English | Español
QUICK LINKS
FREQUENTLY USED LINKS
FORMS
CONTACT US
Importing wage files in EAMS
Please note: These file specifications do not apply to Paid Family and Medical Leave wage reporting. Details about those employer requirements and processes can be found on their website.
Specifications for the most common wage data file formats:
Excel spreadsheet | ASCII-delimited | Tab-delimited | Comma-delimited | Washington State wage format | Federal format | Bulk filing (ICESA) format
Notes
- The following instructions are for our older version of Employer Account Management Services (EAMS). You will need to upgrade to our latest version of EAMS before you file your fourth quarter 2022 tax report.
- For more information:
- We do not support import of the Social Security Administration's MMREF format.
When your data is in an Excel spreadsheet, use the import data option in Employer Account Management Services (EAMS).
Setting up your file in Excel:
- Set your spreadsheet up in four columns only, with Social Security number, name, hours, wages. See example below.
- Delete any extra columns, headers, footers, totals, etc.
- Extend wages column out to two decimal places.
- Round hours up to the next whole number.
| 555-02-2222 | Jones, Sam | 561 | 13692.01 |
| 555-03-3333 | Wilson, Robert Jr. | 540 | 12450.25 |
When using EAMS
Open the Excel file and save the file as a CSV (MS-DOS) (*.csv) type. At the Wage Options page, choose Import file and click next. On the Import File page, browse to your file, click the Next button.
Text file with fields separated by specified characters, the most common being a tab or comma.
Columns or fields may be in any order:
- ES Reference Number - nine digits(123456786). Optional field
- SSN - nine digits (000000000) or (000-00-0000, 3 digits Hyphen 2 digits Hyphen 4 digits). Required field.
- Name - last name, first name. No periods allowed, except for suffixes (Jr. Sr.) Required field.
- Quarterly hours - maximum four digits (540). Required field. Enter zero if none to report. Whole numbers - decimals will be rounded up to the next whole number.
- Quarterly gross wages - maximum nine digits (1,234.56). Required field.
Decimal and cents are required. Commas are optional
Social Security Number <Tab> Name <Tab> Hours <Tab> Gross Wages
Example:
555-01-1111 Smith, John A Sr. 540 12,450.25
555-02-2222 Jones, Sam 560 13,692.01
555-03-3333 Wilson, Robert Jr. 520 10,645.34
ES Reference number,social security number,name,hours,gross wages
Example:
123456786,555-01-1111,Smith John A Sr.,540,12450.25
123456786,555-02-2222,Jones Sam,560,13692.01
123456786,555-03-3333,Wilson Robert Jr.,520,10645.34
Example showing "text qualifiers" to ignore comma’s within fields
"123456786","555-01-1111","Smith, John A Sr.","540","12,450.25"
"123456786","555-02-2222","Jones, Sam","560","13,692.01"
"123456786","555-03-3333","Wilson, Robert Jr.","520","10,645.34"
An ASCII text-file that conforms to the following defined format.
Please Note: This format will soon be phased out because it does not provide adequate name data as require by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Example:
05312345699555011111Smith john000012450250540
05312345699555022222Jones Sam 000013692010561
05312345699555033333Wilson Rob000010645340520
An ASCII text-file that has been formatted following standard specifications established by NASWA - National Association of State Workforce Agencies (formerly ICESA, Interstate Conference of Employment Security Agencies) and customized to meet reporting requirements specific to the state of Washington.
Our e-file applications (File UI Quarterly Reports in EAMS) will import files formatted for bulk filing, however a separate report must be submitted for each business contained in the file.
Important: Please review these common errors and warnings when submitting an EAMS single or bulk file. All errors must be corrected before your file can be processed