Private Corporations – Exempting non-related corporate officers
What you must do to exempt officers of a private corporation when all exempted corporate officers are not related
Complete the Private Corporation (General) Corporate Officer Exemption form and submit it to the department. The form must be signed both by the individual officer being exempted and by another corporate officer.Note: The request for exemption must match the registration information we have on corporate officers. To update registration information, also submit the Update Ownership Information form.
What officers of a private corporation may be exempt when they are not related?
Private corporations in which all exempted corporate officers are not related may exempt from unemployment insurance coverage up to eight bona fide corporate officers who:- Voluntarily agree to be exempt from coverage;
- Are voluntarily elected or voluntarily appointed under the articles of incorporation or bylaws; and
- Exercise substantial control in the daily management of the corporation.
How to process your exemption request
Print out and sign. Because the law requires two signatures for each corporate officer exempted, print a separate form for each officer. The exempted officer must voluntarily agree to be exempt and sign the form. In addition, a second officer (if there is one) must also sign the form.Mail your signed exemption forms. After you have both signatures on each form, mail the completed form(s) to:
Employment Security Department
UI Tax and Wage Administration/Status
P.O. Box 9046
Olympia, WA 98507-9046
In order to minimize the risk of processing errors, we strongly recommend that you mail all the forms as a single package. Mailing forms individually increases the chance of error.
Mail by January 15. You must mail your completed exemption form(s) by January 15 for the exemption to take effect that year.
- New businesses may submit the form when they register with us and the exemption will take effect immediately.
- Existing corporations must submit signed forms by January 15 of the year in which the exemption is to take effect. If postmarked after January 15, the exemption will not take effect for the officers until the following year.
- Officers appointed after January 15 cannot be exempted until the following year.
No reinstatement of coverage until 2014. If your corporation chooses to exempt corporate officers from unemployment coverage, it will not be able to change the decision and reinstate coverage until the year 2014. (Individual officers may be reinstated if they no longer qualify for exemption.) See FAQ page.