Yes, if you are 17 in New York you need working papers before you can start a job. State law requires anyone aged 16 or 17 to hand their employer a valid employment certificate, issued through the public school system, before the first shift.1New York State Senate. New York Labor Law LAB 132 – Employment of Minor Sixteen or Seventeen Years of Age The specific certificate depends on whether you are still in school, and the whole requirement drops away on your 18th birthday.2Department of Labor. Youth Ages 14-17
Which Certificate You Need
There are two versions for your age group, and the one you get depends on your school status.
- If you attend day school, you receive the Student General Employment Certificate (green, Form AT-19). Most 17-year-olds fall here.
- If you are not in day school, or you plan to leave school for full-time work, you receive the Full-Time Employment Certificate (peach, Form AT-20).
Both cover work in factories, businesses, and service jobs. The colors matter because employers use them to tell at a glance which hour rules apply to you, and the green student version comes with tighter limits than the peach one. A certificate is good for two years from the date of issue. Your employer holds it on file while you work there and gives it back when you leave.3New York State Senate. New York Education Law 3216 – Employment Certificates
When Papers Are Not Required
A few situations sit outside the certificate rule. Casual work at a private residence, like yard maintenance or household chores, generally does not require papers. Golf caddying falls outside the standard process. Working for a parent on a family farm or in a home-based family business follows separate rules. If you have already graduated from a four-year high school, you can still obtain a full-time certificate but may fall outside some standard restrictions.
Entertainment work is its own track. Performers aged 16 and 17 still need an employment certificate, and minors working as models need a separate permit. New York City handles entertainment permits differently from the rest of the state.
What to Gather Before You Apply
Before you go to the school, put together everything the issuing officer will check:
- The application itself, Form AT-17. You can pick it up at your school’s guidance or health office, or download it from the state Department of Labor.4Department of Labor. Working Papers
- A parent or legal guardian’s signature on the form, giving consent for you to work.
- A completed certificate of physical fitness. A licensed doctor fills out the medical section, and the exam has to be within the past 12 months.
- Proof of age. A birth certificate, baptismal record, or current passport all work.
Fill in every field. Incomplete forms get sent back, and that delay can cost you the job if the employer needs someone quickly.
Where to Get the Certificate Issued
Bring the completed AT-17 and your proof of age to a local public high school. This holds even if you attend a private school or are homeschooled, because the public school system is the only issuing authority.4Department of Labor. Working Papers A designated school official reviews the documents, and if everything is in order they issue a wallet-sized certificate on the spot. You sign it in front of that official to activate it. Then hand it to your employer before your first day. They cannot legally let you clock in without it on file.
If You Lose Your Papers
Go back to the school that issued them and ask for a duplicate. The same goes if a former employer never returned your certificate when you left a job.4Department of Labor. Working Papers You do not have to redo the medical exam or start over. Don’t wait until you have already accepted a new position to deal with it.
How Many Hours You Can Work
Having your papers does not mean you can work any schedule. The limits tighten when school is in session.
During the School Year
If you are in day school and hold the green student certificate, your schedule is capped at:5New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 143 – Hours of Work for Minors Sixteen and Seventeen Years of Age
- 4 hours on any day before a school day
- 8 hours on a Friday, Saturday, Sunday, or holiday
- 28 hours total per week
Nights add another rule. Working between 10 p.m. and midnight before a school day requires both written parental permission and a certificate of satisfactory academic standing from your school. Between midnight and 6 a.m. you cannot work at all.6Department of Labor. Hours of Work for Minors
On School Breaks
During summer and other vacation periods the caps loosen. You can work up to 8 hours a day and 48 hours a week. The midnight-to-6 a.m. blackout still applies.6Department of Labor. Hours of Work for Minors Federal law does not cap hours for workers aged 16 and up, so the New York limits are the ones that actually bind you.7U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #43: Child Labor Provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act for Nonagricultural Occupations
Jobs You Cannot Take at 17
No employment certificate unlocks the state’s prohibited-occupation list. Under Labor Law ยง 133, minors cannot work in construction (including roofing, demolition, and excavation), on power-driven woodworking or metal-forming machines, in coal or mineral mining, in slaughterhouse operations, in explosives manufacturing, or with radioactive materials.8New York State Senate. New York Labor Law 133 – Prohibited Employments of Minors The state list also covers freight elevator operation and boiler work.
Federal hazardous-occupation orders overlap with most of these and add a few more, including driving a motor vehicle as a primary job duty and operating power-driven bakery machines or paper-product balers.9U.S. Department of Labor. Prohibited Occupations for Non-Agricultural Employees Where state and federal rules both apply, the stricter one wins. If an employer asks you to do a task on either list, treat it as a warning about the whole operation.
Your Pay and Your Rights
New York has no lower minimum wage for minors. As of January 1, 2026, the minimum is $17.00 per hour in New York City, Long Island, and Westchester County, and $16.00 per hour in the rest of the state.10New York State. New York State’s Minimum Wage Federal law allows a $4.25 youth training wage for the first 90 days for workers under 20, but New York’s higher rate overrides it in practice.11U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division. Fact Sheet #32: Youth Minimum Wage – Fair Labor Standards Act
You will fill out a Form W-4 for your employer, which sets federal income tax withholding.12Internal Revenue Service. Form W-4, Employees Withholding Certificate If you expect to earn very little and had no tax liability last year, you may be able to claim exempt on the W-4. Social Security (6.2%) and Medicare (1.45%) still come out of every paycheck.
On the job, you have the same OSHA protections as any adult worker: a safe workplace, training in a language you understand, required protective gear at no cost, and the right to file a confidential safety complaint. Your employer cannot retaliate against you for raising a concern.13Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Young Workers: Safe Work for Young Workers If you are ever asked to do something that feels dangerous and isn’t part of your normal duties, ask questions before you do it. That is where teen workplace injuries tend to happen.
If an employer hires you without asking for papers, or pushes you past legal hours, the violation is on them, not you. Knowing the rules is how you spot the problem.