In accordance with Governor Brian Kemp and Commissioner Mark Butler`s Re-Employment and Economic Recovery Plan, Georgia will no longer participate in federal unemployment programs passed by the CARES Act and the U.S. Rescue Plan Act as of June 27, 2021. These programs include Federal Pandemic Unemployment Benefit (FPUC), Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Benefit (PEUC) and Mixed Unemployment Benefit (MEUC). The last week payable for these programs was the week ending June 26, 2021. All eligible payments under any of these federal programs for weekends by June 26, 2021 will continue to be processed and remitted to eligible individuals. See joint press release The AUP program offered unemployment benefits to those who are not normally eligible for up to 79 weeks. These include the self-employed, gig workers, 1099 independent contractors, church employees, employees of non-profit organizations, or people with limited work histories who are not eligible for state unemployment benefits. As of June 27, 2021, the State of Georgia will no longer participate in the AUP program. The last weekend date payable for PUA benefits was June 26, 2021.Step 1: The person submits a regular state unemployment claim. An applicant receives 2 emails – one indicating that the application has been received and the other indicating that the application has been processed. Individuals who have already applied to the GDOL and have determined that they are not eligible for state unemployment benefits and may be eligible for benefits under this program do NOT need to resubmit a regular state application. Once the development of the new federal CPA program is complete, these individuals will be identified and will receive an email notification with a link to the application or an email with information about the UPA application process.

The MEUC program is currently under development and updates on the application and submission of documents will be published once the program has been implemented. CEME benefits cannot be paid until applicants provide proof of their income and this income has been verified. Step 2: The person receives a benefit assessment letter indicating whether an applicant has sufficient wages to determine a valid right to regular unemployment from the state. If this is the case, an individual receives a second assessment letter (decision of the applicant reviewer) informing them if government benefits are approved or denied. Step 3: Individuals who are not eligible for government unemployment benefits will receive an email notification with a link to the application or find a link to the PUA application on their My UI portal. Step 4: The person completes the PUA application and submits it for processing. An email will be sent confirming the processing of the application and informing the applicant of the date on which they can begin certifying the benefits. The email also includes a link to certification and provides a secure email address for sending employment and payroll documents for the tax year january 1 to December 31, 2019. Applicants must certify (request payment) for all eligible weeks since their store closed due to COVID-19.

A weekly determination amount is set and the applicant receives a letter of assessment of puA benefits by mail indicating the weekly amount of benefits. If a claimant is able to make a valid claim, they will receive a determination letter from the AUP claims examiner informing them if benefits will be approved or denied. What it is: $300 in weekly additional benefits for all types of unemployment benefits. These include the self-employed, gig workers, 1099 independent contractors, church employees, employees of 501C3 nonprofit organizations, or people with limited work histories who are not eligible for state unemployment benefits. The GDOL has changed its current online application for unemployment benefits and added new questions to better identify who may be eligible. These individuals must be determined that they are not eligible for government benefits before being assessed for federal PUA benefits. How it changes: As of June 27, 2021, PUA will no longer be available in Georgia. All benefit entitlements filed for weeks of unemployment ending before June 27, 2021 include PUA benefits if a person is eligible. However, applicants may have the right to reconsider a rejected APU application on the basis of permissible broad grounds under the Continuing Assistance to Unemployed Workers Act 2020 (Continued Assistance Act). PuA is only payable for weeks when a person is unemployed, partially unemployed, or unable or unavailable due to COVID-19.

If an applicant did not initially meet the eligibility requirements in effect at the time of the application, they can now request a reconsideration based on the provisions of the Continued Assistance Act. An applicant`s eligibility for a re-examination is based on the effective date of the initial APPLICATION for an APU. A link to the exam request will only be placed on a candidate`s My User Interface portal if they can be eligible for a new exam. The applicant would select Request a Reconsideration of Eligibility to the Refused UPA to submit their application. Once the application is processed, the applicant will receive information with instructions for the next steps. The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 was signed into law on March 11, 2021 to extend unemployment benefits for the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), and Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) programs until September 6, 2021. In accordance with Governor Brian Kemp and Commissioner Mark Butler`s Re-Employment and Economic Recovery Plan, Georgia will no longer participate in federal unemployment programs passed by the CARES Act and the U.S. Rescue Plan Act as of June 27, 2021.

FpUC will remain a weekly supplement of $300 for weeks from January 2, 2021 to June 26, 2021 and will be subject to deductions for federal and state withholding taxes, family allowances, and overpayment recoveries. When an applicant`s benefit year ends, they must reapply individually. A benefit year is the 52-week period that begins on the Sunday of the week in which a new claim is made. At the end of this period, claimants must reapply for benefits and report additional work history, including time, part-time, self-employment or W-2 work. Once the new regular unemployment insurance application has been processed, applicants who cannot prove a valid claim will be reinstated in the appropriate federal CARES Act program so that the new extensions can be applied. The State Extended Benefits (SEB) program has ended. By law, the SEB program is made available for payment in a state where the state`s 13-week insured unemployment rate (IUR) is above 5.0%. The Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) has been informed by the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) that Georgia`s 13-week IUR has fallen below the 5.0% threshold for the SEB program to be available for payments. Therefore, the last weekend date payable was February 6, 2021. All eligible payments for weekends ending after February 6, 2021 are no longer payable under the SEB program. Applicants who are subsequently deemed eligible for the weekend(s) no later than 6 February 2021 will receive SEB for those weeks.

The Continued Assistance Act, which came into force on December 27, 2020, provided for an additional 11 weeks of Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Benefit (APC) for eligible individuals. The additional benefits were only paid for the weeks that ended with a phase-out period from January 2, 2021 to March 13, 2021. The exit period allowed for the continuation of PEUC payments to individuals who had a PEUC balance after the week ended March 13, 2021 and who continued to meet the eligibility criteria. SeB applicants who remained unemployed or short-time working after the end of the week on 6 February 2021 and who were still eligible were extended for an additional 11 weeks compared to their previous PEUC application and received the PEUC again. These include the self-employed, gig workers, 1,099 independent contractors, church employees, employees of non-profit organizations, or people with limited work experience who are not eligible for government unemployment benefits. The PEUC, under the CAA, provided for an extension of regular unemployment insurance benefits. This extension added 24 weeks of benefits at the end of regular unemployment benefits for eligible individuals. Applicants were potentially eligible if they were unemployed between March 29, 2020 and March 13, 2021 and had exhausted regular state benefits after July 1, 2019. Individuals must not have been eligible for state or federal benefits and must have been able to work and be available.

.