, July 31, October 31, and January 31).

Missing a federal deposit date is one of the more expensive mistakes a small employer can make, since the penalty schedule ramps up quickly the longer a deposit sits unpaid. If you are unsure which federal deposit schedule applies to you, our paycheck calculator and W-4 helper can help you confirm withholding amounts before you commit to a filing rhythm.

Step 7: Year-End W-2 Filing

At year-end, every employee gets a Form W-2 showing federal wages, withholding, and Social Security and Medicare amounts. You file copies with the Social Security Administration along with a Form W-3 summary. Because Alaska has no income tax, there is no matching state W-2 reconciliation to file, one less deadline than employers in most other states are juggling in January.

If any workers were paid as independent contractors during the year, remember that 1099-NEC filings run on a separate track with their own January deadline. Mixing up W-2 and 1099 obligations is one of the more common year-end errors small employers make.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to register for state income tax withholding in Alaska?

No. Alaska has no state income tax, so there is no state withholding form and nothing to register for on the income tax side. You still need a federal EIN and an SUI account with the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development.

How do I register for Alaska SUI?

Register online with the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Employment Security Division, before you run your first payroll. You'll receive an employer account number and your assigned contribution rate.

How often do I need to run payroll in Alaska?

Alaska law requires monthly or semi-monthly pay periods, at the employee's election. Most employers choose semi-monthly or biweekly schedules to match federal deposit timing.

What forms do I file at year-end for Alaska employees?

You file federal Form W-2 for every employee and Form W-3 with the Social Security Administration. Since Alaska has no income tax, there is no state W-2 reconciliation form to file.