How long should an onboarding checklist be?

Short enough that the new hire finishes it. Three to five items per stage is plenty.

Should it include legal paperwork?

Include a line for the paperwork you need and who handles it. Check the requirements for your state with a professional.

The person who runs the start day, with a date to check it after every hire.

A new hire asks the same ten questions in week one. Answer them in the checklist, and you stop repeating yourself on every start date.

A template with blanks, not legal advice. Rules on pay, leave and data vary by state, so check yours.

Send the offer paperwork, start time, address or link, and who to ask: [person, contact].
Prepare accounts for [email, chat, tools] and equipment [list], and confirm the start date with [person].

Welcome at [time] by [person]. Walk through [office, tools, team].
Give the new hire the policies and the answers in [place], and show how to ask when an answer is missing.

Goals for the week: [list]. Meet [people].
Check in at the end of the week: what was unclear, and which answers were missing.

Goals for 30 days: [list]. Review with [person] on [date].
Every question the new hire had that was not answered goes on the list to write down.

Write each answer once, with an owner and the date you last confirmed it. These ten answers are what a bot or a shared FAQ should answer from.

1.When and where do I start?
Answer: [Date, time, address or link, and who meets them.]
Owner: [name]. Last confirmed: [date].
2.Who do I ask when I am stuck?
Answer: [One named person for the first week.]
Owner: [name]. Last confirmed: [date].
3.What tools will I use, and how do I get access?
Answer: [The list, and who grants access.]
Owner: [name]. Last confirmed: [date].
4.When do I get paid, and how?
Answer: [The pay schedule and where the pay stub lives.]
Owner: [name]. Last confirmed: [date].
5.What are my hours and how do I log time off?
Answer: [Hours, the PTO tool and the notice you expect.]
Owner: [name]. Last confirmed: [date].
6.What are the policies I need to read?
Answer: [The links, in order, and which ones need a signature.]
Owner: [name]. Last confirmed: [date].
7.Who is on the team and what do they do?
Answer: [A short list with names and roles.]
Owner: [name]. Last confirmed: [date].
8.What should I get done in my first week?
Answer: [Two or three goals, not a list of twenty.]
Owner: [name]. Last confirmed: [date].
9.How do I expense something?
Answer: [The limit, the tool and the approver.]
Owner: [name]. Last confirmed: [date].
10.Who gives me feedback, and when?
Answer: [The person and the dates of the first check-ins.]
Owner: [name]. Last confirmed: [date].

Run the checklist with your next hire and note every question you had to answer live.
Add each missing answer once, with an owner and a date.
Test your bot or FAQ with the ten questions before you rely on it.

Want to check a bot against these questions? Use the free honesty test, or turn the answers into a shareable FAQ with the team FAQ builder.

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Short enough that the new hire finishes it. Three to five items per stage is plenty.
Include a line for the paperwork you need and who handles it. Check the requirements for your state with a professional.
The person who runs the start day, with a date to check it after every hire.