Español

COVID-19 and Your Unemployment – Answers to FAQs

Federal Unemployment Benefits Have Ended

Federal unemployment benefit programs under the CARES Act ended on September 4, 2021. You will no longer be paid benefits on the following claim types for weeks of unemployment after September 4:

Note: Federal-State Extended Duration (FED-ED) benefits are no longer payable for weeks of unemployment after September 11.

For more information, visit Federal Provisions for Unemployment.

We are experiencing a high call volume and longer wait times on our phone lines. We appreciate your patience and understand you have questions.

Here you can find answers to the most frequently asked questions (FAQs) we have received about COVID-19 and unemployment.

If you have specific questions about your claim, log in to UI OnlineSM and select Contact Us at the top of the homepage.

Top Questions and Answers of the Week

A tax return or a 1099 received for self-employed contract work are examples of documents that could be used to prove that you were, or planned to be, self-employed or employed at some point during the full calendar year before and up to the start of your PUA claim.

If your tax return or 1099 are for the same year your claim began, you must provide additional supporting documents to prove that you were self-employed prior to the start of your PUA claim.

For example, if your PUA claim started in 2020 and you only provide a tax return for 2020, we would have no way of knowing if the work you performed to earn that income was done before the start of your PUA claim. You will need to provide business receipts, bank statements from a business account, or other proof (such as a signed statement explaining when the work was performed), which clearly shows that at least some of your 2020 income was earned before the start of your PUA claim.

Yes, a signed statement that provides details (including dates) of your self-employment or employment can be submitted. Any other documentation that supports your statement should also be included.

Your signed statement does not need to be notarized.

Yes, if you receive a notice to provide self-employment or employment documentation, you must respond to that notice, even if you already submitted income documentation.

Visit the Self-Employment and Employment Documentation section on the PUA page for more information.

To upload your documents through UI Online, the documents should be clear and readable. You can scan the documents or take a picture of the documents with a digital camera or mobile device to upload. Acceptable file formats are: JPEG, TIFF, PNG, GIF, and PDF. You can upload documents once you receive your notice. Maximum file size is 25 MB and up to 20 attachments total. Multiple documents may be included as one attachment.

Federal unemployment benefit programs under the CARES Act ended on September 4, 2021. You will no longer be paid benefits on the following claim types for weeks of unemployment after September 4:

Note: Federal-State Extended Duration (FED-ED) benefits are no longer payable for weeks of unemployment after September 11.

The federal government does not allow benefit payments to be made for weeks of unemployment after these programs end, even if you have a balance left on your claim. Any pending payments for weeks of unemployment before the expiration of benefits will be processed retroactively if you are found eligible and did not receive conditional payments. Notices were sent about what to expect based on your claim type.

For updates, visit Federal Provisions for Unemployment.

The following federal unemployment benefit programs have ended:

The federal government does not allow benefit payments to be made for weeks of unemployment after the program ends, even if you have a balance left on your claim. Your claim balance is the maximum benefit amount for your claim and is calculated at the beginning of a claim or an extension program. You may not be eligible to collect the full amount. For example, if you were placed on a FED-ED extension on September 5, 2021, the FED-ED extension had a maximum of 13 weeks available. But, the last date for any FED-ED extension was September 11. So, you would only receive one week of benefits, but your claim will still show 12 weeks of available benefits.

You must reapply for a new claim if you earned enough wages in the last 18 months and are still unemployed or working part time. We will notify you when your new claim is processed. This usually takes two to three weeks.

  • If you’re unsure if you have enough wages as reported by an employer, log in to UI OnlineSM and select File New Claim. We will do one of the following:
    • Immediately tell you that you do not have enough wages to establish a new claim.
    • Provide instructions on how to submit a new application.

For more information, refer to the unemployment benefit calculator.

If you served in the military, worked for a federal government agency, or worked in a state outside of California within the last 18 months, you must reapply for a new claim by phone, mail, or fax.

You do not need to reapply if you did not earn enough wages in the last 18 months to establish a new claim. Visit Eligibility Requirements for more information. To learn more, visit Benefit Year End.

According to our records, you did not earn enough employer paid wages to establish a regular unemployment claim.

Note: If you think you earned enough wages, but your employer did not report them to us, you can submit a new application by paper or phone.

If your claim status is pending, we may need to confirm your identity or eligibility before we can process payment.

If we need to confirm your eligibility, we will schedule a phone interview with you. For more information, visit Claim Status: Pending Payment or access the Claim Status Tracker at the top of your UI Online homepage.

Many people receiving unemployment are reaching the end of their benefit year. If your unemployment claim expired because your benefit year ended, you must apply for a new claim. If you do not, we will not be able to determine your eligibility or process payments, which can lead to a Pending claim status. To learn more, visit Benefit Year End.

If you received a Notice of Determination of Invalid Claim, Section 1277 (DE 429L) after applying for a new claim, this means you did not work or earn enough wages over the past year to qualify for a new regular unemployment claim.

For more information, visit Benefit Year End.

If we have a question about your mailing address, we will contact you using the email you provided with your myEDD account. The email will be sent from noreply.verification@edd.ca.gov. You will also receive an email instructing you to check your UI OnlineSM inbox or you may also receive a text message.

You must complete this process within 10 days or your claim may be disqualified. Visit Address Verification for more information.

If you received unemployment benefits you were not eligible for (known as an overpayment), we will send you a notice. It is important to repay this benefit overpayment as soon as possible to avoid collection and legal action. After receiving a notice, visit Benefit Overpayments and Penalties to learn how to repay an existing overpayment.

If you want to repay these benefits before receiving a notice, review the following:

  • Benefit check not cashed – Return the original check to the EDD.
  • Benefit check cashed – Send a personal check, cashier's check, or money order made payable to the EDD.
  • Debit card – If the funds are still on your card, transfer them to your bank account and then repay them by sending a personal check, cashier’s check, or money order made payable to the EDD.

Include a letter with the following information:

  • Name.
  • Mailing address.
  • Social Security number or EDD Customer Account Number (EDDCAN).
  • Week or weeks that the returned payment applies to.
  • Reason for returning the benefits.
  • Date you returned to work (if applicable).
  • Gross earnings for each week of benefits being returned (if applicable).

Mail the payment and letter to:

Employment Development Department – Overpayment Center
PO Box 66000
Anaheim, CA 92806

Note: If you return the overpayment, you will still receive a notice from the EDD.

Disability or Paid Family Leave Benefits

Learn what benefits are available if you are sick or caring for a family member.

Employers

Get information about the WARN Act and what EDD services can help navigate your business operations.