Most employers are required to pay Unemployment Insurance (UI) premiums based on various liability criteria. Domestic, agriculture and nonprofit employers have different liability criteria based on the amount of wages paid and the number of employees. There are however some types of employees that employers are not required to pay premiums for.
Review the Colorado Employment Security Act (CESA) for a full list of employer liability criteria.
General Employer Liability Criteria
- The employer paid $1,500 or more in wages during a calendar quarter in either the current or previous calendar year.
- The employer employed at least one person for any part of a day for a period of at least 20 weeks during the current or previous calendar year. (This does not have to be the same person for all weeks nor consecutive weeks.)
- The non-liable employer voluntarily elected (and is approved) to participate in the UI program.
- The employer acquired all or part of a Colorado trade, business organization, or a substantial portion of the assets from a predecessor employer who is liable to pay UI premiums.
- The employer is a corporate officer in an LLC reporting to the IRS as a corporation, a corporation or S-Corp.
Employees not covered by CESA
- Children (under the age of 21) or spouses of sole proprietors or partners in a partnership
- Non-U.S. citizens holding various nonimmigrant visas, including student, exchange-visitor, foreign-vocational-student, and cultural-exchange-visitor visas
- Certain drivers of taxis or limousines
- Certain insurance agents paid by commission only, real-estate or newspaper salesperson paid for performance of service, not hours worked
Domestic Employers
- The employer paid $1,000 or more in wages to one or more workers in a private home during a calendar quarter.
Employees domestic employers are not liable for
- Domestic workers who were paid less than $1,000 in any calendar quarter
- Children under the age of 21 or spouses, so long as the organization is a sole proprietorship or partnership
Agricultural Employers
- The employer paid $20,000 or more in wages to one or more agricultural workers in a calendar quarter, or employed ten or more agricultural workers for some portion of a day in each of 20 different weeks during a calendar year.
Employees agricultural employers are not liable for
- Agricultural workers who were collectively paid less than $20,000 in a calendar quarter
- Foreign agricultural workers who are holding type H2-A visas
Nonprofit Employers
(religious, educational, and charitable nonprofit organizations)
- Meets the description in the federal IRC 501(c)(3) and has employed four or more employees for some portion of a day in each of 20 different weeks during a calendar year. These employees do not all have to reside in Colorado.
Employees nonprofit employers are not liable for
- Workers employed by a church, religious place of worship or religious school, or workers employed by an elementary or secondary school that is operated primarily for religious purposes
- Students or spouses of students employed by a school, college, or university which the student or spouse attends and is employed through a financial aid program or is participating in work-study
Government Employers
- A state agency, state-operated hospital or school of higher education, or a political subdivision of the state (which can include charter and other PK-12 schools).
Employees government employers are not liable for
- Elected officials, members of a legislative body, judiciaries of a state, members of the state or Air National Guard, railroad workers insured by the Railroad Retirement Tax Act
Contact UI Employer Services
Denver Metro
(303) 318-9100
Toll-free
1-800-480-8299
UI Employer Services
P.O. Box 8789
Denver, CO 80201-8789