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North Dakota business insurance: requirements and costs

North Dakota is one of the few monopolistic workers' comp states: Workforce Safety & Insurance (WSI) is the only insurer, and state law bars private carriers from writing the coverage.⁠3 The trigger is low, because any business that regularly employs one or more people in hazardous employment must cover them, part-time and seasonal workers included.⁠1⁠3 WSI sets its own rates by class, so there is no rating bureau and no private-market shopping for comp.⁠2

Checked against 13 sources Last reviewed How we check figures

North Dakota at a glance

Workers’ comp required1+ regular employee in hazardous employment; WSI only
Where employers buy itState fund only (monopolistic) (North Dakota Workforce Safety & Insurance (WSI))
Rates set byNone. WSI classifies employments and sets rates itself (NDCC 65-04-01)
Employer comp cost, 2023$0.81 per $100 of covered wages (US $0.98)
Comp rate index, 2024$0.50, ranked 51 of 51 (1 = most expensive)
Employer health premium, 2025$9,318 single, $24,903 family (average total premium)
Auto liability minimum25/50/25

WSI classifies employments and fixes the premium rate for each class, with rates set high enough to fund claims, reserves and expenses under NDCC 65-04-01.⁠2 Your premium is the class rate applied to payroll, with each worker's wages capped at 70% of the state's average annual wage; the cap resets every July 1.⁠6 WSI's 2026/2027 manual shows base rates for July 1, 2025 and July 1, 2026 side by side. Our count of the 137 classes with a percent change in that April 2026 document is 79 down, 47 up and 11 unchanged. The moves are large in both directions, from -20.0% (wholesale warehouse) to +15.4% (iron or steel construction), so a statewide average tells you little about your own class. The same document keeps the minimum premium at $250 per period.⁠5⁠6 Coverage must be in place before the first employee starts work.⁠2⁠3

The official cost data put North Dakota near the bottom nationally. NASI estimates employers spent $0.81 per $100 of covered wages in 2023, against $0.98 for the nation, which is about 17% lower by our calculation. Since 2019 the North Dakota figure has fallen from $1.14, a 29% drop by our calculation, compared with 16% nationally.⁠10 Oregon's 2024 ranking, built from manual rates in effect January 1, 2024, puts North Dakota 51st of 51 jurisdictions, cheapest, at an index of $0.50 per $100 of payroll, 45% of the median state's.⁠11 Neighbors rank higher: Minnesota 17th ($1.25), South Dakota 22nd ($1.13) and Montana 14th ($1.34).⁠11 Health coverage is thin among small employers. AHRQ's 2025 survey found 33.0% of North Dakota private establishments in firms under 50 employees offered insurance, against 32.1% nationally. Where offered, the average small-firm single premium was $9,238 against $9,034 nationally, but the employee's average share was $1,179 against $1,924.⁠12

WSI replaces more of your risk transfer than a private policy would, and it leaves some gaps. It does not include general liability coverage, will not list additional insureds, and does not waive subrogation, which matters when a customer's contract demands those terms.⁠9 A WSI account also has no written policy; its terms are in statute and rules.⁠9 Employers who comply are shielded from common-law and statutory damages for employee injuries during the premium period.⁠2 For employees traveling to other states temporarily, WSI enrolls active policyholders in All States Coverage, which excludes Ohio, Washington and Wyoming.⁠13 Any liability, property or vehicle coverage still comes from the private market. Driving is where the state differs from most others: North Dakota is a no-fault auto state, with basic no-fault benefits capped at $30,000 per person per accident.⁠7

Workers’ compensation in North Dakota

Any employer with one or more employees regularly employed in the same business, in or about the establishment, must cover them. WSI says this includes full-time, part-time, seasonal and occasional workers, covered before they begin work.⁠1⁠3 Corporate presidents, vice presidents, secretaries and treasurers, and LLC managers, count as employers rather than employees.⁠1

Who is exempt

  • Agricultural or domestic service; custom grain and field-crop operators lose the farm exemption if based outside North Dakota or operating more than 30 actual working days in a calendar year
  • Casual employment that is not in the course of the employer's business
  • An employer's spouse, and an employer's child under 22
  • Employers, including owners, partners and corporate officers, who may buy elective coverage
  • Licensed real estate brokers and salespeople paid by sales effort under a written independent-contractor agreement
  • Newspaper and shopping-news carriers paid by sales effort under a written independent-contractor agreement
  • Directors of a corporation not otherwise employed by it, clergy and employees of religious organizations engaged in worship, and common carriers by railroad

Buying coverage and who sets the rates

Only from WSI. State law does not allow private insurers to write workers' compensation in North Dakota, and WSI is the sole provider and administrator.⁠3 An employer must apply to WSI and report estimated payroll before employing anyone.⁠2

Latest rate decision (1 Jul 2026): WSI's 2026/2027 manual rates (prepared April 16, 2026) change base rates class by class from July 1, 2025 to July 1, 2026, from -20.0% to +15.4%; the document gives no overall average. Minimum premium stays at $250. Official notice.

Penalties for going without

Willful failure to secure coverage makes the employer liable to the state for $5,000 plus three times the difference between the premium paid and the premium it should have paid, and is a class A misdemeanor, or a class C felony if the premium due exceeds $1,000. For a corporation or LLC, the president, secretary, treasurer or person with primary responsibility is liable.⁠2 An uninsured employer also owes the premiums, assessments and interest plus 25% of premiums due in the most recent year, rising 5 points for each earlier year to a maximum of 50%, and WSI may assess up to $5,000 per premium period and the cost of claims.⁠2 After a cease and desist order, employing anyone adds $10,000 plus $100 a day; a general contractor or subcontractor knowingly using a barred subcontractor faces $5,000 plus $100 a day. WSI may reduce these.⁠2

What North Dakota employers pay

Employer workers’ compensation costs per $100 of covered wages, 2019–2023
YearNorth DakotaUnited States
2019$1.14$1.17
2020$1.09$1.08
2021$0.96$1.01
2022$0.88$1.00
2023$0.81$0.98

Employer cost per $100 of covered wages: premiums paid by insured employers plus benefits and administrative costs of self-insured employers, divided by the wages of workers covered by workers’ compensation. The United States figure is NASI’s national total, which includes federal programs. Source: National Academy of Social Insurance (NASI), published 11 Aug 2026.

Oregon’s biennial comparison of workers’ comp rates puts North Dakota’s index for rates in effect on 1 January 2024 at $0.50 per $100 of payroll, 55% below the national median of $1.09 (rank 51 of 51, where 1 is the most expensive). The index prices the same 50 risk classes, weighted by Oregon payroll, in every state, so it compares rate levels rather than what employers actually pay. Compare every state.

Employer health insurance in North Dakota

Average annual premium per enrolled employee at private-sector employers, 2025
MeasureNorth DakotaFirms under 50United States
Single coverage, total premium$9,318$9,238$9,025
Family coverage, total premium$24,903$23,944$26,281
Employee share, single$1,579–$1,817
Employers offering coverage47.1%33.0%49.2%

Average total annual premium per enrolled employee at private-sector establishments that offer health insurance; the offer rate is the share of establishments offering coverage. Small firms have fewer than 50 employees. Source: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Center for Financing, Access and Cost Trends, 2025 survey year. All states.

Commercial auto in North Dakota

Every vehicle registered in North Dakota, including business vehicles, must carry at least 25/50/25 in liability limits (bodily injury per person / per accident / property damage, in thousands of dollars). Official source.

Owners must continuously carry security for basic no-fault benefits and liability coverage under NDCC 26.1-41-02.⁠7 Liability limits are $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident for bodily injury and $25,000 for property damage under NDCC 39-16.1-11.⁠8 Basic no-fault benefits are capped at $30,000 per person per accident.⁠7

Trucks and buses used in interstate commerce must also meet federal minimums of $750,000 to $5 million: see commercial auto minimums and what commercial auto costs.

Other North Dakota rules that affect insurance costs

What a WSI account does not include

WSI states that it does not include general liability coverage, does not waive its rights of subrogation, does not allow additional insureds to be listed on the account, and issues no written policy because its provisions are statute and rules.⁠9 A contract that asks for a waiver of subrogation or additional-insured status on the workers' comp policy cannot be met with a WSI account, so check the clause before you sign.

Elective coverage for owners

Except for federal and railroad employees, an employer may buy elective coverage for themself and for otherwise exempt employees. It is not required by law and takes effect when WSI approves the signed application and contract.⁠4

Contractors and uninsured subcontractors

WSI can issue a cease and desist order to an uninsured employer. A general contractor or subcontractor that knowingly uses a subcontractor barred by such an order faces a penalty of $5,000 plus $100 for each day the violation occurs.⁠2

Workers traveling out of state

WSI's All States Coverage is included with an active policy in good standing. It covers North Dakota-based employees traveling temporarily and incidentally, in all states except Ohio, Washington and Wyoming.⁠13

North Dakota compared with its neighbors

Workers’ comp and health insurance costs, North Dakota and neighboring states
North Dakota$0.81$0.50$9,318
Minnesota$0.88$1.25$8,586
Montana$1.39$1.34$8,899
South Dakota$0.88$1.13$8,985

Sources

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National figures: NASI (employer comp costs), Oregon DCBS (rate index), AHRQ MEPS-IC (health premiums).

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Other states

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