Certified payroll form: what to use, with example
There is no single mandatory certified payroll form. On federal Davis-Bacon jobs you can use the Department of Labor’s WH-347 or any format with the same information, plus a signed Statement of Compliance. Your agency, prime contractor or state may require its own form or portal, so ask before your first report.
This guide covers which form fits which job, where to get the current WH-347, and a made-up worker-week filled in column by column. For the background, see what is certified payroll.
Which certified payroll form should I use?
On a federal or federally assisted job, the weekly information is required but the form is not. The regulation says the weekly certified payroll information “may be submitted using Optional Form WH-347 or in any other format desired” (29 CFR 5.5(a)(3)(ii)). The signed Statement of Compliance has to say the same things either way, so the second page of the WH-347 is the usual choice.
The rest depends on who receives the report:
| Situation | What to submit |
|---|---|
| Federal or federally assisted job | Weekly certified payroll with a Statement of Compliance, on the WH-347 or an equivalent |
| Agency or prime requires its own system | Follow their system. They may require an electronic one, with a legally valid electronic signature, but must allow other methods if you cannot use it |
| State prevailing wage job | The state’s own form or portal. California, for example, takes certified payroll only through DIR’s online system |
| Both federal and state | Both reports, each in its own format and on its own schedule |
A WH-347 does not satisfy a state portal. For how the two fit together, see state prevailing wage vs Davis-Bacon and California DIR certified payroll.
Where do I get the current WH-347?
Download it from the Department of Labor’s WH-347 page. It offers the PDF, an annotated guide and an online fillable version. The version there now is marked Rev. January 2025. Check the page for anything newer before you start a project, and ask your agency which version it accepts.
If you want a “certified payroll template,” the DOL’s own PDF or fillable form is the safest one. Part 3 of the regulations says the signed statement must be on the back of the WH-347 “or on any form with identical wording” (29 CFR 3.3).
What does a certified payroll example look like?
Every number below is made up. The example is a federal job where one worker did all of the week’s work on this one project. The wage determination lists an electrician at $32.00 base and $11.00 fringe. The worker is paid exactly the base rate, and overtime is one and one-half times base, or $48.00. Of the $11.00 fringe, a health plan credit covers $4.00 an hour and the other $7.00 is paid in cash.
First the header: project name and location, project or contract number, certified payroll number, wage determination number, week ending date, your business name and address, and a box for prime or subcontractor. Tick “final” on your last week on the project.
Then the worker row on the current form:
| Column | What goes in | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1A | Worker entry number, starting at 1 | 1 |
| 1B to 1D | Last name, first name, middle initial | A sample worker |
| 1E | Individual identifying number, such as the last four digits of the Social Security number. Never the full number | 0000 |
| 2 | J for journeyworker, or RA for registered apprentice with the apprentice’s progression level | J |
| 3 | Classification of work actually performed | Electrician |
| 4 | Hours each day, straight time (ST) on the top row and overtime (OT) below | Mon to Fri 8 ST each day, Sat 5 OT |
| 5 | Total hours for the week | 45 |
| 6A | Hourly rate paid, ST on top and OT below, without cash in lieu | $32.00 and $48.00 |
| 6B | Fringe credit for plans: total hours times the hourly credit | 45 x $4.00 = $180.00 |
| 6C | Cash in lieu of fringe: total hours times the hourly cash | 45 x $7.00 = $315.00 |
| 7A | Gross earned this week on this project | $1,835.00 |
| 7B | Gross earned this week on all work | $1,835.00 |
| 8 | Deductions on all work: tax withholdings, FICA, other | $260.00, $140.00, $0.00 (total $400.00) |
| 9 | Net pay on all work | $1,435.00 |
The math behind the cash and the check:
- Base pay: 40 hours x $32.00 = $1,280.00, plus 5 overtime hours x $48.00 = $240.00, for $1,520.00.
- Gross in 7A: $1,520.00 plus the $315.00 cash in lieu is $1,835.00. The DOL instructions do not say in so many words whether 7A includes the cash in lieu. We include it because column 9 is the amount actually paid to the worker and has to equal 7B minus the deductions in column 8, and the cash in lieu was paid. If your agency’s instructions say otherwise, follow them.
- Fringe check: $180.00 plus $315.00 is $495.00, which is 45 hours x the $11.00 fringe.
- Net: $1,835.00 minus $400.00 in deductions is $1,435.00.
Two points from the DOL’s WH-347 instructions. If a worker does more than one classification, use a separate row for each, with an accurate split of hours. If a worker also earned wages on other jobs, 7B, 8 and 9 show totals for all work, and deductions are not prorated. For how plan costs turn into an hourly credit, see Davis-Bacon fringe benefits and the hourly credit.
What does page 2 of the WH-347 say?
Page 2 is the Statement of Compliance. The person who paid or supervised the payment of the workers checks each box and signs. On the current form the certifications are:
- The payroll information is correct and complete, and the wage and fringe rates paid, including credit for plans, are not less than the wage determination requires.
- The regular payrolls and basic records are complete and accurate and will be made available to the agency or the Department of Labor on request.
- The classifications reported are the work each person actually performed.
- Anyone paid as an apprentice is registered in a bona fide program, with the program details listed.
- Fringe benefits were paid in cash or to bona fide plans. If you claim a credit, list the plan name, type and number, whether it is funded, and the hourly credit for each worker. In the example that is $4.00.
- Everyone was paid the full weekly wages earned, with no rebates and only the deductions allowed under 29 CFR Part 3.
Then comes the name, title, signature, date, phone and email. The form warns that willful falsification may lead to civil or criminal prosecution and debarment, and that the information may be released in response to a Freedom of Information Act request.
What are the common mistakes on certified payroll forms?
- Classification names that are not on the wage determination. Use the determination’s words, not your payroll system’s.
- Full Social Security numbers or home addresses on the weekly report. Weekly transmittals must not include them. Use the last four digits.
- Cash in lieu in column 6A. It belongs in 6C.
- Fringe credit divided by the wrong hours. Plan costs are divided by hours on both covered and private work for the period they cover (29 CFR 5.25), not only the covered hours.
- One row for a split day. Each classification gets its own row, backed by time records.
- RA with no registration. A worker paid at an apprentice rate who is not registered must get the full rate for the classification of work performed.
- A missing or wrong signer. The Statement must be signed by the contractor or an agent who pays or supervises the payment of workers.
- Missing the deadline. Part 3 sets delivery within 7 days after the regular payday for the pay period (29 CFR 3.4). Your prime may set an earlier cutoff.
Why is a spreadsheet template risky?
A spreadsheet is a layout, not a check. It will not tell you that a rate is below the determination, that a classification is not on it, or that a fringe credit was figured on the wrong hours. Older layouts also circulate long after the form changes, and a prime or agency may return a report on the wrong version.
The bigger risk is retyping. If hours go from the payroll register into a sheet and then into a portal, every copy is a chance for a mismatch, and you sign each one. The Statement of Compliance carries civil and criminal exposure for false statements, so the numbers need to tie back to the register every week.
Frequently asked questions
Is the WH-347 required? No. Using the form is optional, but the weekly payroll information and the Statement of Compliance are required on federal and federally assisted construction contracts.
Where does the certified payroll go? To the federal agency if it is a party to the contract. Otherwise it goes to the applicant, sponsor or owner that keeps the records, for transmission to the agency. The prime contractor is responsible for submitting all subcontractors’ payrolls.
How long do I keep certified payrolls? For at least 3 years after all the work on the prime contract is completed. That covers your regular payroll records and your contracts as well.
Does a federal form work for a California project? No. California takes certified payroll through the Department of Industrial Relations online system, and sending records to another agency or the prime does not replace it. See how to fill out a WH-347 without getting it kicked back for the federal side.
Where Payrung fits
Payrung is being built to take the payroll export you already run and produce the weekly WH-347 and the state and portal formats from it, flagging classification and fringe mismatches before you sign. If you would like early access, join the waitlist.
This guide is general information, not legal or payroll advice. Confirm requirements with your contracting agency or a qualified advisor.