Key HR Compliance Trends for 2026 — and How to Get Ahead
Part of a series | 2026 HR Trends Series
ADP's 2026 HR trends guide highlights key compliance challenges, from artificial intelligence (AI) regulations to pay transparency and leave policies, and shows how staying ahead can turn compliance into a strategic advantage.
As the workplace evolves, it's becoming more intelligent, interconnected and (hopefully) deeply human. While AI transformation dominates many leadership conversations — and understandably so — the emphasis here is on how innovation is challenging HR leaders to reshape strategy. ADP's 2026 HR trends guide outlines what this means for three key domains: compliance, people and technology. This blog post is the first in a three-part series that explores each area in greater detail.
Here are the HR compliance trends that every HR leader should be tracking in the coming year.
1. AI regulation in employment decisions
Across the U.S. and around the world, governments at all levels are implementing risk-based regulations for AI use in hiring, promotions and other employment decisions, with high-risk uses requiring transparency and auditing. Increasingly, employers must inventory AI tools, ensure human oversight and regularly test for bias. The European Union (EU) AI Act specifically prohibits using AI to analyze employee emotions, perform social scoring or assess misconduct risk with biometric data.
Understanding the full range of AI capabilities and their impact on compliance is a crucial challenge for HR leaders in 2026.
"When evaluating any AI tool, consider whether it was developed using secure, high-quality data, whether it produces reliable and meaningful results and whether it helps streamline — rather than complicate — work processes," said Helena Almeida, vice president, managing counsel and AI legal officer, ADP.
2. Pay transparency expansion
Pay transparency requirements are expanding globally and across U.S. states, with the EU Pay Transparency Directive taking effect in June 2026 and Massachusetts' new requirements already in force as of October 2025. Many of these regulations require employers to include salary ranges in job postings, conduct regular pay equity audits and maintain detailed compensation records, with specific requirements varying by location. For instance, Massachusetts requires employers with 25 or more employees to include pay ranges in job postings, while Delaware's 2027 law mandates retaining salary records for a minimum of three years. Multistate employers, in particular, must develop pay transparency policies and practices that comply with diverse regulations, even as new rules continue to be proposed.
3. Tax treatment changes for wages and benefits
H.R.1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (the Act), passed in July 2025, included a number of provisions related to wages and benefits, such as increased tax incentives for child-care benefits and paid family leave. The new rules also change federal tax treatment of overtime and tips starting in 2025. The impact for employers is easily measured. Employers can now deduct 40% of child-care expenses up to $500,000 (previously 25% up to $150,000). The annual pretax contribution limit for dependent care will also increase from $5,000 to $7,500 for joint filers, effective Jan. 1, 2026.This could complicate matters for employers with distributed workforces.
"For multistate employers where overtime is calculated differently by state, start early to prepare for end-of-year reporting and establish practices for tracking overtime in all the locations you have employees," said Tim Morris, legal compliance director, ADP.
4. Paid and protected leave expansion
States continue to expand paid sick leave and protected leave requirements. Currently, 17 states and Washington, D.C., require paid sick leave, while 13 states and the district have passed paid family leave laws. Employers need to track varying accrual formulas, caps and rollover rules across jurisdictions. Delaware, Maine and Minnesota begin paying family leave benefits in 2026, with Maryland following in 2028.
"Leave is one of the most confusing areas of employment law for both employers and employees," said Michael Grosso, senior counsel of workforce management, ADP. "It's not only important to make sure your policies and practices follow the applicable laws; it's also essential to consider how differing practices may affect culture, fairness and even administrative burdens."
5. Multijurisdictional compliance challenges
As mentioned earlier, employers face increasingly complex and sometimes conflicting requirements across local, state and federal jurisdictions on issues ranging from pay transparency to leave policies. Organizations must balance varying legal requirements while maintaining consistent and fair policies. One approach is to adopt the most protective standard across all locations.
"Compliance and managing risk are always bigger considerations than simply what the law requires," said Meg Ferrero, vice president and assistant general counsel, ADP. "Having multiple laws with different requirements that apply doesn't always mean creating a separate practice for each law."
Compliance as a catalyst
As regulatory landscapes become more complex in 2026, staying ahead of HR compliance trends is no longer just about avoiding penalties. It's about establishing a foundation for fair, consistent and strategically sound HR practices across your organization. The organizations that thrive will be those that treat compliance as a catalyst for creating workplaces where people and innovation can flourish together.
What if your compliance strategy could become your competitive advantage?
Dive deeper: Download ADP's 2026 HR trends guide to explore how innovation is reshaping compliance, people strategies and technology in the workplace.
