The PBJ resource library
Clear answers for your
next PBJ filing.
Practical Payroll-Based Journal help for nursing home administrators, payroll teams, and reviewers. Understand reporting requirements, fix staffing-hour errors, prepare your CMS submission, and compare software.
Filing guides and software comparisons
Practical help for your next filing decision.
Get access to iQIES
The new PBJ login: how to access iQIES in 2026
Find the official PBJ login, set up HARP and iQIES access, get facility approval, and troubleshoot missing PBJ permissions after the 2026 transition.
Read the guideStart with the requirements
PBJ reporting requirements for nursing homes.
CMS PBJ reporting requirements for nursing homes: staffing records, agency hours, deadlines, iQIES submission, and a preparation checklist.
Read the guidePlan your quarter
PBJ reporting deadlines, without the quarter confusion.
Find the CMS Payroll-Based Journal deadlines, understand federal fiscal quarters, and build a practical nursing home filing schedule.
Read the guideImport and reconcile
Turn payroll spreadsheets into a reviewable PBJ filing.
Prepare CSV, TSV, XLSX, and XLS payroll files for PBJ XML export. Resolve dates, employee IDs, hours, agency files, and duplicate records before submission.
Read the guideReview with evidence
How to fix PBJ reporting errors: a submission review checklist.
Review PBJ staffing hours, meal deductions, missing agency files, employee links, and daily totals. Separate data errors from decisions that need evidence.
Read the guideExport and follow through
Submit PBJ in iQIES. Then verify what CMS accepted.
Follow the iQIES PBJ upload process, read the Final Validation Report, handle partial rejection, and reconcile CMS records with your exported filing.
Read the guideCompare PBJ software
EasyPBJ vs SimplePBJ: a lower price for your quarterly filing.
Compare EasyPBJ's free exports up to 25 employees per facility per quarter and $149 quarterly plan with SimplePBJ Pro's published starting price.
Read the guideChoose your filing workflow
A SimplePBJ alternative built around the review.
Explore EasyPBJ as a SimplePBJ alternative: import payroll and agency files, review staffing hours, and prepare CMS XML with source evidence.
Read the guideCompare PBJ software
PBJ software for nursing homes: every option, compared.
Compare PBJ reporting options: EasyPBJ, SimplePBJ (formerly ezPBJ), OnShift, payroll system PBJ exports, and the free CMS Excel to XML template.
Read the guideCompare PBJ software
The free CMS PBJ Excel template, or PBJ software?
Compare the free CMS PBJ Excel to XML template with PBJ software: what the template asks of your staff, where errors slip through, and when free is enough.
Read the guideChoose your filing workflow
Your payroll system exports PBJ. Is that enough?
If your payroll or timekeeping system exports a PBJ file, check agency hours, job codes, overnight shifts, and review evidence before uploading it to iQIES.
Read the guideCompare PBJ software
Switching from SimplePBJ to EasyPBJ, step by step.
How to move PBJ filing from SimplePBJ to EasyPBJ: keep your history, confirm iQIES access, import one quarter, and compare totals before you switch.
Read the guideNew to Payroll-Based Journal?
PBJ is CMS’s system for collecting auditable direct-care staffing information from covered long-term care facilities, including agency and contract staff. A reliable filing connects the source records to the hours you intend to submit.
Start with PBJ reporting requirements Read the CMS overviewGuidance you can trace.
Articles link to the CMS guidance or published product information behind their claims, with a source-check date. Our examples explain a workflow; your facility confirms how the rules apply to its staffing records.
Found an update or need help with EasyPBJ? Contact support.
Put your next filing in one workspace.
Prepare and review your quarter free. Downloads are free up to 25 employees, or $149 every three months for larger quarters. Import payroll, review staffing hours, and prepare your CMS filing package.