Hire in United States
United States of America — 335 million population, $76,330 GDP per capita. Everything you need to know about employment law, tax, compliance and hiring in United States.
Capital
Washington, D.C.
Currency
US Dollar (USD)
Languages
English, Spanish
Time zones
UTC-5 (ET), UTC-6 (CT), UTC-7 (MT), UTC-8 (PT)
Hiring overview
- Typical time to hire
- 2-4 weeks for contractor, 4-8 weeks for full-time
- Entity requirement
- Required for direct employment; each state may require separate registrations (state tax, unemployment insurance, workers' comp)
- EOR available
- Yes — from $399/employee/month through a Corpshore entity
- Contractor of record
- Yes — from $39/worker/month
Employment law
- Standard workweek
- 40 hours (no federal cap, but FLSA overtime threshold applies)
- Maximum weekly hours
- 40 hours
- Minimum annual leave
- No federal minimum (typical employer offers 10-15 days PTO)
- Public holidays
- 11 per year
- Maternity leave
- 12 weeks unpaid (FMLA, employers with 50+ employees)
- Paternity leave
- 12 weeks unpaid (FMLA, same eligibility as maternity)
- Notice period
- At-will employment: no statutory notice in most states
- Severance
- No statutory requirement (common practice: 1-2 weeks per year of service)
- Probation
- No statutory concept; at-will status serves a similar function
- Overtime rules
- 1.5x hourly rate for non-exempt workers over 40 hours/week (FLSA)
Tax overview
- Income tax range
- 10% to 37% federal, plus state taxes (0-13.3%)
- Corporate tax
- 21% federal flat rate
- Social contributions
- FICA: 7.65% employee + 7.65% employer (Social Security 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)
- VAT / GST
- No federal VAT/GST; state sales taxes range 0% to 7.25%
- Tax year
- Calendar year (Jan-Dec)
- Treaty network
- Over 60 income tax treaties in force
Compliance landscape
- Worker classification
- IRS 20-factor test and ABC test (varies by state). California's AB5 imposes the strictest contractor test. Misclassification penalties include back taxes, overtime, and benefits.
- Data protection
- No single federal privacy law. State-level: CCPA/CPRA (California), VCDPA (Virginia), CPA (Colorado), and more. Sectoral: HIPAA (health), FERPA (education), GLBA (finance).
- Right to work
- I-9 verification required within 3 days of hire. E-Verify mandatory for federal contractors; optional elsewhere (required in some states).
- Non-compete
- FTC proposed a near-total ban (contested in courts as of 2024). California, Minnesota, Oklahoma, and North Dakota ban most non-competes already.
- Collective bargaining
- NLRA protects right to organize. Union membership ~10% of workforce. Sector-specific: strong in public sector, construction, healthcare.
Payment rails
ACH direct deposit is the standard payroll method. Same-day ACH available for most banks. Stripe Connect offers instant payout to debit cards.
Key considerations for hiring
- At-will employment in 49 states (Montana requires cause after probation)
- Benefits expectations are high: health insurance, 401(k), PTO are standard in professional roles
- Worker classification enforcement has intensified since 2020, especially in California, New York, and Illinois
- State-by-state compliance complexity: employment law varies significantly across jurisdictions
Business and cultural context: United States
Business culture
Direct, results-oriented, informal communication. Performance-driven culture with emphasis on individual contribution. Email remains primary business communication.
Key industries
Talent pool strengths
Historical context
The US at-will employment doctrine, established in the 1877 Payne v. Western & Atlantic Railroad ruling, makes it one of the few developed economies where employment can be terminated without cause. This shapes the entire contractor-vs-employee classification landscape.
Ready to hire in United States?
Use our EOR service from $399/month and we handle employment law, payroll, tax and compliance in United States for you.