Edit an employee's personal details (for admins)

When entering an employee’s SSN in Gusto, you’ll see a message if the format is incorrect. However, we cannot validate or invalidate SSNs — you must do this yourself. You can use the Social Security Number Verification Service to verify your employee’s SSN. 

To see the full SSN listed in Gusto for an employee, run an Employee information report.

Troubleshoot SSN issues or errors

If you notice an SSN error (or mismatch):

• Notify your employee — you can use this sample template letter from the SSA. 
• Confirm with the employee that they’ve applied for an SSN or have had one in the past. To apply for a new SSN, point them here. 
• Check if the SSN entered starts with a “9” — if it does, this is an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), not an SSN.
  • Employees cannot use ITINs to work in the US. Your employee needs to apply for and provide an SSN for reporting wages on their W-2.
  • Business contractors commonly use ITINs.

Correct an SSN

If you’re a Gusto admin with the required permissions, you can edit an employee’s Social Security number (SSN).

• If you do not have the option to update an employee’s SSN, reach out to the primary admin of your company’s Gusto account. 

If you’re an employee, reach out to your employer, who can help with the change.

To correct an SSN:

1. Sign in to Gusto.
2. Go to People. 
3. Select the employee.
4. Under Information, click Personal.
5. From the Personal information section, click Edit.
6. Edit the employee’s Social Security number — you must enter the full corrected SSN (even if only one digit is off). We will not save your changes if you do not enter the full corrected SSN.
7. Click Save.

If you offer health insurance with Gusto (including the broker integration) and the employee is enrolled in coverage, we’ll also send their SSN update to their insurance carriers. 

Correct the previous year’s W-2 

If we filed a previous year’s Form W-2 with an incorrect SSN, and you edit the SSN for the employee in Gusto, we’ll automatically create a federal W-2c (corrected W-2). You can view it in the employee’s profile within the next week.

A few reminders:

• We’ll automatically create federal W-2c forms for the past two years if the employee was paid in Gusto during that time.
  • If you only need to change the SSN for the past year, contact us so we can cancel the other W-2c. To contact us, sign in to your Gusto account and click the help icon in the top-right corner of the page.
• We’ll email you and the employee when the W-2c is ready to view.

We do not amend state W-2s for SSN changes. If you need to amend a state-specific W-2 to correct an SSN error, you need to do this outside of Gusto.

Update past unemployment filings

In some states, unemployment reports include an employee’s name and Social Security number. If you sent past unemployment filings with an incorrect SSN, contact the agency to let them know and fix the issue. We do not amend unemployment returns for SSN updates.

If you’re an employee or contractor and need to update your home address, follow the steps in this article.

If you’re a Gusto admin with the required permissions, you can update an employee’s home address and view their home address history. Go to the Personal tab of the employee’s profile in Gusto.

Important reminders

• An employee’s home address impacts their tax liability and health premiums (if you have benefits with Gusto). Learn how to update their address in the Change an employee’s current home address section of the article. 
  • If you offer health insurance with Gusto (including the broker integration) and the employee is enrolled in coverage, we’ll also send their home address update to their insurance carriers. 
• Do not delete a home address unless the employee never actually lived there. We need historical home addresses for tax purposes.
• Do not use an employee’s PO Box for their home address.

Admins can use these steps to update an employee’s legal name or add a preferred name to their profile.

To update an employee’s legal or preferred name:

1. Sign in to Gusto.
2. Go to People.
3. Select the employee.
   • If your employee has been dismissed, click the Dismissed tab to find the employee’s profile.
4. Under Information, click Personal.
5. From the Personal information section, click Edit.
   • You need to have the necessary permissions before making sensitive edits. If you do not have this option, reach out to your primary admin for help updating the info or your permissions.
6. Update your employee’s full legal name or add a preferred name.
   • Note: We do not support accent marks in names, and they are not a requirement for form filings.
7. Click Save.

If you offer health insurance with Gusto (including the broker integration) and the employee is enrolled in coverage, we’ll also send their name update to their insurance carriers. 

Sometimes, you won’t be able to change a teammate's email address for them. If that happens, they’ll need to update it themselves or contact Gusto if they cannot (there might be implications related to the email change).

Update a work email

1. Go to the People section.
2. Click on your employee's name.
3. Go to the Work tab and find the “Role” section.
4. Next to “Work email” click Edit.
5. Enter the email.
6. Click Save.

Update a personal or recovery email

Admins may not be able to update an email for employees who have Gusto Cash Accounts.

If this is the case, contact us from the in your account so we can assist. 

How to update the personal or recovery email (when editable):

1. Go to the People section.
2. Click on your employee's name.
3. Go to the Personal tab and find the “Personal information” section.
4. Next to “Personal email” click Edit.
   • You must use an email address that’s not associated with any other Gusto account.
   • To update the “Recovery email”, find and click the Edit next to “Personal information”.
5. Enter the new email in both the “New email” and “Confirm email” fields.
6. Click the checkbox to acknowledge that this will change the email used to access the account.
7. Click Save.
8. The employee will receive next steps at the new email address. They must follow the prompt in the email to complete the update.
   • If the employee does not see the confirmation email, they should check their spam folder.
   • You can also resend the email: On their employee profile, return to the Work tab. If the employee has not yet approved the change in the confirmation email, a "Pending" section is listed under "Email." Click Resend Email.

Admins can use these steps to update an employee’s cell phone number in Gusto.

To update an employee’s cell phone number:

1. Sign in to Gusto.
2. Go to People.
3. Select the employee.
4. Under Information, click Personal.
5. From the Personal information section, click Edit.
6. Edit the employee’s phone number.
7. Click Save.

Admins can use these steps to update an employee’s date of birth in Gusto.

To update an employee’s date of birth:

1. Sign in to Gusto.
2. Go to People.
3. Select the employee.
4. Under Information, click Personal.
5.  From the Personal information section, click Edit.
   • If you cannot edit, you may not have the required permission to do so. 
6. Edit the employee’s birthday.
7. Click Save.

If you offer health insurance with Gusto (including the broker integration) and the employee is enrolled in coverage, we’ll also send their date of birth update to their insurance carriers. 

We strongly recommend that you have your employees update their own bank account information to help prevent fraud. They may need to verify their existing bank account details before adding a new one.

Admins can use these steps to add or change an employee’s profile photo in Gusto.

To add or update an employee’s profile photo:

1. Sign in to Gusto.
2. Go to People.
3. Select the employee.
4. On the left, next to their profile picture, click the Edit pen in the photo circle.
5. Upload or drop a file, and click Save.

Your team members can make this update on their own as well. 

1. Go to the People section. 
2. Select a team member.
3. Go to the Personal tab and scroll to the "Emergency contact" card.
4. Next to "Emergency contact" click Edit.
   
   • If you're unable to edit, you may not have the required permission to do so. 
5. Update the emergency contact info, and click Save.

Admins can change a team member’s employment type from employee to contractor or vice versa. 

Go to our article on how to change employment types.