How Do You Fill Out Certified Payroll (WH-347)?

The Davis-Bacon Act applies to contracts in excess of $2,000 to which the Federal Government or the District of Columbia is a party for construction, alteration or repair, including painting and decorating, of public buildings and public works; the contract states the minimum wages for each class of laborers and mechanics, based on the wages the Secretary of Labor determines to be prevailing (40 U.S.C. § 3142). The Related Acts extend similar labor standards to many federally assisted projects, through the contract clauses in 29 CFR 5.5.

The payroll rule is in those clauses. The contractor or subcontractor must submit weekly, for each week in which any covered work is performed, certified payrolls to the agency (or to the applicant, sponsor or owner that keeps the records), and the prime contractor is responsible for the submission of all certified payrolls by all subcontractors (29 CFR 5.5(a)(3)(ii)(A)). The information may be submitted on Optional Form WH-347 or in any other format desired (29 CFR 5.5(a)(3)(ii)(B)). The Department of Labor's form page says the same: use of the form is optional, but covered contractors and subcontractors are required to submit payroll information on a weekly basis (DOL, Form WH-347).

The Department of Labor's annotated guide walks through every box on the form (revision dated January 2025, OMB 1235-0008, expiring January 31, 2028) (WH-347 annotated guide). Number payrolls sequentially from 1, by the weeks worked under the contract, and check the box for the final payroll when the contracted work is done.

Weekly payrolls must not include full Social Security numbers or last known addresses, telephone numbers or email addresses; an individually identifying number such as the last four digits of the Social Security number is enough. A prime contractor may still ask a sub for the full details for its own records (29 CFR 5.5(a)(3)(ii)(B)). Where the contract carries the overtime clause in 29 CFR 5.5(b), hours over 40 in a workweek are paid at not less than one and one-half times the basic rate of pay.

Each certified payroll must be accompanied by a Statement of Compliance, signed by the contractor or subcontractor or its agent who pays or supervises the payment of the workers. It certifies that the payroll contains the required information and that the basic records are kept and are correct and complete; that each laborer or mechanic was paid the full weekly wages earned, with no rebates and no deductions other than those permitted by 29 CFR part 3; and that each was paid not less than the applicable wage rates and fringe benefits, or cash equivalents, for the classification of work actually performed (29 CFR 5.5(a)(3)(ii)(C)). The certification on the second page of WH-347 satisfies this requirement (paragraph (D)).

• Check every box that applies; the guide says the boxes must be checked to assert compliance.
• If anyone was paid as an apprentice, check that box and name the registered apprenticeship program and whether it is registered with the Office of Apprenticeship or a State Apprenticeship Agency.
• If you take credit for fringe benefit plan contributions, list each plan's name, type and number, whether it is funded or unfunded, and the hourly credit for each worker.
• Sign with an original handwritten signature or a legally valid electronic signature (paragraph (E)). Falsification may lead to civil or criminal prosecution under 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 31 U.S.C. 3729 (paragraph (F)).
• Keep every certified payroll for 3 years after all the work on the prime contract is completed (paragraph (G)).

The facts are fictional. "Brightline Electric" is a subcontractor on a federal building renovation. The contract's wage determination sets an electrician at $48.20 an hour plus $22.15 an hour in fringe benefits. Brightline pays its electrician $49.00 an hour, contributes $18.40 an hour to a bona fide health and pension plan, and pays $3.75 an hour in cash in lieu of the rest of the fringe. In the week ending Saturday, the electrician works 8, 8, 8, 8 and 10 hours Monday to Friday: 42 hours, 40 straight and 2 overtime. The contract carries the overtime clause.

The check against the wage determination: the $49.00 paid is at least the $48.20 base rate, and $18.40 to the plan plus $3.75 in cash is $22.15 an hour, equal to the fringe rate. The FICA and tax amounts are illustrations only; use your payroll system's figures.

• Skipping a week with covered work, or numbering payrolls out of sequence.
• A classification that doesn't match the work actually performed that day.
• Fringe benefits that don't add up to the wage determination's rate, or a plan credit with no plan details on page 2.
• Full Social Security numbers or last known addresses on the weekly payroll.
• An unsigned Statement of Compliance, or boxes left unchecked.

If records aren't submitted or made available, the agency may, after written notice, take action to suspend further payment, and failure may be grounds for debarment (29 CFR 5.5(a)(3)(iv)(B)). A held payroll can hold your pay application, so treat it like the other compliance documents a GC checks before it pays. Other federal-job rules are in how to make a Miller Act claim and the subcontractor's guide.

Certified payroll is a weekly form for every week with covered work: one line per worker per classification, hours by day, rates, fringe benefits, gross, deductions and net, then a signed Statement of Compliance.

Fill it in from your payroll records the week it happens, check each worker's rate and fringes against the wage determination, and send it to the prime on time.

Join the waitlist as a subcontractor

1. Form WH-347, Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Weekly Certified Payroll Form — U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division. Read October 22, 2026.
2. How to correctly fill out the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Weekly Certified Payroll WH-347 Form (annotated guide) — U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division. Read October 22, 2026.
3. 29 CFR 5.5, Contract provisions and related matters — Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR). Read October 22, 2026.
4. 40 U.S.C. § 3142, Rate of wages for laborers and mechanics — U.S. Government Publishing Office (govinfo), United States Code, 2023 edition. Read October 22, 2026.