Does Connecticut require workers’ compensation insurance?
Yes. Connecticut requires workers' compensation from the first employee: General Statutes 31-275 makes any business using the services of one or more employees for pay an employer, and 31-284 requires every employer to insure that liability. Corporate officers and LLC members are covered unless they file Form 6B to opt out, partners are covered unless every partner signs Form 6B-1, and a sole proprietor is outside the Act unless they opt in with Form 75.
Updated . Written by Andre Beukers, principal at Redoubt, a commercial insurance agency in Salt Lake City, not a government office.
How many employees before Connecticut requires workers' comp?
Connecticut has no minimum head count. Under General Statutes 31-275(10), any person, corporation, LLC, partnership, or association using the services of one or more employees for pay is an employer, and 31-284(b) requires each employer to insure that liability with an authorized carrier or qualify to self-insure. Part-time workers count.
Source: Conn. Gen. Stat. 31-275, checked .
Which owners, officers, and family members are exempt in Connecticut?
Connecticut's owner exemptions are elections, not automatic. A sole proprietor is not covered unless they opt in. Partners are covered unless the partnership opts out by a written agreement signed by every partner. A corporate officer is covered unless they elect exclusion in writing to the employer and the Commission. The Act also leaves out domestic workers employed 26 hours a week or less in a private home, casual labor outside the trade or business, and family members living in the employer's house unless their pay is on the policy's payroll.
LLC members follow the officer rule. After the Connecticut Supreme Court's 2019 decision in Gould v. City of Stamford, the Insurance Department told carriers (notice of July 25, 2019) that a member of a single-member LLC is automatically covered and must file Form 6B to be excluded. An LLC owner who files nothing is covered.
Source: Conn. Gen. Stat. 31-275(9) and (10), checked .
What happens to a Connecticut employer with no workers' comp?
An uninsured Connecticut employer faces a civil penalty of at least $500 per employee or $5,000, whichever is less, and up to $50,000, plus $100 a day after the finding until coverage is in place, capped at another $50,000 (General Statutes 31-288(c) and (d)). A knowing and willful failure to insure is a class D felony for the owner, partner, LLC principal, or corporate officer (31-288(f)), and misreporting employees as contractors to cut premium can also bring a Labor Commissioner stop-work order (31-288(g)).
The fine is rarely the largest exposure. An employee injured while the employer is uninsured can sue the employer for damages (31-284(b)), the Attorney General can ask the Superior Court to stop the business from operating until it complies (31-289b), and state agencies will not renew a business license or permit without proof of coverage (31-286a).
Source: Conn. Gen. Stat. 31-288, checked .
Who enforces workers' comp in Connecticut?
The Connecticut Workers' Compensation Commission administers the Act: its administrative law judges hear claims and assess the uninsured-employer penalties, and it records the owner coverage elections. Investigators in the State Treasurer's office cite uninsured employers (31-288(c)), and the Commission's Coverage Verification Service shows whether a business has a policy on file.
Source: Connecticut Workers' Compensation Commission, checked .
Where do Connecticut employers buy coverage?
Connecticut is a private-market state with no state fund. The Workers' Compensation Commission says employers insure through licensed insurance companies, by qualifying to self-insure, or through a group self-insurance organization licensed by the Insurance Department. The Insurance Department, not the Commission, regulates carriers and rates.
An employer no carrier will write applies to the Workers' Compensation Assigned Risk Plan, which NCCI administers for the Connecticut Insurance Department. The Commission also says an out-of-state employer operating in Connecticut must cover its employees working in the state.
Source: Connecticut WCC, About workers' compensation insurance, checked .
Who sets the class codes and rates in Connecticut?
Connecticut is an NCCI state. Each year the Connecticut Insurance Department reviews NCCI's filing of voluntary loss costs, assigned risk rates, and rating values and issues a Memorandum and Order; the current one took effect January 1, 2026. Class codes and experience mods come from NCCI, and each carrier files a loss cost adoption with its own multiplier on top.
Source: Connecticut Insurance Department, Workers' Compensation, checked .
Is there an exemption or waiver form in Connecticut?
Yes, though Connecticut's forms are coverage elections, not waivers. A corporate officer or LLC member files Form 6B to be excluded, partners file Form 6B-1, and a sole proprietor files Form 75 only to opt in. All three go to the Workers' Compensation Commission, and Form 6B can be sent through its Electronic Form Submission Service. For a building permit, a contractor excluded from coverage uses Form 7B or 7C in place of a certificate of insurance.
A Form 6B covers only the person who signs it. The day the business hires, a policy is due. Under General Statutes 31-291, a general contractor is liable for compensation to an uninsured subcontractor's workers, which is why Connecticut contractors ask subs for a certificate, and 31-286b has local building officials ask for proof of coverage before issuing a permit.
Source: Connecticut WCC, Sole proprietors, partnerships, and LLC forms, checked .
Sorting out Connecticut workers' comp for your business
Tell Redoubt what the business does, who works in it, and what the Connecticut requirement in front of you says. We will say whether a policy, a waiver, or an exclusion fits.
This is general insurance information, not legal advice or a coverage determination. Statutes, agency instructions, policy forms, and the facts of the business control.
Workers’ comp requirements in every state
Each state page gives the employee threshold, the owner and officer exemptions, the penalty for going without, the rating bureau, the market, the enforcing agency, and the exemption filing, each with its statute or agency source.
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The hub, and the Connecticut pages that go deeper
Connecticut workers’ comp FAQ
Do I need workers' comp in Connecticut with only one employee?+
Yes. One employee for pay makes a business an employer under General Statutes 31-275. The main carve-outs are domestic workers in a private home at 26 hours a week or less and casual labor outside the business.
Does a single-member LLC owner in Connecticut need workers' comp?+
The owner is covered by default. Since the 2019 Gould v. City of Stamford decision, a single-member LLC member is automatically under the Act and has to file Form 6B with the Workers' Compensation Commission to be excluded. Without that form on file, the owner stays covered under the Act.
I'm a sole proprietor with no employees. Do I need a policy?+
No. A Connecticut sole proprietor is outside the Act unless they file Form 75 to opt in. A general contractor may still ask for a certificate before you start, and Forms 7A to 7C cover the building-permit office.
Do out-of-state employers need Connecticut coverage?+
The Workers' Compensation Commission says out-of-state employers operating in Connecticut must provide coverage for employees working in the state. Confirm Connecticut is listed on your policy before the work starts.