Providers must submit Payroll Based Journal (PBJ) data for July 1 – September 30, 2025 by November 14, 2025, at 11:59 PM Eastern Standard Time. Given the government shutdown, providers are encouraged to submit their data early so that they have ample time to resolve issues should they run into any challenges during data submission.
Key Reminders:
- Each staff member (employed directly or contract) should have a unique employee ID assigned to them. Do not utilize the same employee ID for more than one individual.
- Providers should follow the instructions in the employee ID linking file to link an old employee’s ID with a new one. This ensures continuity in reporting an employee’s hours when their ID changes (e.g., due to a change of vendor).
- For every 8 hours of work, providers must exclude 30 minutes for a meal break. This must be deducted regardless of whether the meal was paid for or unpaid, and whether the break was taken. If a longer break was taken, that time must be excluded.
CMS has several resources to help answer provider questions on PBJ: