What Age Can You Start Working in California?

In California, you can start working at 14 for most typical teen jobs, but the full answer to what age you can start working in California depends on the work. Twelve- and 13-year-olds can take on a narrow set of jobs like newspaper delivery and casual babysitting. Children of any age can work on a farm their parent owns or operates, and infants as young as 15 days old can be employed in the entertainment industry under a special permit.¹

Starting at 14: The Standard Age for Most Teen Jobs

Fourteen is the practical starting age for retail, food service, office work, and other everyday teen jobs. California Labor Code Section 1290 prohibits anyone under 16 from working in manufacturing or most other workplaces, with specific exceptions for certain industries and family businesses.² Fourteen- and 15-year-olds fit into that gap through the state’s work permit system, which lets them work outside of school hours in non-hazardous jobs.

A minor under 18 generally needs a work permit before the first day of work, regardless of the type of job.³ The permit is covered in more detail below.

Jobs Open to 12- and 13-Year-Olds

Twelve is the youngest age at which California recognizes a few forms of ordinary employment outside a family business. Children who are 12 or 13 can:

Sell or deliver newspapers, magazines, and periodicals.¹
Do irregular odd jobs in private homes, such as babysitting, mowing lawns, or raking leaves. No work permit is required for this kind of casual work.
Work for themselves. Self-employed minors do not need a permit.

Beyond these, formal employment is not generally open to 12- and 13-year-olds outside of a family farm or the entertainment industry.¹

Working Under 12

California recognizes a few situations where a child younger than 12 can legally work.

A Parent’s Farm or Domestic Operation

A minor of any age can work in agriculture, horticulture, viticulture, or domestic labor on property their parent or guardian owns, operates, or controls. No permit is required. The child still cannot work during school hours, and hazardous-occupation bans still apply.¹

Agriculture is more permissive than other industries on family land. Between 12 and 13, a child can work on a parent’s farm with no permit, no hour limits (except no work during school hours), and no occupational restrictions. On a non-family farm at that age, they cannot hold any job declared hazardous for minors under 16.⁴

California also enforces an “agricultural zone of danger” rule for children under 12: they cannot even accompany a parent into areas with water hazards, chemicals, or moving equipment unless the parent owns or controls the farm.⁴

The Entertainment Industry

Children as young as 15 days old can work in film, television, commercials, theater, or modeling under an Entertainment Work Permit issued by the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) rather than a school. The permit lasts up to six months and requires the minor’s most recent report card once they are school-aged. Applicants aged 14 to 17 must complete sexual harassment prevention training before the permit will issue.⁵

Employers must provide a studio teacher on every call that includes minors from 15 days old through their 16th birthday, and for 16- and 17-year-olds when the minor’s education requires it. The ratio is one studio teacher for every 10 minors on a regular workday, and one for every 20 minors on weekends, holidays, or school vacations. Studio teachers can remove a child from the set if conditions look unsafe.⁶

Unpermitted appearances also exist for church and school events, charitable performances, and single radio or television broadcasts where the minor receives no compensation and the appearance lasts under one hour.

Getting a Work Permit

For everything outside those narrow exceptions, a work permit is the gatekeeper. The process runs through the minor’s school and involves four parties: the minor, the employer, a parent or guardian, and the school.³

Once an employer agrees to hire the minor, the minor picks up a “Statement of Intent to Employ Minor and Request for Work Permit” (form B1-1) from their school.
The minor and the employer each fill out their sections, and a parent or guardian signs.
The completed form goes back to the school, which reviews it and may issue the actual permit (form B1-4).⁷
The employer keeps the permit on file for as long as the minor is employed.

A new permit is needed for each new employer. Since 2024, every minor who applies for a work permit must also receive a printed information sheet about their labor rights under AB 800.⁷

The statute uses “may” when describing the school’s authority, so schools are never required to issue a permit. A district can set its own conditions, and many require a minimum GPA (often 2.0). Excessive absences or declining grades can lead to a permit being refused or revoked, and a school can cap hours below the state limits.⁸

How Many Hours You Can Work at Each Age

California caps working hours based on age and whether school is in session. Even a willing employer and supportive parents cannot legally exceed them.⁴

14 and 15

School days: up to 3 hours, all outside school hours.
Non-school days: up to 8 hours.
School weeks: 18 hours maximum.
Non-school weeks: 40 hours maximum.
Permitted hours: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., extended to 9 p.m. from June 1 through Labor Day.

16 and 17

School days: up to 4 hours (a school day means any day with 4 or more hours of required attendance).
Non-school days: up to 8 hours.
Weekly cap: 48 hours.
Permitted hours: 5 a.m. to 10 p.m., extended to 12:30 a.m. on evenings before a non-school day.

Students in a Work Experience Education program may work until 12:30 a.m. on any day with school approval. High school graduates under 18 can work adult hours.

Jobs No Minor Can Do

Age alone doesn’t open every job. Minors under 16 are barred from occupations involving moving machinery, any construction work, and delivering goods from motor vehicles.⁹ For anyone under 18, the ban is broader: roofing, demolition, excavation, operating forklifts, power saws, or commercial food-processing equipment, and work involving radioactive materials, explosives, or toxic substances. Driving as a primary job duty is restricted, and serving or selling alcohol is tightly regulated.⁴

What You’ll Be Paid

California does not have a lower minimum wage for young workers. As of January 1, 2026, every worker in the state must be paid at least $16.90 per hour regardless of age.¹⁰ The federal youth subminimum of $4.25 per hour, available nationally for workers under 20 during their first 90 days, has no practical effect here because California’s rate is so much higher.¹¹ Some California cities set local minimums above the state figure. If your workplace is in one of them, you’re entitled to whichever rate is highest.

1
California Department of Industrial Relations. Child Labor Laws Pamphlet
2
California Legislative Information. California Labor Code 1290
3
California Department of Industrial Relations. Information on Minors and Employment
4
California Department of Industrial Relations. Summary Chart – Work Permit and Work Hour Limitations for Minors
5
California Department of Industrial Relations. Entertainment Work Permit for Minors
6
California Department of Industrial Relations. Studio Teachers – Requirements for Certification
7
California Department of Education. Work Permits for Students
8
California Department of Education. Frequently Asked Questions – Work Permits
9
Department of Industrial Relations. California Code of Regulations, Title 8, Section 11701 – Prohibited Occupations
10
California Department of Industrial Relations. Minimum Wage
11
U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division. Fact Sheet 32 – Youth Minimum Wage – Fair Labor Standards Act