New York Workers' Comp Exemption

A sole proprietor with no employees is not required to carry coverage on themselves — a default exclusion that requires no application. Under Workers' Compensation Law §54(8), a self-employed person is "deemed to be excluded from coverage... unless he or she elects to be covered." They can opt in voluntarily, and once covered, they get the same rights and remedies as any employee. The CE-200 certificate is used only when a government agency (for a permit, license, or contract) demands proof of exemption — it's a per-transaction attestation, not a standing exempt status.

LLC and LLP members are treated the same as partnership partners under WCL §54(6)/(8). Where the entity has no employees other than its members or partners, coverage isn't mandatory — they're deemed excluded unless they elect to be covered. Where the entity does have other employees, members and partners can elect in, but it isn't automatic. No CE-200 filing is required just to claim the default exclusion — only when a government entity requires proof for a specific permit or contract.

New York's exclusion mechanism under WCL §54(6) is unusually rigid: it's only available to corporations with one or two executive officers total. A one-officer corporation qualifies if that officer owns 100% of the issued and outstanding stock and holds all offices. A two-officer corporation qualifies if the two officers together own 100% of the stock, each owning at least one share, and hold all corporate offices. If the corporation has no other employees, the qualifying officer(s) are automatically excluded by default and must affirmatively elect in if they want coverage; if the corporation has other employees, the default flips toward inclusion unless they elect out. Corporations with three or more officers, or officers who don't collectively hold all the stock, simply aren't eligible for this exclusion mechanism at all.

For the general self-employed exclusion, the relevant document is the CE-200 certificate, filed through the New York Business Express portal (not directly on the WCB's own site). The process requires creating a NY.gov Business account, selecting a specific exemption reason code, attesting and submitting online, and then printing, signing, and mailing the original paper certificate to the issuing agency — scanned or emailed copies are explicitly not accepted. There's no fee for the CE-200. There is no fixed renewal period; it's transaction-based, valid only for the specific license, permit, or contract it was issued for, so a new CE-200 is required for each new one, even for the same business. For the corporate officer exclusion specifically, the filing is Form C-105.51, submitted to the insurance carrier (or the WCB Chair for self-insured entities); the election is final and binding until the corporation itself revokes it, and revocation doesn't take effect until 30 days after filing.

New York's self-attestation, transaction-specific CE-200 model is itself the headline quirk — most other states issue a standing exempt status, while New York issues a one-time sworn certificate tied to one specific permit, license, or contract, so a business juggling multiple permits from multiple municipalities may need multiple separate CE-200s. A CE-200 can't be used to defend against a WCB compliance or penalty proceeding, or shown to a private business or insurer as general proof of exemption. Original wet-ink signatures are required — no digital copies. The officer-exclusion rule (limited to 1–2 officers who together hold 100% of the stock) is unusually rigid and mathematical compared to most states' looser "any qualifying owner can opt out" approach, and the election belongs to the corporation as a whole, not the individual officer.