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- New hire: with 25 or more employees, give six basics in writing before the first day (O. Reg. 285/01, s. 1.2). Every employer gives the Employment Standards in Ontario poster within 30 days.
- Pay change: no written notice is required for a raise, but the new rate must appear on the next wage statement, and nobody can be paid less than the $17.95 general minimum wage in force since October 1, 2026.
- Last day: final wages, all vacation pay owing and any termination or severance pay are due by the later of 7 days after employment ends or the next regular pay day, with a written statement of how they were worked out (ESA ss. 11(5) and 12.1).
- Record of Employment: on a weekly, biweekly or semi-monthly payroll, submit the electronic ROE within 5 calendar days after the end of the pay period in which earnings stopped. Keep most employment records for 3 years, vacation records for 5.
Payroll is usually where a change in your team shows up first: a new name on the run, a new rate, a last cheque. Each of those changes comes with Ontario employment rules that your payroll software won’t handle for you, because they aren’t payroll rules. Here’s what each one asks of you, with the deadlines.
When someone is hired
Three things start with a new employee’s first day.
- Written new-hire information (25 or more employees). If you have 25 or more employees on the new hire’s first day, give them six things in writing before that day, or as soon after it as is reasonably possible: your legal and operating name; your contact information, with at least one contact name; where they’ll initially work; their starting wage or commission; the pay period and pay day; and their initial anticipated hours. Part-time and casual employees each count as one, and all your Ontario locations are added together (O. Reg. 285/01, s. 1.2, in force since July 1, 2025).
- The Employment Standards poster. Give every new employee a copy of the Employment Standards in Ontario poster within 30 days of their start (ESA, s. 2). If they ask for a translation and the Ministry has published one, give that too.
- Health and safety awareness training. Every worker completes basic awareness training as soon as practicable, and a new supervisor within one week of starting to supervise (O. Reg. 297/13). Keep a record, and be ready to give proof of completion if asked, even up to six months after the person leaves.
If you had 25 or more employees on January 1, new hires also get your disconnecting-from-work and electronic-monitoring policies within 30 days. Our post on the rules that start at 25 employees covers both.
When pay changes
Ontario has no rule that a raise or other pay change be given in writing. What the law does require shows up on the pay stub and in the minimums.
- The wage statement. On or before every pay day, give a statement showing the pay period, the wage rate if there is one, gross wages and how they were calculated, each deduction and what it’s for, any room or board amounts, and net pay (ESA, s. 12). A new rate shows here first. It can be emailed if the employee can print it.
- Minimum wage. Since October 1, 2026, the general minimum wage is $17.95 an hour, up from $17.60. The student rate is $16.90, for students under 18 working 28 hours a week or less while school is in session, or during school breaks. Homeworkers get $19.70.
- Vacation. Under 5 years of employment, at least 2 weeks of vacation a year and 4% vacation pay; from 5 years, 3 weeks and 6% (ESA, ss. 33 and 35.2). Paying vacation pay on each cheque needs the employee’s written agreement.
When someone leaves
The last pay has the firmest deadline in this post. It applies whether the person quit, retired or was let go.
| What | When | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Final wages, including all vacation pay owing | By the later of 7 days after employment ends or the next regular pay day | ESA ss. 11(5) and 38 |
| Termination pay and severance pay, if owed | The same deadline. Severance can be paid in instalments only with the employee’s agreement or the Director’s approval | ESA ss. 11(5) and 66 |
| A written statement of termination, severance and vacation pay, and how each was worked out | The same deadline | ESA s. 12.1 |
| Record of Employment, electronic, on a weekly, biweekly or semi-monthly payroll | Within 5 calendar days after the end of the pay period in which earnings stopped | Service Canada |
| Record of Employment, electronic, on a monthly or 13-period payroll | The earlier of 5 calendar days after the end of the pay period or 15 calendar days after the first day without earnings | Service Canada |
| Record of Employment on paper | Within 5 calendar days of the interruption, or of learning of it; give Part 1 to the employee | Service Canada |
Issue the ROE whether or not the person plans to claim Employment Insurance. If notice or termination pay is in question, our free severance pay calculator works out the Employment Standards minimums and the date they’re due.
Keep the records: 3 years, and 5 for vacation
Most of what a payroll change produces has to be kept (ESA, ss. 15 and 15.1):
- Name, address and start date: 3 years after the employee leaves.
- Hours worked: 3 years after the day or week they were worked.
- What each wage statement and termination statement said: 3 years after it was given.
- Vacation time and vacation pay: 5 years after the record was made.
- Written policies: 3 years after a policy stops being in effect.
These aren’t paperwork for its own sake. An Employment Standards officer can issue a notice of contravention of $250 for a first contravention, $500 for a second within three years and $5,000 for a third, and for most rules the amount is multiplied by the number of employees affected (O. Reg. 289/01).
Keep HR in step with payroll
In practice the risk isn’t the rule. It’s that payroll knows about a change before anyone doing HR does. A new hire is on the run before anyone has handed over the new-hire information, or a last cheque goes out and the ROE is forgotten. One habit fixes most of it: after each payroll run, compare who was paid with your staff list, and work through every new name and every leaver against the lists above.
Prodigy Suite’s payroll import makes that comparison for you: upload the employee export from your payroll system and it shows who was hired, whose job or pay changed and who left, then starts the onboarding or offboarding checklist for each person.
Questions people ask
When is final pay due when an employee leaves in Ontario?
By the later of seven days after employment ends or the employee’s next regular pay day. That includes all vacation pay owing and any termination or severance pay, with a written statement of how each was calculated.
How long do I have to issue a Record of Employment?
On a weekly, biweekly or semi-monthly payroll, an electronic ROE is due within 5 calendar days after the end of the pay period in which earnings stopped. On a monthly or 13-period payroll, it’s the earlier of that or 15 calendar days after the first day without earnings. A paper ROE is due within 5 calendar days of the interruption.
Do I have to give an employee a raise in writing in Ontario?
No. The Employment Standards Act doesn’t require written notice of a pay change. The new rate must appear on the next wage statement, and a significant pay cut without the employee’s agreement can be constructive dismissal.
What must I give a new employee in writing in Ontario?
With 25 or more employees, six items before the first day: your legal and operating name, contact details, where they’ll work, starting pay, the pay period and pay day, and their initial anticipated hours. Every employer gives the Employment Standards poster within 30 days.
How long must Ontario employers keep payroll records?
Generally three years. Name, address and start date are kept for three years after the employee leaves; hours and wage statement details for three years after the day they relate to. Vacation records are kept for five years.
Sources
- Ontario: Mandatory information for employees (updated November 18, 2025)
- Ontario: Payment of wages (updated July 8, 2024)
- Ontario: Minimum wage (updated September 28, 2026)
- Ontario: Vacation (updated February 5, 2026)
- Ontario: Termination of employment (updated July 23, 2026)
- Ontario: Record keeping (updated February 5, 2026)
- Service Canada: How to complete the Record of Employment form (updated September 15, 2026)
- O. Reg. 285/01, Time off and other matters, s. 1.2 (e-Laws)
- O. Reg. 297/13, Occupational health and safety awareness and training (e-Laws)
- O. Reg. 289/01, Enforcement (e-Laws)
- CRA: Set up a new employee
This article is general information about Ontario’s rules as of October 22, 2026, not legal advice. Prodigy Suite isn’t a law firm. For a specific situation, speak to an Ontario employment lawyer.
Keep on top of it all year
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