Expansion of 'Approved to Hire' States
Duke expands the number of states where exempt faculty and staff can work

Duke has expanded the number of states where exempt faculty and staff can now work to help provide greater flexibility and support ongoing recruitment and retention strategies in areas of critical need.
These are the states where Duke is now set up to allow exempt employees to work and remain in compliance with state laws, filings, and income tax requirements:
- Arizona - new
- Hawaii - new
- Illinois - new
- Montana - new
- Colorado - new
- Massachusetts - new
- New Jersey - new
- Pennsylvania - new
- California
- Florida
- Georgia
- Maryland
- New York
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Virginia
- Washington, DC
As a reminder, all requests for remote work must be approved in advance by the supervisor and school/division/entity HR leader. Employees working outside of North Carolina are subject to state laws, filings, and income tax regulations based on their work location. They must also adhere to all Duke policies, except where a law or regulation applicable to the employee’s remote work location requires otherwise.
While Duke will continue to add other states, the initial focus was on states where schools, departments, and entities have expressed the greatest needs. At this time, working outside of North Carolina is not allowed for non-exempt staff due to the complexities of various overtime regulations in different states. However, multi-state employment for non-exempt staff will be addressed in a future phase of this effort.
Additional information will be forthcoming regarding policies and procedures for managing remote work arrangements. In the meanwhile, you can find more information about guidelines, support and processes on the Duke Remote Work Arrangements website.
Maintaining Primary Work Location
As we expand employment into new states, it will be crucial that managers establish a ”primary” work location address for each new faculty and staff member in Duke’s personnel systems as work location is the determining factor for state tax withholdings by Duke. Any secondary state income tax liabilities are the responsibility of the employee. Work location policy, manager action items, and deadlines related to current employees will be addressed in a separate memo in the coming weeks.
Thank you for your support. If you have questions or need support with processing a change in work location, please contact your school or entity HR representative for additional guidance.
For assistance with withholding tax form submissions, please contact Corporate Payroll Services at payroll@duke.edu.