ciphr v1.0.0A

Immutable. This exact content never changes and is served at /api/v1/blob/9a9d77ddfabb34f9.

---
name: ciphr
description: |
  CIPHR integration via Apideck's HRIS unified API — same methods work across every connector in HRIS, switch by changing `serviceId`. Use when the user wants to read or sync employees, departments, payrolls, and time-off records in CIPHR. Routes through Apideck with serviceId "ciphr".
license: Apache-2.0
alwaysApply: false
metadata:
  author: apideck
  version: "1.0.0"
  serviceId: ciphr
  unifiedApis: ["hris"]
  authType: apiKey
  tier: "2"
  verified: true
  status: beta
  difficulty: moderate
  partnershipRequired: false
  sandboxAvailable: false
---

# CIPHR (via Apideck)

Access CIPHR through Apideck's **HRIS** unified API — one of 58 HRIS connectors that share the same method surface. Code you write here ports to BambooHR, Workday, Deel and 54 other HRIS connectors by changing a single `serviceId` string. Apideck handles auth, pagination, rate limiting, and retries so you don't write per-tenant CIPHR plumbing.

> **Beta connector.** CIPHR is currently in beta on Apideck. Expect partial resource coverage and occasional mapping gaps. Always verify coverage (see below) and fall back to the Proxy API for unsupported operations.

## Quick facts

- **Apideck serviceId:** `ciphr`
- **Unified API:** HRIS
- **Auth type:** apiKey
- **Status:** beta
- **Gotchas:** [page](https://developers.apideck.com/apis/hris/ciphr/gotchas)
- **CIPHR docs:** https://www.ciphr.com
- **Homepage:** https://www.ciphr.com/

## At a glance

- **Implementation difficulty:** moderate — API Key Authentication + No Public Developer Documentation
- **Vendor partnership required:** no
- **Apideck-managed credentials:** not available — Each consumer supplies their own CIPHR subdomain and API key.
- **Account type required:** A CIPHR account with API access enabled by CIPHR.
- **Consumer access level:** CIPHR publishes no minimum role for obtaining the API key.
- **Sandbox:** not available — CIPHR provides test environments only under a commercial relationship, so request one through a consumer who is a CIPHR customer.
- **Authentication:** Sent in the apikey header; not OAuth.
- **Webhooks:** No webhooks - data is read by polling.

**Important to know:**

- CIPHR publishes no public developer documentation and makes some fields visible in the API only when CIPHR enables them for the customer, so confirm field visibility with CIPHR before relying on it.

> Facts synced from Apideck's connector metadata API — `GET /connector/connectors/ciphr` (`overview` field) is the live, authoritative version.

## When to use this skill

Activate this skill when the user explicitly wants to work with **CIPHR** — for example, "sync employees in CIPHR" or "list time-off requests in CIPHR". This skill teaches the agent:

1. Which Apideck unified API covers CIPHR (HRIS)
2. The correct `serviceId` to pass on every call (`ciphr`)
3. CIPHR-specific auth and coverage caveats

For the full method surface (parameters, pagination, filtering), use your language SDK skill:

- [`apideck-node`](../../skills/apideck-node/), [`apideck-python`](../../skills/apideck-python/), [`apideck-dotnet`](../../skills/apideck-dotnet/), [`apideck-java`](../../skills/apideck-java/), [`apideck-go`](../../skills/apideck-go/), [`apideck-php`](../../skills/apideck-php/), or [`apideck-rest`](../../skills/apideck-rest/)

For the raw OpenAPI spec:

- **HRIS:** [https://specs.apideck.com/hris.yml](https://specs.apideck.com/hris.yml) · [API Explorer](https://developers.apideck.com/api-explorer?id=hris)

## Minimal example (TypeScript)

```typescript
import { Apideck } from "@apideck/unify";

const apideck = new Apideck({
  apiKey: process.env.APIDECK_API_KEY,
  appId: process.env.APIDECK_APP_ID,
  consumerId: "your-consumer-id",
});

// List employees in CIPHR
const { data } = await apideck.hris.employees.list({
  serviceId: "ciphr",
});
```

## Portable across 58 HRIS connectors

The Apideck **HRIS** unified API exposes the same methods for every connector in its catalog. Switching from CIPHR to another HRIS connector is a one-string change — no rewrite, no new SDK.

```typescript
// Today — CIPHR
await apideck.hris.employees.list({ serviceId: "ciphr" });

// Tomorrow — same code, different connector
await apideck.hris.employees.list({ serviceId: "bamboohr" });
await apideck.hris.employees.list({ serviceId: "workday" });
```

This is the compounding advantage of using Apideck over integrating CIPHR directly: code against the unified HRIS API once, gain access to every connector in it. New connectors Apideck adds become available to your app without code changes.

## Authentication

- **Type:** API Key
- **Managed by:** Apideck Vault — the user pastes their CIPHR API key into the Vault modal; Apideck stores it encrypted and injects it on every request.
- **Rotation:** if the user rotates their key, they re-enter it in Vault. No code changes needed.

See [`apideck-best-practices`](../../skills/apideck-best-practices/) for Vault setup, connection lifecycle, and handling re-auth flows.

## Verifying coverage

Not every HRIS operation is supported by every connector. Always verify before assuming a method works:

```bash
curl 'https://unify.apideck.com/connector/connectors/ciphr' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${APIDECK_API_KEY}" \
  -H "x-apideck-app-id: ${APIDECK_APP_ID}"
```

See [`apideck-connector-coverage`](../../skills/apideck-connector-coverage/) for patterns around `UnsupportedOperationError` and connector-specific fallbacks.

## Escape hatch: Proxy API

When an endpoint isn't covered by the HRIS unified API, use Apideck's Proxy to call CIPHR directly — Apideck injects auth headers and handles token refresh. Set `x-apideck-downstream-url` to the target endpoint on CIPHR's own API:

```bash
curl 'https://unify.apideck.com/proxy' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${APIDECK_API_KEY}" \
  -H "x-apideck-app-id: ${APIDECK_APP_ID}" \
  -H "x-apideck-consumer-id: ${CONSUMER_ID}" \
  -H "x-apideck-service-id: ciphr" \
  -H "x-apideck-downstream-url: <target endpoint on CIPHR>" \
  -H "x-apideck-downstream-method: GET"
```

See [CIPHR's API docs](https://www.ciphr.com) for available endpoints.

## Sibling connectors

Other **HRIS** connectors that share this unified API surface (same method signatures, just change `serviceId`):

[`bamboohr`](../bamboohr/), [`workday`](../workday/), [`deel`](../deel/) *(beta)*, [`hibob`](../hibob/), [`personio`](../personio/), [`adp-ihcm`](../adp-ihcm/) *(beta)*, [`adp-workforce-now`](../adp-workforce-now/) *(beta)*, [`paychex`](../paychex/) *(beta)*, and 49 more.

## See also

- [HRIS OpenAPI spec](https://specs.apideck.com/hris.yml) · [API Explorer](https://developers.apideck.com/api-explorer?id=hris)
- [`apideck-connector-coverage`](../../skills/apideck-connector-coverage/) — programmatic coverage checks
- [`apideck-best-practices`](../../skills/apideck-best-practices/) — architecture, Vault, pagination, error handling
- [`apideck-node`](../../skills/apideck-node/) — TypeScript / Node SDK patterns
- [CIPHR official docs](https://www.ciphr.com)