Arizona Department of Economic Security
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Unemployment Insurance Benefits

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File a Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Claim

Apply for Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC)

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Announcements

  • At the end of January, DES will mail 1099-G tax forms to claimants who received unemployment benefits in 2020. Learn more about Income Tax Information for Unemployment Benefits.
  • If you have an outstanding issue with your unemployment claim, your benefit amount will show as $0.00 until the claim is processed. Our staff are working around the clock to address outstanding issues on claims, and you will be notified when a decision is made on your claim. Please note: You will be contacted if additional information is needed. After submitting this information, your claim will be under review while our adjudicators continue to process your claim and will notify you when a decision is made. Submitting duplicate documents may result in further delay to processing claims.
  • DES has extended deadlines on documentation that some claimants are required to return to our office. Claimants will not be penalized for returning documents after their deadline.
  • NOTICE: Participants in the Address Confidentiality Program (ACP) must list their own phone number when filing a UI claim, rather than an ACP phone number, so DES can contact you directly.
  • Beware of imposters - there is only one azui.com and our services are free of charge.

How Do I?

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Lost Wages Assistance (LWA) Program

Arizona was the first state in the nation to begin issuing Lost Wages Assistance to eligible claimants. Initial payments were added to the Weekly Benefit Amount starting August 17, and DES began issuing retroactive payments for the benefits weeks ending August 1 and August 8 later that week. All retroactive payments will be completed the week ending August 28.

Video Tutorials

How to Apply for Unemployment Benefits

How To File An Unemployment Insurance Claim

What to Expect after Applying for Unemployment Insurance

 

More Information

Unemployment Insurance Fraud

It is a felony to misrepresent or fail to disclose facts or to make false statements in order to obtain or increase benefits. If you knowingly make a false statement or withhold information in order to collect unemployment insurance benefits to which you are not entitled, the Arizona Department of Economic Security may take civil or criminal action against you. Criminal action may result in a fine and/or imprisonment. In addition, you will be required to repay the amount you received illegally as well as penalty amounts which are added to each week that was fraudulently claimed. As part of our fraud prevention efforts, the Department regularly conducts several types of audits to detect improper benefit payments. View more information about Unemployment Insurance Fraud.

Extended Benefits

Extended Benefits (EB) provides up to an additional 13 weeks of benefits to eligible claimants who have exhausted both their regular Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) assistance.

Upon exhaustion of regular UI and the PEUC, DES will mail notices to individuals who are eligible to apply for EB. The claimants weekly benefit amount (WBA) under the EB program will be the same amount as the individual received for their regular UI benefits.

How much will I receive with EB? Will I still receive the extra $600?

Your weekly benefit amount (WBA) under the EB program will be the same amount you received for your regular UI benefits (between $184-$240 per week). The additional $600 in Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) will be applied to your EB funds until FPUC empires benefit week ending July 25, 2020.

What are my next steps in applying for EB?

If you might be eligible for EB, you will receive a notice from DES regarding your EB eligibility once your current benefits are exhausted. This will include instructions on how to apply for EB.

Is EB available to me if I live outside of Arizona?

If you are filing for Arizona EB while residing in another state, you may be eligible for no more than two weeks of EB if your state of residence hasn’t yet triggered EB. If your state has triggered EB, then you will be eligible for the full 13 weeks of EB.

Additional Resources

You may qualify for other benefits such as:

The extra $600 per week for Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) is not counted against eligibility for some programs:
Program FPUC UI PUA
AHCCCS Medical Assistance Not Counted Counted Counted
Nutrition Assistance Counted Counted Counted
Cash Assistance Not Counted Not Counted Not Counted

 You can apply for one or more of these programs online at www.healthearizonaplus.gov. Find more contact details regarding Nutrition, Cash, and Medical Assistance Benefits.

Continued Assistance Act

On December 27, 2020, the President signed into law the Continued Assistance Act of 2020 (CAA), which allows for the extension of federal unemployment programs including Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), and Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC). These provisions will bring continued unemployment benefits to Arizona claimants. 

Learn more about CAA.

1099-G Tax Information

On January 28, 2021, the Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES) began mailing 1099-G tax forms to claimants who received unemployment benefits in the state of Arizona in 2020.

Find more information regarding the 1099-G tax forms.

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