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How to file DIR eCPR (California electronic certified payroll)

What California’s electronic certified payroll reporting is, who files it, and how to submit it without re-keying every line.

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If you do public works in California, you’ll run into DIR eCPR — electronic certified payroll reporting. It’s the part of prevailing-wage compliance most contractors dread, because done by hand it means re-typing every worker’s hours, classification, rate, and fringe into a state portal every single week. Here’s what it is and how to make it a one-minute upload instead.

What DIR eCPR is

California’s Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) requires contractors and subcontractors on most public-works projects to submit their certified payroll records (CPRs) electronically to the Labor Commissioner. “Certified” means each weekly report includes a signed statement of compliance — you’re attesting, under penalty of perjury, that workers were paid the correct prevailing wage. The electronic system is the eCPR.

The basic steps

  • 1.Register and confirm the project. Make sure your DIR registration is current and the awarding body has the project set up for electronic reporting.
  • 2.Run prevailing-wage payroll. Pay each worker the correct rate and fringe for their classification, with CA overtime and apprentice ratios handled.
  • 3.Produce the certified payroll record. Hours by day and classification, rates, fringes, deductions, gross/net, and the statement of compliance — the WH-347 data set.
  • 4.Submit weekly. Either enter the records in the DIR’s online eCPR form, or — much faster — upload an XML file in the DIR’s format.
  • 5.Keep filing until the work is done, and retain the records as required.

Online entry vs. XML upload

The DIR eCPR system supports both manual entry and an XML upload. Manual entry is fine for one worker on one short job; for a real crew across multiple weeks it’s hours of re-keying and a magnet for errors. Generating the eCPR XML from the payroll you already ran — and uploading it — is the difference between certified payroll being a weekend job and a click.

How to make it automatic

The cleanest setup is payroll that knows California prevailing wage and produces the reports for you: certified payroll software that generates the WH-347 and the DIR eCPR XML from the same payroll run — so the certified record matches the wage determination, and filing is an upload, not a re-entry.

This is a general overview, not legal advice — confirm current requirements with the awarding body and the DIR. For background, read California certified payroll, explained.

DIR eCPR, answered

What is DIR eCPR?＋

DIR eCPR is California’s electronic Certified Payroll Reporting system, run by the Department of Industrial Relations. Contractors and subcontractors on most public-works projects must submit their weekly certified payroll records (CPRs) to the Labor Commissioner electronically through the DIR’s online system — either by entering them or by uploading an XML file in the DIR’s format.

Who has to file certified payroll in California?＋

Generally, any contractor or subcontractor performing work on a public-works project subject to prevailing wage must keep and furnish certified payroll records, typically weekly, for as long as work continues. There are limited exemptions; confirm your project’s requirements with the awarding body and current DIR rules.

What information goes on a certified payroll record?＋

Each worker’s name and identifier, work classification, hours worked each day, the prevailing-wage rate and fringe, gross and net pay, deductions, and a signed statement of compliance. The federal WH-347 is the standard format; California’s eCPR captures the same data electronically.

Can I upload an XML file instead of typing each entry?＋

Yes. The DIR eCPR system accepts an XML upload in its defined format, which is far faster than entering every worker, every week, by hand. Payroll software that generates the eCPR XML for you is what turns certified payroll from a weekly chore into an upload.

What happens if certified payroll is late or wrong?＋

Non-compliance on prevailing-wage jobs can lead to withheld payments, penalties, back-wage liability, and in serious cases debarment from public work. Accuracy and timeliness matter, which is why most contractors automate the reporting rather than rebuild it by hand each week.

Make DIR eCPR a one-minute upload.

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