WSR 26-11-056
PERMANENT RULES
OFFICE OF THE
INSURANCE COMMISSIONER
[Insurance Commissioner Matter R 2025-14—Filed May 19, 2026, 2:09 p.m., effective June 19, 2026]
Effective Date of Rule: Thirty-one days after filing.
Purpose: The legislature passed HB 1842 (2025), allowing public utility districts to own, form, or use captive insurers. Definitions were updated to support implementation of the new law. In addition, the office of the insurance commissioner is adopting this rule to give captive insurers more clarity in their audited financial statement submissions requirements and adjust reporting deadlines to streamline the process.
Citation of Rules Affected by this Order: Amending WAC 284-201-130, 284-201-210, 284-201-220, and 284-201-240.
Adopted under notice filed as WSR 26-01-174 on December 22, 2025.
Changes Other than Editing from Proposed to Adopted Version: The following nonsubstantive changes were made from the proposed to the adopted version of the rule to improve clarity:
WAC 284-201-130(3): Under the proposed rule, a financial statement was defined as an "audited financial statement for the last fiscal year, prepared by an independent certified public accountant (CPA) …" The adopted rule amends this definition of financial statement to clarify for instances where a captive may be in existence for one year or less and thus would not have audited financial statements for the last fiscal year. The change adds "or for the time period the captive has been in existence if less than one fiscal year" to the definition.
Technical edits were also made to the next sentence in subsection (3) to clarify that the CPA who prepares the financial statement must be in good standing with a board of accountancy regulatory authority.
A final cost-benefit analysis is available by contacting Rules Coordinator, 302 Sid Snyder Avenue, Olympia, WA 98501, phone 360-725-7171, fax 360-586-3109/3535, TTY 360-586-0241, email rulescoordinator@oic.wa.gov, website insurance.wa.gov.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 1, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at the Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's own Initiative: New 0, Amended 4, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Date Adopted: May 19, 2026.
Patty Kuderer
Insurance Commissioner
RDS-6900.3
AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 21-23-078, filed 11/15/21, effective 12/21/21)
WAC 284-201-130Definitions.
The definitions in RCW
48.201.020, apply in this regulation unless otherwise specified or unless the context clearly requires otherwise. The following definitions apply to this chapter and to chapter
48.201 RCW:
(1) "Captive insurer" means an entity that is ((wholly or partially owned by a "captive owner" and it insures risks of the captive owner, the captive owner's other affiliates, or both))licensed as a captive insurer by the jurisdiction in which it is domiciled.
(2) "Eligible captive insurer" has the same meaning as set forth in chapter
48.201 RCW.
(3) "Financial statement" means an audited financial statement for the last fiscal year, or for the time period the captive has been in existence if less than one fiscal year, prepared by an independent certified public accountant (CPA). The CPA must hold a valid CPA license and be in good standing with a board of accountancy regulatory authority.
(4) "Insurer" has the same meaning as set forth in RCW
48.01.050.
(((4)))(5) "Principal place of business" refers to the place where a business entity's management direct, control, and coordinate the corporation's activities, i.e., its "nerve center," which will typically be found at its corporate headquarters. Except where the parent corporation is the alter ego of the subsidiary, subsidiaries are analyzed separately from their parent or holding companies. For example, if a captive insurer insures a subsidiary that is headquartered in Washington, then this state would be the principal place of business for the insured subsidiary, even if the parent company was headquartered elsewhere.
((
(5)))
(6) "Registered eligible captive insurer" means an eligible captive insurer who submitted an application that was approved by the commissioner. A registered eligible captive insurer that fails to properly renew its registration will no longer be considered registered under chapter
48.201 RCW.
(((6)))(7) "Reinsurance" means a form of insurance issued to insurers.
(((7)))(8) "Reinsurer" means an insurer that assumes all or part of an insurance or reinsurance policy written by the ceding insurer.
AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 21-23-078, filed 11/15/21, effective 12/21/21)
WAC 284-201-210Registration.
(1) Eligible captive insurers must register with the commissioner within 120 days of May 12, 2021, or if later, within 120 days after first issuing a policy that covers Washington risks.
(2) The registration period for eligible captive insurers will be from the date the registration is approved by the commissioner, through ((June 30th))July 31st.
(3) The commissioner may request and the eligible captive insurer must provide additional documentation and information to show registration requirements have been met.
(4) The registration fee is $2,500.00.
(5) The commissioner will approve an eligible captive insurer's registration, if the commissioner determines that it meets the eligibility requirements in chapter
48.201 RCW, and this section.
AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 21-23-078, filed 11/15/21, effective 12/21/21)
WAC 284-201-220Renewal.
(1) To maintain registration, a registered eligible captive insurer must renew certificates of registration annually by ((June 30th))July 31st. If an eligible captive insurer fails to properly renew their certificate of registration, then its registration will expire at the end of its registration period.
(2) The renewal process will require that a registered eligible captive insurer continue to meet eligibility requirements in accordance with RCW
48.201.020 and
48.201.030, and pay a renewal fee.
(3) For renewal, the commissioner will charge an annual renewal fee not to exceed $2,500.00. The amount of the renewal fee will be published on the commissioner's website and must be paid by ((June 30th))July 31st.
(4) The renewal period will be from ((July 1st through June 30th))August 1st through July 31st.
(5) In order to obtain a timely annual renewal, a registered eligible captive insurer should file the renewal application no later than ((April 1st))June 1st. Otherwise, OIC may not approve the eligible captive insurer's renewal before the ((June 30th))July 31st expiration date and the eligible captive insurer's registration will expire. If an eligible captive insurer's registration expires, it will then need to complete and file a new application and pay the fee for a new registration.
AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 21-23-078, filed 11/15/21, effective 12/21/21)
WAC 284-201-240Taxes.
(1) A registered eligible captive insurer shall on or before the first day of March of each year pay to the state treasurer through the commissioner's office a two percent tax on premiums for insurance directly procured by and provided to its parent or another affiliate for Washington risks during the previous calendar year. A registered eligible captive insurer that fails to remit the tax by the last day of the month in which the tax becomes due, will be subject to the tax, penalties, and interest provided in RCW
48.14.060.
(2) A registered eligible captive insurer shall file with the commissioner a statement of premiums on a tax form furnished by the commissioner. For tax purposes, the reporting of premiums shall be on a written basis.
(3) Instructions for accessing the online tax forms will be sent out to the registered eligible captive insurer's tax contact in January of each year. Tax contact information is provided to the commissioner as part of the registration process.
(4) The registered eligible captive insurer must share its methodology and relevant analysis in determining its Washington risks allocation by submitting this information to the commissioner by ((April 1st))June 1st of each year, in a method as prescribed and furnished by the commissioner.
(5) Prior period taxes. Eligible captive insurers who insured Washington risk for any period after January 1, 2011, must remit a two percent tax on premiums for insurance directly procured by and provided to its parent or another affiliate for Washington risks, if not previously remitted to the commissioner. The reporting of premiums under this section shall be on a written basis, in a method as prescribed and furnished by the commissioner. Taxes due for premiums procured prior to January 1, 2021, are not subject to the penalties or interest provided in RCW
48.14.060.
(6) Eligible captive insurers must pay premium tax for Washington risks covered by all types of insurance, including premiums collected for insurance that is not property or casualty insurance, if the eligible captive insurer provided such coverage for any period after January 1, 2011.