Jun 30, 2026
To: NH Providers, PBJ Vendors
On August 17, 2026, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will launch the Internet Quality Improvement and Evaluation System (iQIES) functionality for Payroll-Based Journal (PBJ) data submission and reports. Here’s what you need to know about the transition.
Prepare Your iQIES Account
You must register for PBJ roles in iQIES before you can submit data. For instructions to register for iQIES PBJ user roles, please visit the previously shared iQIES PBJ launch communication posted on the QIES Technical Support Office (QTSO) website.
CMS strongly recommends setting up access before the launch, so you don’t run into delays when submitting data.
Once you register for an iQIES account, be sure to log in regularly. If you do not log in for 60 days, you’ll lose access to iQIES. Additional information on the iQIES Inactive User Policy can be found on QTSO.
Key Benefits of the New iQIES PBJ System
- You can securely access iQIES anytime, anywhere within the US, with internet.
- You only need to log in once, no more using CMSNet and separate systems.
- iQIES includes tips and guidance to help you upload PBJ files and access reports.
- You can upload PBJ files in a way that’s very similar to QIES, so the process should feel familiar.
What Providers and Vendors Should Expect
- PBJ submissions for Fiscal Quarter 3 must be submitted in QIES only through August 14, 2026.
- After August 14, 2026, at 11:59 PM ET, QIES will no longer accept PBJ records.
- PBJ submissions for Fiscal Quarter 4 start August 17, 2026, and must be submitted only in iQIES.
- Fiscal Quarter 4 submissions will not be accepted between July 1, 2026 and August 16, 2026, in QIES or iQIES.
QIES / iQIES Report Information
Beginning August 17, 2026, users will be allowed to access and run PBJ reports in iQIES. Once the migration into iQIES has occurred, the PBJ reports in the Certification and Survey Provider Enhanced Reporting (CASPER) Reporting application will be decommissioned with two exceptions: users will be allowed to access QIES for the system-generated final validation reports for submissions performed in QIES, as well as the user-requested PBJ Submitter Final Validation Report, both for limited periods of time.
Below is a list of reports that will be available in iQIES, including the names of the CASPER and iQIES reports for comparison, as well as any differences to which users should be aware.
- CASPER Report Name: 1700D EMPLOYEE REPORT
- iQIES Report Name: PBJ Employee Report
- iQIES Report Category/Report Type: Payroll-Based Journal/Staffing
- Differences from CASPER report: The use of the term Contractor was replaced with Contract throughout the report to match PBJ Specifications.
- CASPER Report Name: 1702D INDIVIDUAL DAILY STAFFING REPORT
- iQIES Report Name: PBJ Individual Daily Staffing Report
- iQIES Report Category/Report Type: Payroll-Based Journal/Staffing
- Differences from CASPER report: The ‘Only Include Data Accepted Prior to the Deadline’ filter on the report criteria page is no longer applicable and will not be available in the iQIES report.
- CASPER Report Name: 1702S STAFFING SUMMARY REPORT
- QIES Report Name: PBJ Staffing Summary Report
- iQIES Report Category/Report Type: Payroll-Based Journal/Staffing
- Differences from CASPER report: The use of the term Contractor was replaced with Contract throughout the report to match PBJ Specifications.
- CASPER Report Name: 1703D JOB TITLE REPORT
- iQIES Report Name: PBJ Job Title Report
- iQIES Report Category/Report Type: Payroll-Based Journal/Staffing
- Differences from CASPER report: The ‘Only Include Data Accepted Prior to the Deadline’ filter on the report criteria page is no longer applicable and will not be available in the iQIES report. The use of the term Contractor was replaced with Contract throughout the report to match PBJ Specifications.
- CASPER Report Name: 1705D PBJ STAFFING DATA REPORT
- iQIES Report Name: PBJ Staffing Data Report
- iQIES Report Category/Report Type: Payroll-Based Journal/Staffing
- Differences from CASPER report: None
- CASPER Report Name: PBJ ON DEMAND FINAL FILE VALIDATION REPORT
- iQIES Report Name: PBJ On Demand Final File Validation Report
- iQIES Report Category/Report Type: Payroll-Based Journal/Validation
- Differences from CASPER report: The 60-day waiting period for requesting the on-demand PBJ Final Validation Reports has been removed to account for new access in iQIES and the QIES system-generated Final Validation Reports being unavailable in the iQIES PBJ Final Validation folders.
- CASPER Report Name: PBJ SUBMITTER FINAL FILE VALIDATION REPORT
- iQIES Report Name: PBJ Submitter Final File Validation Report
- iQIES Report Category/Report Type: Payroll-Based Journal/Validation
- Differences from CASPER report: Because the submitter user IDs differ between QIES and iQIES, users will not be allowed to run the iQIES report for submissions performed in QIES. As such, users will be allowed to run this report in CASPER for three months following the PBJ migration and then it will be made permanently unavailable.
- CASPER Report Name: PBJ System-generated Final Validation Report
- iQIES Report Name: PBJ System Generated Final File Validation Report
- iQIES Report Category/Report Type: Not applicable
- Differences from CASPER report: The system-generated Final Validation Reports in QIES will not be migrated into iQIES; however, users will be allowed to access CASPER to obtain these until they are automatically deleted based upon the report retention time period, if desired. Alternatively, users can generate the iQIES user-requested final validation reports for submissions performed in QIES if it is more convenient.
- The iQIES report now includes a CMS Certification Number (CCN) and error sections such as General, Staffing, Employee, or Employee Link have been delineated to make the report more intuitive for users.
Here is some important information about the iQIES reports:
- Users’ access to the iQIES reports will be like the access in the Certification and Survey Provider Enhanced Reporting (CASPER) Reporting application, provided that your new iQIES role allows you to generate and view reports.
- Users will only be allowed to run reports for the providers to which they have access with their iQIES role.
- The iQIES reports will contain the same information as the CASPER reports but have been updated to have the iQIES standard appearance.
- Ten years’ worth of PBJ data will be migrated into iQIES which will allow users to run all reports except the Submitter Final Validation report for data submitted in QIES and iQIES, if desired.
- In iQIES, users can initially view the report information on the screen and if desired, download the report to a Portable Document Format (PDF) or Comma-Separated Values (CSV) file. The exception is the PBJ Job Title Report, which can only be downloaded as a CSV file, as was the case in CASPER.
- The iQIES Submission IDs will have a different sequencing number. Here are some tips when reviewing reports where QIES and IQIES submission IDs display in the same report:
- Submission files in QIES will have a submission ID of less than 100,000,000
- Submission files in iQIES will have a submission ID of 100,000,000 or greater
- Users can schedule reports to run at their desired interval and frequency.
For assistance with accessing, running, or downloading the PBJ reports, please refer to the CMS iQIES Reports User Manual which is available in the Help section of the iQIES application, as well as on the QIES Technical Support Office (QTSO) website in the iQIES Reports Training Manual section: https://qtso.cms.gov/software/iqies/reference-manuals.
Training and Support
- Training materials, user guides, and technical documents will be posted on the QTSO website before the launch.
Visit the Staffing Data Submission PBJ website for additional information, helpful tools and links. Review additional policy information in the PBJ Policy Manual and Nursing Home Five-Star Quality Rating System User Guide.
Policy Questions: Email nhstaffing@cms.hhs.gov
Technical Questions: Contact the iQIES Service Center at (800) 339-9313, Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM–8:00 PM ET. You may also request assistance via secure chat or schedule a call through CCSQ Support Central. Please note that Chat support is currently limited to 9:00 AM-5:00 PM ET, Monday through Friday.