To get paid you must maintain your eligibility. In order to remain eligible and continue to receive benefit payments, you must:
Request payment every week starting Sundays from the effective date of your claim.
Respond truthfully when requesting payment of benefits.
Actively seek work and keep track of your work-search activities.
Be physically and mentally able to work.
Be willing to accept suitable work.
Be available to begin work immediately if a job is offered.
Report all hours you worked and gross wages you earned each time you request payment.
Register with your local workforce center or at Connecting Colorado within one week of filing your claim.
Report to a workforce center if you receive a notice to participate in the RESEA program.
You must comply with each of the tasks listed above in order to avoid possible overpayments or a fraud investigation.
You are required to actively search for work every week you receive UI benefits by completing work search activities. We recommend that you complete at least five work search activities per week. If you are union or job-attached, you may not need to search for work.
Examples of work-search activities include:
We regularly audit unemployment insurance claims. If you are audited, you will need to provide proof of your work search efforts. Failure to complete work-search activities each week and document those activities with information that can be confirmed may cause the denial of benefits and may result in an overpayment.
Don’t forget! The first week you are eligible for benefits is the unpaid “Waiting Week.”
When you have an open unemployment claim but are still getting some hours of work, you may be awarded part of your weekly benefits, but you must have earned less than your weekly benefit amount and worked fewer than 32 hours that week. The law states that you can earn up to 50 percent of your weekly benefit amount and still be paid your full benefit payment. After that, we must reduce your benefit payment by one dollar for each dollar you earn. We require that you report the time and gross earnings the week they were earned (not the week they are paid).
Any money received in exchange for work or services MUST be reported as earnings on your claim, even if it’s just one hour worked or one dollar earned. Tips must be reported as wages. Be sure you are reporting for the week you worked, not when you get paid.
Payments you must report as earnings or wages include: This includes all work, including Full-Time, Temporary Work, Self-Employment, Military Employment, Federal Employment, Commission, Paid Training, 1099, Contract Jobs, Cash Jobs, Paid Time Off when work was available.
If you make a mistake when reporting your earnings, you may correct this information in MyUI+ or by calling the Benefits Payment Center at 303-318-9035. Failing to accurately report wages, earnings, or other types of payment may be considered fraud and could result in penalties or denial of benefits.
When requesting payment of benefits, you must report your hours worked and gross earnings (i.e., earnings before tax withholdings, child support, etc.) for each week that you request payment, so it is important that you keep a record of all of your hours and earnings.