Unemployment benefits, commonly referred to in the United States as Reemployment Assistance in Florida are provided to those who are not employed for no reason of their own, and meet the state-defined eligibility criteria. Since the Coronavirus outbreak spread across Florida the state has made numerous changes to eligibility criteria. In this comprehensive article, we’ll guide you through each and every piece of information regarding the unemployment benefit system in Florida.
Unemployment Benefits in Florida In The Pandemic
Millions of Americans were laid off an indirect consequence of the epidemic. To assist the jobless in meeting their needs during this crisis president Donald Trump announced The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Department Of Labor (DOL) after which the Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) began to implement different unemployment benefits across Florida.
The unemployment benefit programs that have been established in the state of Texas as part of the CARES Act are as follows:
1. Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA)
PUA is designed to provide benefits to gig workers who are unemployed and self-employed and independent contractors and others who don’t meet the requirements for regular benefits. In the program, you are able to be eligible for benefits for as long as 39 weeks.
2. Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC)
In this program, people who were eligible under the Employment Assistance and PUA also received an additional $600 per week in unemployment benefits. The program ended on July 25 and was replaced with $300 additional weekly benefits.
3. The Pandemic Emergency Compensation (PEUC)
Be aware that you are required to renew PUA as well as PEUC applications each quarter.
Who is eligible for unemployment benefits in Florida during the Pandemic?
In general, in order to be eligible to receive the regular Florida unemployment assistance, You must satisfy the requirements of a job search aside from being unemployed due to the fault of someone else. In the case of the spread of the disease that has swept the country, the DEO has canceled the requirement for a work search as well as online registration requirements for work up to December 20, 2020.
Even though these eligibility requirements are no longer required but you could still be greeted with the required pop-up while you are certifying your work hours. In this case, you can enter “COVID19” into the box in order to skip the requirement to search for work.
Extended unemployment benefits in Florida
Recently, the DEO declared that if the unemployment rate rises above 5 percent during the third quarter of 2018, it will offer benefits for extended work weeks. The extended benefit week would start beginning in the month of January 2021. The Department further stated that it determines the state’s amount of weeks of Reemployment Assistance, based on the third calendar year quarter’s unemployment rate.
DEO is believed to provide an extended period of six weeks beginning in the month of December. In general, Florida offers twelve weeks of unemployment benefits. If you have longer benefits, the timeframe is set at a maximum of 23 weeks.
Who Qualifies for Extended Unemployment Benefits in Florida?
To be eligible for extra unemployment payments, you have to complete the payment you received through Reemployment Assistance and the Pandemic Emergency Compensation program. If you’ve already completed the FEUC advantages, you may apply to PUA benefits. Program for Unemployment Assistance because extended benefits haven’t been released yet.
It is important to note that the Department is currently establishing processes to release these benefits as quickly as is possible. Once the Extended Benefits have been rolled out are available, the Department will reach out to the eligible to ensure that they are getting benefits from the program.
The Latest Updates on Benefits for Unemployed In The State
The Department of Economic Opportunity has clarified several aspects of unemployment benefits that the state provides. Let’s take an overview of a few of the details.
1. Overpayment
If you’ve been overpaid ensure that you do not use the extra cash. This is due to:
- The Department might require you to return it.
- The Department can take the amount out of future benefits in order to pay for the difference
Be aware it is likely that DEO will notify you in the event that it suspects an overpayment.
2. Returning To Work
If you’ve started taking the job, you are able to be able to continue to claim benefits for the time you were not employed. If you have an entire week that is overlapping with the time you began working and you are claiming benefits, you must state that you were employed and earned a wage during that week.
If you’ve taken on employment that is full-time or you have received more than $275 in wages gross during the week of overlap in which you worked, you won’t be eligible for benefits during this week. If you’ve made less than $275 in earnings and you are eligible for benefits.
3. Retracting Unemployment Claims
The Department has announced the backdating of unemployment claims. For backdating your regular claim, you must contact the Department by calling 833-FL-APPLY (1-833-352- 759). If you’re a PUA beneficiary, you do take no additional steps. You will be backdated automatically according to your complete claim which is a record of when you were employed.
Be aware that the Department is expected to do a fact-finding investigation to determine your request for a date is correct in the event of backdating claims. It is crucial to be aware that backdating regular claims could cause an overpayment, which the Department will recuperate by subtracting this amount out of your PEUC.
Be sure to check your email and CONNECT inbox, to make sure you don’t be late for announcements from DEO.
4. Account is Blocked
Your account might be revoked or put on hold if there are any identity verification problems. You can contact the officials in the legislative office with the Claimant ID and request to open your account.
Closing Thoughts
Don’t worry if you haven’t yet received benefits. The Department could take a while because of the volume of applications, but they are sure to pay you as long as you are eligible for it. If you’ve already exhausted benefits, you can sit and wait for the benefits to be extended when you are looking for a job.