What is the minimum age to work as a youth sports referee in Florida?

14 (under 14: parents' business, newspaper, entertainment); HB 1225/SB 918 (2025) to allow 13s in summer FAILED Exempt: HS grads, homeschool/virtual-school students (HB 49), parent-employed, hardship waivers. No referee carve-out. State law keys on 'employ/permit to work' - no 1099 carve-out; misclassifying minor officials as contractors does not avoid child-labor rules.

When is a final paycheck due in Florida if you let someone go?

No statute: next regular payday No final-pay statute; PTO payout per policy only.

How does Florida decide whether a coach or referee is a 1099 contractor or an employee?

Common law / right to control (Fla. MW follows FLSA definitions)

Does a youth sports league in Florida need workers' compensation for 1099 referees and coaches?

Florida's threshold is four employees (one in construction). Independent contractors are not employees, and Fla. Stat. 440.02(18)(d)1 (formerly (15)(d)1; renumbered in the 2025 code) sets a statutory test for non-construction work: a person is a contractor if at least four of six business markers are met (separate business and facilities, EIN or applied, pay to the business, business bank accounts, licenses, or work under contracts for a stated price) or, failing that, if the overall relationship shows control of means, principal expenses, responsibility for completion, per-job pay, profit-or-loss risk and continuing obligations. Sole proprietors and partners outside construction are not employees unless they elect in (440.02(18)(c)); corporate officers and LLC members can file a $50 Certificate of Election to be Exempt with the Division (440.05), but ordinary 1099 individuals have no certificate to obtain. Statutory employer: a contractor that sublets any part of its contract work is liable for compensation to the subcontractor's uninsured employees (440.10(1)(b)). Sports officials: 440.02(18)(d)11 declares a sports official (umpire, referee, judge, linesperson, scorekeeper, timekeeper) working for an interscholastic sponsor or for a public entity or private nonprofit sponsoring an amateur event to be an independent contractor. No reemployment-assistance exclusion exists; 443.1216(1)(a)2 applies common-law rules. Bottom line: nonprofit youth league referees are expressly not covered; coaches must pass (d)1, and a league with four or more workers that misclassifies them faces stop-work orders and double premiums (440.107).

For youth sports organizations and event operators · Florida rulebook

Youth sports labor rules in Florida: who can you put in the game, and what do you owe them?

State rules for everyone a youth sports organization pays: coaches and trainers on payroll, officials and event staff on 1099, program and front-office staff, and the teenagers you hire for a season. Wages, final pay, minors, contractor status, workers' comp, safe sport and youth safety, 50 states + DC, checked against statute text.

Last reviewed Oct 1, 202651 jurisdictions · 32 rules each

Step 1

Pick the state where the work happens

Rules follow where people work, not where you are based. Running an event? Use the event state. Operating a club or league? Use the state where your staff coach, officiate and work.

Color the map by

n/a

Set a role, age and pay type below to see which rules apply to your organization.

Step 2

Check a staffing plan

Tell us who you are paying, how old they are, and whether they are on payroll or 1099. We rank what applies.

State where the work happens

Role

Worker age

Paid as

Not sure if someone should be 1099 or on payroll?Answer 5 plain-English questions. We explain the sticking points in your state.5-question check

Tourney Direct does not decide classification. Confirm with a tax advisor or attorney before you onboard anyone as a contractor.

Step 3

Everything on file for Florida

All 32 rules for this state, with the statutes and agency pages they came from.

Wages and pay
Minimum wage (2026): $15.00 (eff. 9/30/2026; tipped $11.98; CPI indexing starts 1/1/2028)
Required pay frequency: No requirement
Final paycheck if you let them go: No statute: next regular payday
Final paycheck if they quit: No statute: next regular payday
Final-pay penalties: No final-pay statute; PTO payout per policy only.
State income tax withholding: No
Workers' comp required at: 4+ (1+ construction)
New-hire report due (days): 20
Minors
Minimum working age: 14 (under 14: parents' business, newspaper, entertainment); HB 1225/SB 918 (2025) to allow 13s in summer FAILED
Work permit: No permit; employer must keep proof of age; age certificate on request (DBPR); parent/school 30-hr waiver form for 16-17
Ages 14 to 15, school in session: 3 hrs/school day (when school follows), 15 hrs/wk, 6 days; 7pm-7am ban before school day
Ages 14 to 15, summer and breaks: 8 hrs/day, 40 hrs/wk; 9pm-7am ban on holidays/summer
Ages 16 to 17: 8 hrs/day when school follows, 30 hrs/wk in school session (waivable by parent/school), 6 days; no work 11pm-6:30am before school day (HB 49, eff. 7/1/2024)
Weekend and evening games: No 8-hr/day or 11pm limit for 16-17 before non-school days; 14-15 may work 8 hrs on Sat/Sun
Referee, coach and recreation exemptions: Exempt: HS grads, homeschool/virtual-school students (HB 49), parent-employed, hardship waivers. No referee carve-out. State law keys on 'employ/permit to work' - no 1099 carve-out; misclassifying minor officials as contractors does not avoid child-labor rules.
Contractors and leave
How this state decides 1099 vs. payroll: Common law / right to control (Fla. MW follows FLSA definitions)
Same question, for unemployment insurance: Common law / right to control (Fla. Stat. 443.1216(1)(a)2)
Referee-specific rule: Fla. Stat. 440.02(18)(d)11: sports official for interscholastic event sponsor or public/nonprofit amateur event sponsor is excluded from WC 'employee' (independent contractor)
Workers' comp for 1099 referees and coaches: Florida's threshold is four employees (one in construction). Independent contractors are not employees, and Fla. Stat. 440.02(18)(d)1 (formerly (15)(d)1; renumbered in the 2025 code) sets a statutory test for non-construction work: a person is a contractor if at least four of six business markers are met (separate business and facilities, EIN or applied, pay to the business, business bank accounts, licenses, or work under contracts for a stated price) or, failing that, if the overall relationship shows control of means, principal expenses, responsibility for completion, per-job pay, profit-or-loss risk and continuing obligations. Sole proprietors and partners outside construction are not employees unless they elect in (440.02(18)(c)); corporate officers and LLC members can file a $50 Certificate of Election to be Exempt with the Division (440.05), but ordinary 1099 individuals have no certificate to obtain. Statutory employer: a contractor that sublets any part of its contract work is liable for compensation to the subcontractor's uninsured employees (440.10(1)(b)). Sports officials: 440.02(18)(d)11 declares a sports official (umpire, referee, judge, linesperson, scorekeeper, timekeeper) working for an interscholastic sponsor or for a public entity or private nonprofit sponsoring an amateur event to be an independent contractor. No reemployment-assistance exclusion exists; 443.1216(1)(a)2 applies common-law rules. Bottom line: nonprofit youth league referees are expressly not covered; coaches must pass (d)1, and a league with four or more workers that misclassifies them faces stop-work orders and double premiums (440.107).
Seasonal or recreation carve-out: Fla. Stat. 448.110 adopts FLSA exemptions; FLSA 13(a)(3) applies
Paid sick leave: No (Fla. Stat. 218.077 preempts local sick leave)
Paid family and medical leave: No mandate. Voluntary employer-purchased paid family leave insurance authorized by Ch. 2023-149 (HB 721, eff. 5/25/2023), Fla. Stat. 627.445.
What it costs to get it wrong: WC: stop-work orders + 2x premium evaded (Fla. Stat. 440.107)
Safety
Background checks: Yes: Fla. Stat. 943.0438 (Ch. 2024-243, start delayed by Ch. 2025-97, finalized by CS/CS/HB 1069 / Ch. 2026-114, eff. 7/1/2026): independent sanctioning authorities/youth athletic teams must obtain Level 2 screening (fingerprint FDLE+FBI + sex-offender registry, 435.04) on every athletic coach - term expressly includes referees, assistants, managers, paid or volunteer - with direct contact with minors. Under-18 coaches and referees may use Level 1 (name-based) if directly supervised. No explicit rescreen interval in 943.0438; 5-year cycle comes from the 435.12 Clearinghouse framework. Prior law (since 2007) required annual name/registry checks.
Safe sport: state law: Partial. Florida regulates youth sports through Fla. Stat. 943.0438 (independent sanctioning authorities and youth athletic teams, as amended by Ch. 2024-243, Ch. 2025-97 and Ch. 2026-114 / CS/CS/HB 1069, eff. July 1, 2026), but the statute is a screening-and-concussion law, not a safe-sport law. Beyond the Level 2 screening in background_check_youth_sports, it requires each sanctioning authority to adopt concussion and head-injury guidelines and give parents information on their nature and risk, and to designate a user administrator for Clearinghouse compliance. It does not mandate abuse-prevention or SafeSport-style training, written two-adult, one-on-one, electronic communication, locker room or travel policies, or any abuse information sheet for parents. No Florida statute references the U.S. Center for SafeSport Code or the federal SafeSport Act. Hazing crimes (Fla. Stat. 1006.63, Chad Meredith Act, and 1006.135 for K-12) attach to school and college student groups, not private coaches. All persons, including coaches, are mandatory reporters to the DCF hotline (Fla. Stat. 39.201, see mandatory_reporter_coaches), with failure to report a third-degree felony. Obligations reach private, nonprofit and municipal teams alike through the "independent sanctioning authority" definition. No separate abuse-prevention training bill was enacted in 2025 or 2026.
Safe sport: federal SafeSport Act and NGB rules: Nationally, the SafeSport Act (36 U.S.C. 220541-220543, as amended by Pub. L. 116-189 in 2020; no enacted amendments since, the Safer Sports for Athletes Act remains pending) requires USOPC national governing bodies and the amateur sports organizations they sanction or that compete interstate with adults in regular contact with minors to deliver SafeSport Core training, adopt MAAPP-style policies limiting one-on-one adult-minor contact, and report suspected child abuse to law enforcement within 24 hours and to the Center. Florida-specific: 943.0438 makes NGBs and their state affiliates (for example Florida Youth Soccer Association, USA Swimming Florida LSCs) "independent sanctioning authorities" that must run Level 2 fingerprint screening on every coach, referee and manager from July 1, 2026, a stricter standard than NGB name-based checks; Fla. Stat. 39.201 imposes an immediate, all-persons reporting duty. FHSAA uses NFHS coach education.
Concussion law: Fla. Stat. §1006.20(2)(i) (HB 291, 2012), FHSAA schools; §943.0438(2)(b) requires youth athletic team sanctioning authorities to adopt concussion/head-injury policies + parent info (youth leagues covered); removal; RTP written clearance by trained health-care practitioner.
Sudden cardiac arrest law: None youth-specific. School-only: CS/HB 865 (ch. 2024-33, eff. 7/1/2024) amended s. 1012.55, F.S., public K-12 athletic coaches must hold CPR/first aid/AED certification; s. 1006.165 AEDs/Zachary Martin Act (public schools); HB 1607 (2025) student-athlete EKG screening (FHSAA). No statute mandates SCA training or AEDs for non-school youth leagues.
CPR and AED: Schools: AED at FHSAA athletic events (Fla. Stat. §1006.165); school coaches CPR/AED/first aid (FHSAA). No mandate for private youth leagues.
Coaches as mandated reporters: All persons: Fla. Stat. §39.201. No state SafeSport-style mandate (§943.0438 orgs must provide concussion policy only).
Coach certification: None for non-school coaches (FHSAA for schools).
Assault-on-official law: Yes: Fla. Stat. §784.081 (assault/battery on sports officials, enhanced degree).

All states

Rulebook by state

Florida at a glance: minimum wage $15.00 (eff. 9/30/2026; tipped $11.98; CPI indexing starts 1/1/2028). Final paycheck when you let someone go: No statute: next regular payday. Minimum working age: 14 (under 14: parents' business, newspaper, entertainment); HB 1225/SB 918 (2025) to allow 13s in summer FAILED. Background checks for youth sports: Yes: Fla. Stat. 943.0438 (Ch. 2024-243, start delayed by Ch. 2025-97, finalized by CS/CS/HB 1069 / Ch. 2026-114, eff. 7/1/2026): independent sanctioning authorities/youth athletic teams must obtain Level 2 screening (fingerprint FDLE+FBI + sex-offender registry, 435.04) on every athletic coach - term expressly includes referees, assistants, managers, paid or volunteer - with direct contact with minors. Under-18 coaches and referees may use Level 1 (name-based) if directly supervised. No explicit rescreen interval in 943.0438; 5-year cycle comes from the 435.12 Clearinghouse framework. Prior law (since 2007) required annual name/registry checks.