OSHA Recordable Injury Checker: Is This Injury Recordable?
Answer a few questions about one injury or illness: you get the verdict, the OSHA 300 Log column and your deadlines, with the rule text behind every step.
Rules: 29 CFR 1904, quoted from osha.gov · Runs in your browser — nothing you answer is sent or stored
- Current: Pre-checks
- Work-related
- New case
- Outcome
- Special cases
Step 1 of 5 · Pre-checks
Is the injured or ill person someone whose cases you must record?
That's anyone on your payroll (full-time, part-time, seasonal, temporary), plus temp, leased or contractor workers you supervise day to day. Owners and partners of a sole proprietorship or partnership, and self-employed people, are not.
The rule behind this question (4)
- 29 CFR 1904.31(a)
You must record on the OSHA 300 Log the recordable injuries and illnesses of all employees on your payroll, whether they are labor, executive, hourly, salary, part-time, seasonal, or migrant workers.
- 29 CFR 1904.31(a)
You also must record the recordable injuries and illnesses that occur to employees who are not on your payroll if you supervise these employees on a day-to-day basis.
- 29 CFR 1904.31(b)(1)
No, self-employed individuals are not covered by the OSH Act or this regulation.
- 29 CFR 1904.31(a)
If your business is organized as a sole proprietorship or partnership, the owner or partners are not considered employees for recordkeeping purposes.
An injury or illness is OSHA recordable when it is work-related (29 CFR 1904.5), a new case (1904.6), and results in death, days away from work, restricted work or job transfer, medical treatment beyond first aid, loss of consciousness, or a significant diagnosis such as a fracture (1904.7), or is a needlestick contaminated with another person's blood (1904.8). First aid is a closed list of 14 treatments, such as bandages, Steri-Strips and over-the-counter medication at over-the-counter strength. Recordable cases go on the OSHA 300 log within 7 calendar days; a work-related death must also be reported to OSHA within 8 hours, and an in-patient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye within 24 hours.
What Makes an Injury OSHA Recordable?
An injury or illness is OSHA recordable when it is work-related, a new case, and results in death, days away from work, restricted work or transfer, medical treatment beyond first aid, loss of consciousness, or a significant diagnosis such as a fracture or punctured eardrum (29 CFR 1904.4 and 1904.7).
- It's someone you record for: your employees, plus temp or contract workers you supervise day to day (29 CFR 1904.31).
- It's work-related: an event or exposure in the work environment caused or contributed to it, or significantly aggravated a pre-existing condition, and none of the nine exceptions applies (29 CFR 1904.5).
- It's a new case, not a recurrence of a recorded case the employee never recovered from (29 CFR 1904.6).
- It meets a recording criterion: death, days away, restricted work or transfer, medical treatment beyond first aid, loss of consciousness, a significant diagnosis (29 CFR 1904.7), or a contaminated needlestick (29 CFR 1904.8).
What's the Difference Between OSHA Recordable and Reportable?
Recordable means the case goes on your OSHA 300 log within 7 calendar days (29 CFR 1904.29). Reportable means you must also notify OSHA directly: a work-related death within 8 hours, and an in-patient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye within 24 hours (29 CFR 1904.39). Most recordable cases are never reportable.
| Aspect | Recordable | Reportable |
|---|---|---|
| What you do | Enter the case on the OSHA 300 log and complete a 301 incident report | Notify OSHA by phone (1-800-321-6742), at the nearest Area Office or online |
| Which cases | Work-related new cases meeting a recording criterion (death, days away, restriction, medical treatment, loss of consciousness, significant diagnosis, contaminated sharps) | A work-related death within 30 days of the incident; an in-patient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye within 24 hours |
| Deadline | 7 calendar days | 8 hours for a death, 24 hours for the others |
| Rule | 29 CFR 1904.4–1904.29 | 29 CFR 1904.39 |
A reportable case also goes on your log if you keep OSHA records. The 7-day clock is the one that slips: on paper, nothing shows when an entry was actually written, which is the gap a timestamped digital incident log closes.
Is Skin Glue First Aid or Medical Treatment?
Using glue to close a wound is medical treatment, so a work-related cut closed with it is OSHA recordable. OSHA's first-aid list covers wound coverings (bandages, gauze, butterfly bandages, Steri-Strips), while sutures, staples and glue close the wound (OSHA interpretation letter, August 26, 2004).
The line OSHA draws is between covering a wound and closing it. A liquid bandage used as a covering stays first aid (OSHA interpretation, August 8, 2002); glue, sutures and staples that hold the wound shut are medical treatment, even when a nurse or first-aider applies them.
OSHA first aid vs. medical treatment
OSHA's first-aid list is closed: these 14 treatments are first aid whoever provides them, and anything not on the list is medical treatment (29 CFR 1904.7(b)(5)(ii)–(iv)). Visits only for observation or counseling, and diagnostic tests such as x-rays, are neither.
| First aid: not recordable on its own | Medical treatment: recordable |
|---|---|
| Non-prescription medication at non-prescription strength | OTC medication at prescription strength on a clinician's recommendation; prescription medication |
| Tetanus immunization | Other immunizations, such as hepatitis B or rabies vaccine |
| Cleaning, flushing or soaking wounds on the skin surface | — |
| Wound coverings: bandages, gauze pads, butterfly bandages, Steri-Strips | Wound-closing devices: sutures, staples, glue |
| Hot or cold therapy | — |
| Non-rigid support: elastic bandages, wraps, non-rigid back belts | Devices with rigid stays or designed to immobilize a body part |
| Temporary immobilization while transporting (splints, slings, neck collars, back boards) | — |
| Drilling a nail to relieve pressure, draining fluid from a blister | — |
| Eye patches | — |
| Removing foreign bodies from the eye using only irrigation or a cotton swab | Any other method of removal from the eye |
| Removing splinters elsewhere by irrigation, tweezers, cotton swabs or other simple means | — |
| Finger guards | — |
| Massages | Physical therapy or chiropractic treatment |
| Drinking fluids for relief of heat stress | — |
Is a Needlestick Injury OSHA Recordable?
Yes, if the needle or sharp object was contaminated with another person's blood or other potentially infectious material: 29 CFR 1904.8 makes it recordable even when only first aid was given. It is a privacy case, so write "privacy case" instead of the employee's name on the 300 log.
A cut from a clean object, or one contaminated with something other than blood or other potentially infectious material, is recorded only if it meets the general criteria (29 CFR 1904.8(b)(2)).
The nine work-relatedness exceptions
An injury in the work environment is presumed work-related unless one of these applies (29 CFR 1904.5(b)(2)):
- They were there as a member of the general public, not as an employee.
- Symptoms surfaced at work but come solely from something outside work (e.g. a heart attack with no work cause).
- Solely from voluntary wellness, fitness or recreational activity (flu shot, blood drive, exercise class).
- Solely from eating, drinking or preparing food for themselves (not food contaminated at work or supplied by you).
- Solely from personal tasks on site outside their assigned working hours.
- Solely from personal grooming, self-medication for a non-work condition, or intentionally self-inflicted.
- A motor vehicle accident in the company parking lot or access road while commuting.
- The common cold or flu (not other contagious diseases caught at work).
- A mental illness, without a work-related opinion the employee chose to give you from a licensed health care professional.
Frequently asked questions
What counts as first aid under OSHA recordkeeping?
Only the 14 treatments listed in 29 CFR 1904.7(b)(5)(ii): non-prescription medication at non-prescription strength; tetanus shots; cleaning or soaking surface wounds; wound coverings such as bandages, gauze, butterfly bandages and Steri-Strips; hot or cold therapy; non-rigid supports such as elastic wraps; temporary immobilization while transporting; drilling a nail or draining a blister; eye patches; removing something from the eye with irrigation or a cotton swab; removing splinters by simple means; finger guards; massages; and drinking fluids for heat stress. Anything else is medical treatment, whoever gives it.
Is a tetanus shot OSHA recordable?
Not by itself: a tetanus immunization is on OSHA's first-aid list (29 CFR 1904.7(b)(5)(ii)(B)). Other immunizations, such as a hepatitis B or rabies vaccine, are medical treatment and make a work-related case recordable.
Does a negative X-ray or diagnostic test make an injury recordable?
No. A visit to a physician solely for observation or counseling, and diagnostic procedures such as x-rays and blood tests, are not medical treatment (29 CFR 1904.7(b)(5)(i)). The case becomes recordable if the test finds a fracture or another significant diagnosis, or if treatment beyond first aid follows.
Is a prescription medication always considered medical treatment?
Prescription medication given to treat an injury is medical treatment, even a preventive antibiotic. So is an over-the-counter drug at prescription strength on a clinician's recommendation. A prescription used only for diagnosis, such as eye drops to dilate the pupils, is not.
How long do I have to record an injury on the OSHA 300 log?
Seven calendar days from receiving information that a recordable injury or illness has occurred, for both the 300 log entry and the 301 incident report (29 CFR 1904.29(b)(3)).
Which column of the OSHA 300 log do I check?
One column per case, for its most serious outcome: G for a death, H for days away from work, I for job transfer or restriction, and J for other recordable cases such as medical treatment beyond first aid or loss of consciousness.
What are the 9 exceptions to work-related injuries?
Under 29 CFR 1904.5(b)(2), a case in the work environment is not work-related when the employee was there as a member of the public; symptoms surfaced at work but came solely from outside it; it came solely from a voluntary wellness or recreational activity, eating or drinking for personal consumption, personal tasks outside working hours, or personal grooming, self-medication for a non-work condition or a self-inflicted act; it was a commuting motor vehicle accident in the company parking lot or access road; it is the common cold or flu; or it is a mental illness without a professional's opinion, given by the employee, that it is work-related.
What is an OSHA privacy case?
A case where you write "privacy case" instead of the employee's name on the 300 log: an injury to an intimate body part or the reproductive system, a sexual assault, a mental illness, HIV, hepatitis or tuberculosis, a contaminated needlestick or sharps injury, or another illness when the employee asks (29 CFR 1904.29(b)(7)).
Is a heart attack at work OSHA recordable?
Not when the symptoms surface at work but result solely from something outside the work environment: that is one of OSHA's nine work-relatedness exceptions (29 CFR 1904.5(b)(2)(ii)). If an event or exposure at work caused or contributed to it, it is work-related, and a resulting death or in-patient hospitalization must also be reported to OSHA.
Make the call once, on the report itself
IncidentLog is OSHA recordkeeping software for crews in the field: workers file a report from a job-site QR code, you classify the case (columns G to J) on the report, and the OSHA 301 export and 300A summary are built from those classifications. Free to start; Pro is $49/month, or $490/year billed annually.
Keep reading
- OSHA 300 log requirements: 300 vs. 300A vs. 301, and the Feb 1–Apr 30 posting rule
- Does this incident affect your safety score? Calculate your Total Recordable Incident Rate with our free TRIR calculator.
- Free workplace injury incident report template
Sources
- 29 CFR 1904.4 — Recording criteria
- 29 CFR 1904.5 — Determination of work-relatedness
- 29 CFR 1904.6 — Determination of new cases
- 29 CFR 1904.7 — General recording criteria
- 29 CFR 1904.8 — Needlestick and sharps injuries
- 29 CFR 1904.29 — Forms (7-day rule, privacy cases)
- 29 CFR 1904.31 — Covered employees
- 29 CFR 1904.39 — Reporting fatalities, hospitalizations, amputations and losses of an eye
- OSHA interpretation, August 26, 2004 — glue used to close a wound is medical treatment
- OSHA interpretation, August 8, 2002 — liquid bandage used as a covering is first aid
Rule text checked against osha.gov on 2026-10-04. Not covered here: the specific rules for hearing loss (1904.10), tuberculosis (1904.11) and medical removal (1904.9), and the partial exemptions by size and industry (1904.1–1904.2). A decision aid, not legal advice — IncidentLog is not affiliated with OSHA or the U.S. Department of Labor.