Nevada calls workers comp industrial insurance, and two Nevada rules shape a restaurant's payroll: tips of $20 or more a month are reported and count at the wage rate, and from October 1, 2026 each employee's pay counts only up to a per-employee limit reset every January. Both change the payroll a carrier prices and an auditor checks.
Industrial insurance is governed by chapters 616A through 616D of the Nevada Revised Statutes, and the advisory loss costs carriers start from are filed by NCCI and approved by the Nevada Division of Insurance. For a restaurant, the rules that move the numbers decide what counts as payroll and how much of each paycheck counts.
| Rule | What It Means for a Restaurant | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Reported tips | Tips of $20 or more a month are reported, and premium is paid on them at the wage rate. | Nevada Revised Statutes, chapter 616B |
| Staff meals | Meals furnished to employees are valued at the employer's cost. | Nevada Administrative Code, chapter 616B |
| Payroll limit, policies from October 1, 2026 to December 31, 2026 | Each employee's payroll counts up to $98,433.60. | Nevada Division of Insurance |
| Payroll limit, policies from January 1, 2027 | Each employee's payroll counts up to $102,452.16. | Nevada Division of Insurance |
| Officers and LLC managers | Their payroll follows separate amounts outside the new limit, and an unpaid officer or manager may reject coverage by written notice to the company and the insurer. | Nevada Revised Statutes, chapter 616B |
The statute sets no ownership percentage for owner elections. Whether an owner stays on the policy is a choice to confirm with the carrier. The Nevada industrial insurance rules for contractors and restaurants cover the rest of the state picture.
The per-employee limit lands differently by city, because a kitchen's pay depends on its market. The metro pages set local pay for cooks, servers and bartenders beside the limit and list each area's cities and ZIP codes: Las Vegas restaurant workers comp for Clark County and Reno restaurant workers comp for Washoe, Storey and Lyon counties.
Nevada uses NCCI classifications. The Division of Insurance publishes code numbers with their advisory loss costs but no descriptions, so this site doesn't list Nevada codes until each plain-language label is approved. Restaurant classifications from the California class code list don't carry over to Nevada.
Who Decides the Classification
Classification depends on the duties your staff actually perform and the carrier's determination. We don't assign or confirm class codes; copy the codes from your current policy if you have one.
Illustrative scenario
Picture a full-service restaurant whose executive chef earns more than the per-employee limit. Before October 1, 2026, only $36,000 of that salary counted. On a policy that starts January 1, 2027 through December 31, 2027, up to $102,452.16 counts, so the same chef adds far more rated payroll, while loss costs were lowered to balance that statewide. The servers' reported tips count too. Move the restaurant to California and the picture changes: California leaves tips out of payroll and doesn't use Nevada's limit.
Estimating From the Wage Sheet Alone
Reported tips and the cost of staff meals belong in Nevada payroll. Leaving them out of the estimate can bring an audit bill when the auditor adds them back, and so can capping a manager's pay at the old $36,000 on a policy that started after the change.
Industrial insurance answers for injuries to your employees. A guest who slips in the dining room, a liquor claim or a delivery driver's crash typically falls to other policies, such as general liability, liquor liability or commercial auto. The restaurant workers comp insurance page compares formats across all three states.
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Yes. Tips of $20 or more a month are reported, and premium is paid on them at the wage rate, so a tipped server's reported tips add to the payroll a policy is rated on. California handles tips the other way and leaves them out of payroll.
For policies effective January 1, 2027 through December 31, 2027, each employee's payroll counts up to $102,452.16. For policies that started from October 1, 2026 through December 31, 2026, the limit is $98,433.60. The figure is reset each January from the state's maximum average monthly wage.
The October 1, 2026 filing lowered advisory loss costs by 32.8% to account for the law change: with more of each paycheck counted, the rate per dollar came down. NCCI expected it to be premium neutral statewide, which isn't the same as neutral for every restaurant. A place with many high-paid staff may see more premium.
Nevada lets an unpaid officer or LLC manager reject coverage by written notice to the company and the insurer, and a paid officer or manager who owns the company may reject by notice to the insurer. No ownership percentage is set. Confirm the choice and what it gives up with the carrier before deciding.
Yes. Nevada law calls it industrial insurance, under chapters 616A through 616D of the Nevada Revised Statutes. Carriers, brokers and owners often say workers comp, and both terms describe the same insurance for employee injuries.
Meals furnished to employees are valued at the employer's cost. Keep a record of what staff meals cost through the policy year, so the audit figure matches your books instead of an auditor's estimate.
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Reviewed by David Gleason, Principal, on .
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Nevada restaurant industrial insurance, from tips in payroll to the new payroll limit.
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