Workers' comp laws in Kansas
Kansas requires workers' compWorkers' Compensation Insurance that pays medical bills and lost wages when an employee is hurt or sick because of work. Insurers call it workers' compensation. more → once an employer's yearly payroll passes $20,000, a dollar test rather than a headcount. The Kansas Department of Labor's Division of Workers Compensation runs the system, and private insurers sell the policies. Wages paid to relatives are left out of the count, and owners are outside the law unless they opt in on paper.
- The trigger is $20,000 of gross payroll in the prior year, and wages paid to relatives do not count.
- Owners opt in with Form K-WC 113, which the insurance company must sign. An employee who owns 10% or more of a corporation can opt out with Form K-WC 50.
- Going without coverage can bring a penalty of the greater of twice the annual premium or $25,000.
Do I have to carry workers' comp in Kansas?
Yes, once your payroll passes $20,000 a year. Kansas excludes an employer whose gross payroll for the previous calendar year was $20,000 or less and who expects this year to stay under it. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-505)
Wages paid to relatives are left out of the count, so a family-run grocery store with one outside part-timer can sit under the line. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-505) Relatives who work there are still employees. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-508) The other seven states are on the index of state pages.
Farm work is outside the act, so a food manufacturer's farm arm can be out while the plant is in. An excluded employer can opt in by written election. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-505) Covered employers buy a policy, self-insure or join a qualified group-funded pool. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-532) Our workers' comp coverage page explains the policy.
Who counts as my employee in Kansas?
Anyone working for you under a contract of service, including a corporation's officers and minors. Owners are the exception: a sole proprietor, partner or LLC member is not an employee unless they elect in. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-508)
To elect in, file Form K-WC 113. It is not valid until the insurance company completes its section; an agent cannot. (Source: Form K-WC 113) An officer who owns 10% or more of the stock can opt out with Form K-WC 50, and the employer cannot make that a condition of the job. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-543) First hire? Read what changes when you hire someone.
If you hand part of your business to a contractor, you can be liable to the contractor's workers unless the contractor has coverage, shown by a current certificate. A self-employed subcontractor is not a "worker" under that rule. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-503) The state also does not fine a self-employed subcontractor for lacking coverage on themselves. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-532) A commercial fleet that uses owner-operators sits on this line.
That rule reaches only work in the principal's own trade or contracted work, so a commercial property owner's roofer can hand over a notarized exempt-status affidavit, which creates a presumption that the owner is in compliance. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-5,127)
What goes in payroll?
Kansas statutes do not say how tips, overtime or bonuses count, so the rating bureau's manual decides. Owners who stay on the policy are counted at set amounts, not at what they draw.
For policies starting in 2026, one carrier's table shows officer payroll counted at $59,800 to $239,200 a year, so a restaurant's chef-owner is rated inside that band. (Source: ICW Group 2026 officer and partner payroll table) Our guide to restaurant workers' comp explains tips.
The same table lists a flat $60,300 per partner, so two restaurant-depot partners who elect in are each rated at that figure. (Source: ICW Group 2026 officer and partner payroll table) The insurer checks your real payroll after the year, called a premium audit; see the guide to the yearly payroll check.
Who sets the rate in Kansas?
NCCI, the national rating bureau, supplies the job-type rules Kansas insurers price from. Kansas runs no state insurer for employers who can buy privately.
The Kansas Workers' Compensation Insurance Plan serves employers no insurer will write. Its rates need the Commissioner's approval, and its rules allow a number, with 1.0 as average, that moves your price with your claims record: the experience modification factorExperience Modification Factor (E-Mod) A number, with 1.0 as average, that raises or lowers your workers' compensation price based on your claims compared with similar businesses. Insurers call it the experience modification factor. more →. (Source: Kansas Statutes 40-2109) Oregon's 2024 ranking put Kansas 35th, at 83% of the median. (Source: Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services)
Wholesalers, distributors and importers have another route: five or more employers in a trade association at least five years old can form a group-funded pool, with a 51% payroll test. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-581)
What about workers in other states?
Kansas law can follow a worker out of state. It applies to an injury elsewhere if the worker's principal place of employment is in Kansas or the contract was made in Kansas, unless the contract says otherwise. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-506)
So an e-commerce seller's remote staff can be covered wherever they sit. The act does not reach employment that federal law governs, such as railroad workers. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-506) The guide to opening in a new state shows what else changes.
What happens if I don't carry it?
A knowing and intentional failure to secure coverage is a class A misdemeanor, and after a hearing the employer may be liable for the greater of twice the annual premium it would have paid or $25,000. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-532)
On a larger payroll, twice the premium is the bigger number: a 40-room hotel can have a premium high enough that doubling it passes $25,000.
| What happens | Amount |
|---|---|
| The policy you should have bought would have cost, for the year | $18,000 |
| Twice that premium is ($18,000 × 2) | $36,000 |
| The law's other figure is | $25,000 |
| After a hearing, the agency can seek the greater of the two ($36,000 or $25,000) | $36,000 |
Illustration only, with round numbers. It is not a statement of what any agency would assess; the statute and the agency's schedule govern.
A worker of an uninsured employer may be paid from the Workers Compensation Fund, which can then seek repayment from the employer. (Source: Kansas Statutes 44-532a) The department's public coverage lookup starts at its workers' comp overview page.
Frequently asked questions about workers' comp in Kansas
Only if the employer files an election to cover them, with listed exceptions for volunteer law-enforcement, emergency medical and firefighting personnel. An unpaid nonprofit officer may elect in.
Report the injury within 28 days if it keeps the worker out beyond the shift. Repeat failures to report can draw a fine of up to $250 per violation.
To the Division of Workers Compensation, 800 SW Jackson St., Suite 600, Topeka, KS 66612-1227. Form K-WC 50 takes effect when the Division receives it.
Not sure which Kansas rule you fall under?
Tell us how your business pays its people, whether employees, owners or contractors, and we will help you work out which rule applies and what to ask for.