Montana Employer Compliance Kit 2027: State Checklist, Deadline Calendar and Excel Tracker

Who it is for

Owners, office managers and bookkeepers who run payroll for employees working in Montana, from the first hire to the year-end forms.

Not the right fit if

Your employees work outside Montana: get that state's kit, or the 2027 Employer Compliance Bundle for several states. Not a payroll service, and not a legal review of your policies.

Why it is different

• Built only from our Montana data files, checked November 2026 against 13 official pages, among them Montana Department of Labor and Industry, UI Contributions Bureau; Montana DLI: Unemployment Insurance Contribution Taxable Wage Base & Rates for 2026; Montana Department of Revenue: North Dakota Reciprocity Agreement; Official page; Montana's Legal Employment and Government Accountability Law (LEGAL Act) Takes Effect Today, Montana DLI (July 1, 2025); Montana DLI: October 7, 2026 notice to Montana employers (2027 minimum wage); U.S. Department of Labor: Minimum Wages for Tipped Employees (revised July 1, 2026); Wage and Hour FAQs (Montana Department of Labor and Industry, Employment Standards Division).
• 3 items the official pages didn't state are marked "not confirmed" with the page to check, never guessed.
• The workbook recalculates with zero formula errors and dates the Montana new-hire steps for you.

What is inside

• Start here. How to use the kit, the 17 confirmed Montana rules at a glance and the 3 items to confirm, each with the official page to check: taxable wage base for 2027 (Montana DLI: Unemployment Insurance Contribution Taxable Wage Base & Rates for 2026); state income tax withholding (Montana DOR: Wage Withholding Returns and Payments, annual reconciliation); breaks for workers under 18 (Montana DLI: Wage and hour FAQs).
• Montana 2027 checklist. Eight steps from unemployment tax registration to year-end filing, each confirmed rule with its source link and check date, from Montana Department of Labor and Industry, UI Contributions Bureau, Montana DPHHS Online New Hire Reporting, Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Employment Relations Division. What it confirms: open a state unemployment tax account: Montana DLI: register for a UI account online at UI eServices (employer handbook); taxable wage base for 2026 (the latest published): $47,300 per employee in 2026; new employer tax rate: 1% for a new employer; quarterly wage reports and payments: Montana DLI employer handbook (January 2025): submitted or postmarked by April 30, July 31, October 31 and January 31; a weekend or holiday moves it to the next business day; workers who live in a neighboring state: Reciprocity partners named by the state: North Dakota; report each new hire to the state: Within 20 days from the date of hire; e-Verify for private employers: Every employer must verify each worker's lawful employment status before hiring, using Form I-9 or E-Verify; minimum wage now (2026): $10.85 an hour; minimum wage change in 2027: Rises to $11.20 an hour on Friday, January 1, 2027; tipped employees: No tip credit: tipped staff get the full minimum wage before tips; paid sick leave: No statewide paid sick leave law for private employers; meal breaks for adults: no state rule; No state meal period requirement; rest breaks for adults: no state rule; No state rest break requirement; breaks an employer offers count as paid time; workers' compensation insurance: Employers must provide coverage under the state's Workers' Compensation and Occupational Disease Acts; final pay when you let someone go: Immediately when discharged or laid off, unless a written personnel policy in place beforehand allows the next payday or 15 days; final pay when an employee quits: By the next regular payday for the pay period or within 15 days of separation, whichever comes first; state copies of W-2s and 1099s: Only 1099s showing Montana withholding go with Form MW-3: 'Do not submit 1099s without withholding with this form.'.
• 2027 deadline calendar. 11 dates our Montana files state: 4 quarterly due dates from Montana Department of Labor and Industry, UI Contributions Bureau; January 1, 2027: minimum wage rises to $11.20 an hour; 1 state W-2 and 1099 filing dates from Montana Department of Revenue, with weekend dates flagged and a month-by-month planner for your own.
• New hire and pay change checklist. One page per hire, with the report to Montana DPHHS Online New Hire Reporting (new hires reported in 20 days) and the I-9 steps, and one per pay change against the $11.20 minimum wage from January 1.
• Montana compliance workbook (Excel). The Montana dates in a deadline tracker with days left and status, a new-hire sheet that dates each step from the start date (new hires reported in 20 days), and a pay-change sheet that flags any rate below the 2027 floor.