If you work alone and hire no one, you are usually outside the requirement right now. If you hold a C-8, C-20, C-22, C-39 or C-61/D-49 license, you must carry coverage regardless. If you hold any other contractor license, plan for coverage before your first renewal after January 1, 2028. And be careful about “no employees”: California presumes the people who work for you are employees, so a helper you pay in cash is an employee problem, not a paperwork problem.
Do sole proprietors need workers’ comp in California?
Generally no, as long as you genuinely have no employees. California requires employers to carry workers’ compensation; a sole proprietor with no employees has no one to cover. A workers’ comp policy would not automatically cover the owner anyway — sole proprietors are normally excluded from their own policy unless they specifically elect to be included.
That is worth thinking about rather than skipping past. If you are hurt on a job, your own health plan may exclude injuries arising out of work, and there is no wage replacement behind you. Many solo operators buy a policy that includes the owner, or an accident and disability policy, for exactly that reason.
Which licenses need workers’ comp even with no employees?
The Contractors State License Board requires every licensee to keep either a workers’ comp certificate or a signed exemption on file. Under CSLB’s rules, these classifications must carry coverage whether or not they have employees:
- C-8 Concrete
- C-20 Warm-Air Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning
- C-22 Asbestos Abatement
- C-39 Roofing
- C-61/D-49 Tree Service
Roofing is the one most contractors have heard of, and a C-39 license has no exemption path at all. If you hold one of these, an exemption on file is not an option and a lapse in coverage suspends the license.
What changes on January 1, 2028?
SB 216, signed in 2022, extends the workers’ compensation requirement to all licensed contractors and license applicants, regardless of classification and regardless of whether they have employees, with limited exceptions. It was originally set to take effect January 1, 2026. SB 1455, signed in 2024, moved that date to January 1, 2028 and directed CSLB to tighten how it verifies exemption claims.
For a one-person operation running on an exemption today, this is the change that matters: after that date, coverage becomes part of keeping the license active, not an optional purchase. The full guide to the 2028 requirement walks through the timing and what to gather, and the 2028 workers’ comp check answers in six questions whether the rule reaches your licence now or in 2028.
What does CSLB actually require on file?
One of two things, kept current at all times: a certificate of workers’ compensation insurance filed by your insurer, or an exemption certificate stating that you have no employees. CSLB will not accept an exemption if you employ anyone subject to California workers’ compensation law, if your license has a Responsible Managing Employee, or if you hold one of the classifications above.
If coverage lapses, the license is suspended, and work performed while suspended is treated as unlicensed activity — which can put payment for that work at risk, not just the license. The suspension lifts once CSLB receives and processes acceptable proof of coverage, which takes time you usually do not have mid-project.
Can owners, officers and LLC members exclude themselves?
Often, yes, and it is a normal way to keep premium off owner earnings. California allows qualifying corporate officers and directors who own enough of the company, and managing members of an LLC, to waive their own coverage in writing on a form the insurer files. A general partner in a partnership and a sole proprietor can likewise elect in or out.
Two cautions. First, the waiver is personal: if you exclude yourself and get hurt, there is no claim. Second, an exclusion does not make the company exempt — if you have even one employee, the policy still has to exist. Workers’ comp insurance.
What if I use subcontractors, helpers or day labor?
This is where “no employees” quietly stops being true. California law presumes that a person who performs services for you is an employee, and the burden of proving otherwise falls on you. Calling someone an independent contractor, paying cash, or issuing a 1099 does not settle the question.
- An unlicensed subcontractor working under your license is generally treated as your employee.
- A licensed sub without its own coverage is commonly picked up as your payroll at audit, and you pay premium on it.
- Collect certificates before work starts, not at renewal. A certificate obtained after a claim proves nothing.
- Owners who work in the field are payroll to an auditor unless properly excluded.
If a worker is injured and there is no policy, the exposure is not just a claim. Uninsured employers face state penalties, stop orders and personal liability for the injury.
Will a general contractor or client let me work without it?
Often not, whatever the law says. General contractors, property managers, hospitals, schools and municipalities routinely require a workers’ comp certificate with a waiver of subrogation before a crew sets foot on site, because an injury to your worker becomes their claim otherwise. Plenty of solo contractors buy a minimum-payroll policy purely to satisfy the certificate requirement on the work they want.
If a client is asking for a certificate you cannot produce, that is a business problem with an insurance answer, and it is usually quick to solve. See contractor liability, comp and bonds together.
What to do now
- Check what is on file with CSLB for your license today: certificate or exemption.
- Check your classifications against the five above.
- Be honest about helpers. If anyone but you touches a job, price a policy.
- Note your license renewal date and count forward to the first renewal after January 1, 2028.
- Gather payroll and sub payments, including what you pay yourself if you work in the field.
- Quote it alongside general liability and your bond so the certificates you hand out match what clients ask for.
Common questions
Do I need workers’ comp in California if I have no employees?
Generally no, if you are a true sole proprietor with nobody working for you. The exceptions are contractors holding C-8, C-20, C-22, C-39 or C-61/D-49, who must carry it regardless, and, beginning January 1, 2028, all licensed contractors.
Does a workers’ comp policy cover me, the owner?
Not automatically. Sole proprietors, qualifying corporate officers and LLC managing members are normally excluded unless they elect to be included, or they may waive coverage in writing. If you exclude yourself and are injured, there is no claim.
Is a 1099 worker an employee for workers’ comp?
Possibly. California presumes a person performing services for you is an employee, and issuing a 1099 does not change that. Unlicensed subcontractors working under your license are generally treated as your employees.
What happens if my contractor license has no workers’ comp on file?
CSLB suspends the license when required coverage lapses, and work performed while suspended is unlicensed activity. The suspension lifts once CSLB processes acceptable proof of coverage.
Was the all-contractor requirement supposed to start in 2026?
Yes. SB 216 set January 1, 2026. SB 1455, signed in 2024, moved it to January 1, 2028.
Sources
General information about California workers’ compensation as of September 2026, not legal advice. Employment classification questions are legal questions; confirm your own situation with counsel or CSLB. Coverage depends on underwriting and the terms, conditions and exclusions of the policy actually issued.