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Florida PEO Laws: Registration, Bonding and Payroll Requirements

Florida licenses every employee leasing company under ch. 468, part XI (DBPR), renewing biennially; solvency is $50,000 net worth plus letters of credit, not a bond. A new PEO has 30 days to elect client-rate reemployment tax reporting, else pays 2.7% on the $7,000 base. Minimum wage hits $15.00 on September 30, 2026.

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Florida: PEO regulatory and payroll facts. Each populated field links to the statute, agency page or filing it came from.
PEO registration or licensing requiredYes - an employee leasing company (PEO) must obtain a license from the Department of Business and Professional Regulation before doing business: F.S. 468.526(1) provides that an employee leasing company or controlling person may not engage in business in this state without first obtaining a license. ESAC-accredited out-of-state PEOs are not exempt. De minimis employee leasing companies domiciled outside Florida may register instead of being fully licensed. source (opens in new window)
Regulating agencyFlorida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) - Board of Employee Leasing Companies licenses and disciplines employee leasing companies and controlling persons under Chapter 468, Part XI, F.S. and Rule 61-32 (61G7), F.A.C. The Florida Department of Revenue administers reemployment tax registration, rate assignment and quarterly reporting. source (opens in new window)
Bond or security requirementNo surety bond. F.S. 468.525(3)(b) requires a tangible accounting net worth of at least $50,000 for initial licensure, and 468.525(3)(c)-(d) require a maintained accounting net worth and positive working capital; deficiencies are offset only by board-approved guaranties (DBPR EL-4505) or irrevocable letters of credit (DBPR EL-4517), not surety bonds. source (opens in new window)
Registration renewal cycleBiennial - each license is renewed every two years (F.S. 468.527(2)); DBPR employee leasing company licenses expire April 30 of each even-numbered year (renewal cycle ending April 30, 2026 for the current biennium). source (opens in new window)
SUI taxable wage base$7,000 - only the first $7,000 of wages paid to each employee in a calendar year is taxable (2026 rate notice: based on annual wages up to $7,000 per employee). source (opens in new window)
New-employer SUI rate2.7% (0.0270) - the initial rate for newly liable employers, held until the employer has reported for 10 quarters; 2026 minimum 0.1% (0.0010, $7 per employee) and maximum 5.4% (0.0540, $378 per employee). source (opens in new window)
State workers' comp fundNo - F.S. 440.38(1)(a)-(b): every employer must secure compensation by insuring with any stock company, mutual company, association or exchange authorized to do business in the state, or by becoming an approved self-insurer through the Florida Self-Insurers Guaranty Association. There is no state fund. source (opens in new window)
State paid leave mandateNot verified
State minimum wage$14.00 per hour until September 29, 2026, rising to $15.00 on September 30, 2026 (Art. X Sec. 24 Fla. Const. as amended by the 2020 minimum wage amendment; F.S. 448.110). Tipped employees: $10.98 now, $11.98 from September 30, 2026. From September 30, 2027 the rate adjusts annually for inflation (CPI-W). source (opens in new window)
PEO SUI reporting basisClient-method election or own account: a newly licensed PEO has 30 days from licensure to elect, in writing with the Department of Revenue, to report and pay reemployment tax at each client's rate (the client method, F.S. 443.1216(1)(a)); separate reemployment account numbers are then assigned under the PEO's FEIN for each client. A PEO that does not elect in time must report all leased employees under its own account at its own rate, and the election binds all current and future clients. The PEO is the employer of record for leased employees. source (opens in new window)

Sources

What we know about Florida

Florida treats employee leasing as a licensed profession rather than a mere payroll service, and the licensing structure is one of the most detailed in the country. Chapter 468, Part XI, Florida Statutes creates the employee leasing company license, the employee leasing company group license (two to five majority-owned companies, licensed on a consolidated basis), and the controlling person license, and F.S. 468.526(1) makes it unlawful for an employee leasing company or controlling person to engage in business without first obtaining a license from the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. The Board of Employee Leasing Companies, housed in DBPR, certifies applicants, sets fees, and adjudicates discipline; licenses expire on April 30 of every even-numbered year and must be renewed biennially under F.S. 468.527(2), with initial application fees capped at $250 and license fees capped at $2,500 (F.S. 468.524, 468.526(3)). A company domiciled outside Florida that leases no employees to Florida clients, maintains no Florida office, does not solicit Florida clients, and has no more than 50 leased employees working in the state may register as a de minimis employee leasing company, which exempts it from the full licensing requirements of F.S. 468.525 (DBPR employee leasing FAQ). ESAC accreditation does not exempt a PEO from Florida licensure; DBPR states that a PEO licensed in another state and ESAC-accredited is still required to be licensed in Florida (Chapter 61G7, F.A.C.). Florida is also distinctive in what it does not require: there is no surety bond for employee leasing licensees. Instead, F.S. 468.525(3) demands a tangible accounting net worth of at least $50,000 at initial licensure and a maintained accounting net worth plus positive working capital thereafter, with deficiencies offset only through board-approved guaranty forms (DBPR EL-4505) or irrevocable evergreen letters of credit (DBPR EL-4517); DBPR expressly advises that a surety bond cannot satisfy the financial requirements. On the unemployment side, the Florida Department of Revenue administers reemployment tax: an employee leasing company is the employer of record for leased employees, the taxable wage base is $7,000 per employee per year, and a newly liable employer pays the initial rate of 2.7% (0.0270) until it has reported for ten quarters, after which the account is experience-rated on benefits charged (minimum 0.1%, maximum 5.4% for 2026). The PEO rule is a genuine election: F.S. 443.1216(1)(a) gives a newly licensed PEO 30 days from licensure to elect the client method, under which a separate reemployment account is created under the PEO's FEIN for each client and the client's own rate (or the 2.7% initial rate if the client has no history under the PEO) is applied; the election is one-time and binding on all current and future clients, and a PEO that misses the window reports all leased employees under its own account at its own rate. Employee leasing companies must also file multiple worksite reports covering each client establishment (Rule 73B-10.025, F.A.C.). Workers' compensation is a private market: F.S. 440.38(1)(a)-(b) requires every employer to insure with an authorized stock or mutual company or to self-insure through the Florida Self-Insurers Guaranty Association, and no state fund exists. Finally, Florida's minimum wage is set by its own constitution: $14.00 per hour through September 29, 2026, then $15.00 from September 30, 2026 (tipped rates $10.98 and $11.98), with CPI-W inflation indexing beginning September 30, 2027 (Art. X Sec. 24; F.S. 448.110).

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