Self-Employed/Independent Contractor

The EDD offers an optional Disability Insurance Elective Coverage (DIEC) program for employers and self-employed individuals who are not required to pay into State Disability Insurance (SDI) but want to be covered by Disability Insurance (DI) and Paid Family Leave (PFL). DIEC is funded through quarterly premiums and can protect you against partial loss of income when you are unable to work.

DI provides benefits to eligible DIEC participants when they are unable to work and lose wages due to their own non-work-related illness, injury, pregnancy, or childbirth.

PFL provides benefits to eligible DIEC participants when they need to take time off from work to care for a seriously ill child, parent, parent-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or registered domestic partner or to bond with a new child entering the family through birth, adoption, or foster care placement.

For more information about DIEC, visit DIEC Forms and Publications.

Independent Contractor or Employee Classification

If you are a worker who believes that you are misclassified as an independent contractor or want to provide information on the business entity as a potential employment tax audit lead, submit a Request for Preliminary Worker Classification Assessment or Audit Lead Referral (DE 230) (PDF) to the EDD.

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