State and Federal Reference Materials

This section includes guides to state and federal laws and regulations published by the overseeing agencies. These include the New York State Department of Labor the US Department of Labor and the IRS and NYS Department of Taxation to help you understand your legal obligations as a farm employer.

These guides are a good place to start to get an overall sense of your obligations.

Additional Resources

Seasonal and Migrant Workers

Many farms bring in seasonal workers from around the country to work on their farm. These workers are covered by a federal law, the Migrant and Seasonal Worker Protection Act. US DOL Guide to Migrant and Seasonal Worker Protection Act describes the requirements for this program. A migrant and seasonal worker is a seasonal farm employees who are not H2A, but whose permanent place of residence is not commuting distance from their place of work.

H2A Workers

USDA has really good overview of the H2A program on their website. H-2A Visa Program For Temporary Workers | Farmers.gov.. We have a section on H2A but this gives you a good overview of the program.

Federal Employment Taxes

The IRS Publication 51 (2022), (Circular A), Agricultural Employer's Tax Guide is your guide to your federal tax requirements as an Agricultural Employer Publication 51 (2022), (Circular A), Agricultural Employer's Tax Guide | Internal Revenue Service (irs.gov)

State Employment Taxes

New York State Tax Guide for New Businesses - covers your obligations as an employer in NYS Publication 20:(11/12):New York State Tax Guide for New Businesses:pub20 (ny.gov)