Class code 9082 vs 9083: table service or counter service?
The short answer
How the food reaches the customer decides it: served at the table by wait staff is 9082, ordered and collected at a counter is 9083.
Restaurants search this pair expecting a big saving on one side. Usually there isn't one — the two rates sit close together, and in some states the counter-service code is the higher of the two.
That doesn't make the code irrelevant. It means the classification should be right, and the money should be looked for somewhere else on the audit worksheet.
The codes side by side
| Code | What it covers | Illustrative rate |
|---|---|---|
| 9082 | Restaurant NOC | $1.30 – $2.80 |
| 9083 | Restaurant — Fast Food | $1.40 – $3.00 |
Per $100 of payroll. National illustrative ranges — your state and carrier set the actual rates.
How does a customer get their food?
A server takes the order at the table and brings the food → 9082 (Restaurant NOC)
Table service governs even when there is also a takeout counter, provided table service is the operation.
They order at a counter and carry it themselves → 9083 (Restaurant — Fast Food)
Counter service, drive-through and takeout-led operations.
Genuinely both, in separable operations → 9082 (Restaurant NOC)
Separately ratable treatment can apply when the operations are distinct with separable payroll — but that needs records, and many carriers will simply apply the governing classification.
When each code applies
9082 — Restaurant NOC
- Customers are seated and served by wait staff
- Full-service dining rooms, including their kitchen and bar staff
9083 — Restaurant — fast food
- Customers order and collect at a counter
- Quick service, takeout and drive-through formats
What audits get wrong here
A counter-service concept is coded as a full-service restaurant, or the reverse, because the code was set at signup and never revisited.
Service format changes — a dining room converts to counter service, a takeout window becomes the main business — and the policy doesn't follow.
Overtime is charged on gross payroll instead of straight-time equivalent.
The premium portion of overtime is generally excluded from the payroll basis when records show overtime separately. For an overtime-heavy restaurant this is usually worth far more than the 9082/9083 question.
An owner's full salary is charged instead of the state's officer maximum.
Included owners and officers are charged at state-published minimum and maximum payroll amounts, not actual compensation.
Worked example
A counter-service cafe with no wait staff, coded as a full-service restaurant, on $180,000 of annual payroll.
- Charged at 9082 (Restaurant NOC)
- $2,340 – $5,040 / yr
- Charged at 9083 (Restaurant — Fast Food)
- $2,520 – $5,400 / yr
On these illustrative ranges the outcome spans from about $3,060 a year worse to about $2,520 a year better. This is genuinely state-dependent — look up your own rates before arguing it.
Illustrative only. Not a quote, and not a prediction of what your carrier will do.
How much is actually at stake
Honest answer: the illustrative rates for these two codes are close, so reclassifying rarely produces a large recovery, and it can go against you. For restaurants the recurring wins are the overtime premium exclusion and owner payroll caps — both of which are arithmetic on the worksheet rather than a classification argument.
What settles the argument
Classification disputes are won with records, not opinions. For this one, gather:
- Menus, photographs and floor plans showing the actual service format
- Payroll records showing whether wait staff are employed at all
- Overtime detail in payroll reports, separated from straight-time pay
- The owner or officer election status and the payroll amount charged for each
Not sure which one your audit used? Check every employee against their assigned code in a couple of minutes.
Run the free checkerFrequently asked questions
- Which code is cheaper, 9082 or 9083?
- It depends on the state — they are close, and counter service is not automatically the cheaper of the two. Check your state's published rates before assuming a reclassification saves money.
- We do table service and a busy takeout counter. Which applies?
- The operation as a whole normally governs. Separately ratable treatment is possible when operations are genuinely distinct with separable payroll, but many carriers will apply a single governing classification instead.
- Do delivery drivers get their own code?
- Employees whose principal duty is driving commercially are usually classified separately in a driver code. Whether that applies depends on the actual duties, not on the job title.
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ClassCheck provides self-advocacy information only. This is not legal, insurance or accounting advice, and classification rules vary by state and carrier. Terms.