WCB (Worker’s Compensation Board) is an insurance coverage provided to employees who cannot work because of employment-related injuries. It also provides benefits, medical care, and rehabilitation services to those who are injured. Coverage is generally mandatory for all employers, except some industries like dentistry, banking and insurance who are exempt. This coverage is paid by the employers who then must report and pay the premiums on this coverage.
WCB Filing is required by all employees to report the payroll and paying the premiums, this must be still reported even if the company has zero payroll or owes zero premiums. Generally, premiums are paid annually, when the premiums are expected to be less than $2,000 per year. The Annual Payroll Report and Payment received in January is used to reconcile and report the payroll for the previous year, with a due date in the beginning of March or February 28th.
A company will generally report and make their premium payments on a quarterly basis if the premiums are expected to be $2,000 or more for the year or if the company is in a classification unit with mandatory quarterly reporting. Classification units are assessed and assigned to every firm who is registered with WorkSafeBC according to their main business and industry. The deadline for the reporting and payment is the end of each quarter after receiving the Employer Payroll and Payment Form.
The Reporting dates and periods vary depending on if the company is required to report annually or quarterly. The Reporting due dates for a company reporting quarterly are detailed in the following chart.
| Quarter | Period Covered | Due Date |
| First | January–March | April 20th |
| Second | April–June | July 20th |
| Third | July–September | October 20th |
| Fourth | October–December | January 20th |
The due date for the Annual Reporting companies with a January to December being the period covered is February 28TH of the following year.
If the year is a Leap Year, then this can also affect the WCB payroll report (annually or quarterly) depending on the company’s annual payroll amount and classification unit. Companies generally pay premiums if the premiums are less than $2,000 per year and the due date for the Annual Payroll Report and Payment is February 28th. This then becomes February 29th in a Leap Year. If a company expects to pay more than $2,000 in premiums per year, then its premium reporting and payments are made quarterly.
To report the premium and make the payments there is certain information required. This includes the account number and payroll report ID, which is on the payroll report, the payroll records for the previous reporting period (quarterly or annual) and specifying if the payroll was paid to workers or contractors. There is a maximum wage rate which WCB only assess up to that amount. Any earnings above this maximum wage are considered excess earnings and excluded.
The process of reporting the payroll and paying the premiums can be done online, by mail, in a WorkSafeBC office or at a financial institution.