Pennsylvania Workers’ Comp Exemption
We file workers’ compensation exemptions for Pennsylvania sole proprietors, LLC members, and corporate officers. Send us your details and we’ll confirm whether you qualify and handle the filing.
When coverage is required in Pennsylvania
Coverage is mandatory for employers with at least one employee who could be injured or develop a work-related disease in Pennsylvania, subject to limited exceptions (e.g., casual employment not in the regular course of the employer's business).
Who can be excluded in Pennsylvania
Sole proprietors
Automatically excluded — a sole proprietor working alone is not an 'employe' of anyone and has no workers' compensation liability on themselves. No filing is required for this exclusion. Under Act of June 30, 2011, P.L. 86, No. 20 ('Act 20 of 2011'), sole proprietors may voluntarily purchase coverage on themselves through the State Workers' Insurance Fund or a private carrier.
Partners
Same treatment as sole proprietors: automatically excluded from coverage requirements; may voluntarily elect coverage under Act 20 of 2011.
LLC members
Where an LLC's only workers are its own members (no other employees), the LLC has no workers' compensation liability and the members are not treated as employees. Act 20 of 2011 allows LLC members to voluntarily purchase coverage on themselves, the same as sole proprietors and partners.
Corporate officers
Unlike sole proprietors/partners/LLC members, corporate officers are NOT automatically excluded — by default they are covered as employees. They may instead request exclusion: for a Subchapter S corporation, an officer with an ownership interest may be excluded; for a Subchapter C corporation, an officer must hold at least a 5% ownership interest to be excluded. To exclude an officer, the employer files Form LIBC-509 ('Application for Executive Officer Exception') together with one Form LIBC-513 ('Executive Officer's Declaration') per officer being excluded.
Construction rules in Pennsylvania
No construction-specific ownership-exemption rule was found. Separately, the Construction Workplace Misclassification Act (Act 72 of 2010) sets a stricter, construction-industry-specific legal test for who qualifies as an independent contractor (versus an employee) for workers' compensation, unemployment compensation, and misclassification purposes — this affects worker classification generally, not owner self-exemption.
How the exemption is filed
Officer exclusion: file LIBC-509 plus one LIBC-513 per excluded officer — with the employer's insurance carrier if the employer has other covered employees, or with the Department of Labor & Industry's Bureau of Workers' Compensation Compliance Section if the employer has no other employees. No fee amount was found in the sources reviewed. Owner voluntary election IN (sole proprietors/partners/LLC members): handled via a Voluntary Election of Coverage form with the insurer/State Workers' Insurance Fund (referenced in secondary sources as SWIF-51 or a carrier's POL-115A) rather than a filing with the Department itself; this form reference could not be independently confirmed against a primary state source, so treat the exact form number as unverified.
- Form
- LIBC-509 (Application for Executive Officer Exception) + LIBC-513 (Executive Officer's Declaration)
- Statute
- Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation Act (77 P.S.), definition of 'employe'; Act of June 30, 2011, P.L. 86, No. 20 (voluntary coverage for sole proprietors, partners, LLC members); Act 72 of 2010 (Construction Workplace Misclassification Act)
- Market
- Competitive — coverage is bought from a private carrier.
Notes and open questions
The SWIF-51 / POL-115A form numbers for owners electing coverage IN were found only via secondary/aggregator sources, not a primary pa.gov page — flagged as unverified rather than stated as confirmed fact. No fee figure was found for LIBC-509 filing.
Sources
- https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dli/resources/for-employers-and-educators/workers--compensation-for-employers/workers--compensation-compliance
- https://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/US/HTM/2011/0/0020..HTM
Source material dated Accessed 2026-08-30.. Compiled from official Pennsylvania sources as a starting point, not legal advice — rules change, and your situation may turn on facts this page cannot see. Confirm with Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, Bureau of Workers' Compensation or ask us and we’ll check it for you.
Workers' comp exemption filing in Pennsylvania
Tell us about your Pennsylvania business and we'll confirm whether you qualify for an exemption.