Farm labor contracting provides another way for farmers to hire workers.
Farmers often directly hire workers to harvest crops and do other agricultural duties. However, when a farmer pays an outside person, agency, or company, or even pays an employee an additional fee, to help find or hire laborers, then that person or company must be a licensed Farm Labor Contractor.
Contractors recruit, solicit, employ, supply, transport, and hire workers for farms and other agricultural work. Farm labor contracting law provides protections for these workers, such as:
- Requiring a contract.
- Safe worker transportation.
- Ensuring meal and rest breaks.
- Getting paid.
This work is defined in the Farm Labor Contractor Act (Chapter 19.30 RCW and Chapter 296-310 WAC).
The Farm Labor Contractor Application/Renewal Packet for 2023 is now available.
Farm labor contracting activity detailed in the law includes:
- Growing, producing, or harvesting crops or nursery products.
- Forestation or reforestation of lands, including planting, transplanting, and thinning trees.
- Harvesting Christmas trees.
Farm labor contracting licenses from L&I are valid for a calendar year – January to December, no matter when you obtain the license. We recommend filing for a new license in November for the upcoming year. We send renewal packets to current license holders by mid-November.
There are two steps to determine whether you, as an employer, require licensing as a Farm Labor Contractor.
Step 1
First, determine if you are being paid to do any of the following activities connected to farmworkers:
- Recruiting.
- Soliciting.
- Employing.
- Supplying.
- Transporting.
- Hiring.
If you are doing any of these activities, then go to Step 2.
Step 2
Determine if you are supplying workers to a farmer, or other agricultural employer, who is doing any of the following:
- Growing, producing, or harvesting farm or nursery products.
- Forestation or reforestation of lands, including planting, transplanting, tubing, pre-commercial thinning and thinning of trees and seedlings, the cleaning, piling, and disposal of brush and slash.
- Harvesting Christmas trees, and other related activities.
If you are doing any of the activities in steps 1 and 2, then you must apply for a Farm Labor Contractor license.
Here are some examples of how to determine if your business activities require a Farm Labor Contractor (FLC) license. However, if you are unsure whether the activity requires an FLC, please call L&I Employment Standards Program at 1-866-219-7321, or email your question to ESGeneral@Lni.wa.gov.
Contracts and bidding for work | |
A farm labor contractor license is required in these and similar scenarios. If you:
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A farm labor contractor license is not required in this and similar scenarios.
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Forestation and reforestation | |
A farm labor contractor license is required in these, and similar scenarios:
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A farm labor contractor license is not required in these, and similar scenarios:
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Recruiting workers | |
A farm labor contractor license is required in this and similar scenarios:
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A farm labor contractor license is not required in this and similar scenarios:
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Transporting workers | |
A farm labor contractor license is required in this, and similar scenarios:
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A farm labor contractor license is not required in these, and similar scenarios:
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Agricultural employers | |
A farm labor contractor license is required in these, and similar scenarios:
Then the farm must have a license. |
A farm labor contractor license is not required in these, and similar scenarios:
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There are several steps in the process to get a Farm Labor Contractor license.
- Get a business license from the Department of Revenue. They will issue a Uniform Business Identifier (UBI) number for your business that you will use in your application.
- Complete and send in with your request for the Tax Compliance Certificate the to Department of Revenue.
- Also, complete the Confidential Tax Information Authorization (CTIA) form. This form is required when sending confidential information via email and/or with a third party to Department of Revenue. This CTIA needs to be completed in order to send you the tax compliance certificate.
- Complete the Application for Farm Labor Contractor License (F700-014-000).
- Attach a list of any agents and subcontractors who will be performing farm labor contractor activities under your license.
- Application/Renewal fee payable to L&I.
- $35 for general farm labor contractors.
- $35 for recruitment only.
- $100 for forestation/reforestation contractors.
- $135 for both general farm labor and forestation/reforestation.
- Complete your state Tax Compliance Certificate forms and email them to the respective agency. Include them with your L&I license application packet after they are reviewed and returned to you.
- Department of Revenue Tax Compliance Certification (F700-100-000).
- Employment Security Department Tax Compliance Certification (F700-099-000).
- Get a surety bond, assignment of account, time deposit, or cash deposit with L&I. The amount of the surety bond or deposit depends on the number of employees you wish to hire:
- 1-10 employees - $5,000.
- 11-50 employees - $10,000.
- 51-100 employees - $15,000.
- 101 or more employees - $20,000.
- Surety bond paperwork. Include one of the following:
- New applicants must send us either:
- The original surety bond/completed Farm Labor Contractor’s Bond form (F700-066-000)
or - An original Farm Labor Contractor Assignment of Account or Time Deposit form (F700-060-000). You must have the form completed and signed by the bank or credit union personnel and notary.
- The original surety bond/completed Farm Labor Contractor’s Bond form (F700-066-000)
- Renewal applicants must send us either:
- An original bond/completed Farm Labor Contractor’s Bond form (F700-066-000)
or - A bond continuation certificate (this may be a copy). This is applicable even if you have a continuous bond.
Note: We only need a new original Farm Labor Contractor Assignment of Account or Time Deposit form if the name, address, or phone number of your bank changed otherwise a copy is sufficient.
- An original bond/completed Farm Labor Contractor’s Bond form (F700-066-000)
- New applicants must send us either:
- Proof of auto liability insurance, and the make, model, and license plate number of all insured vehicles you will use to transport workers. Auto liability coverage must be at least:
- $100,000 liability per person.
- $500,000 liability per accident.
- $50,000 liability for property damage.
- Submit the completed application to our secure file upload. Please make sure the information is as complete and accurate as possible.
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Application/Renewal fee needs to be payable to the Department of Labor and Industries and mailed to:
Washington State Department of Labor and Industries
Attn: Farm Labor Unit
Employment Standards
PO Box 44510
Olympia, WA 98504-4510
For more information or if you have any questions please email ESFarmLabor@lni.wa.gov.
L&I is required to keep and post a list of licensed farm labor contractors monthly. If you are hiring a farm labor contractor that is not on this list, please contact us immediately to be sure your contractor is licensed.
If you use the services of unlicensed farm labor contractors, you may be held liable and receive up to a $1,000 fine for each violation.