IMPORTANT INFORMATION: If you have already applied for Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits, refer to our step-by-step chart for what to expect through the course of your claim for receiving benefit payments as long as you’re eligible.
As part of the federal CARES Act, the federal government has approved funding for additional UI benefits to workers impacted by COVID 19, including the self-employed. The EDD has received only overarching information from the U.S. Department of Labor but needs further details to finish building the programming for implementing these changes.
Visit this page for more details on these provisions as they become available: the additional $600 on top of the current weekly benefit amount, a new 13-week extension of benefits paid for by the federal government when someone exhausts their regular UI claim, and a brand new Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program which will help the self-employed. The EDD is working quickly with state partners to set up this new program as we await final guidance from the federal government.
For help completing the application, call your local America’s Job Center of CaliforniaSM to schedule a phone appointment with an EDD representative.
It takes at least three weeks to process a claim for unemployment benefits and issue payment to most eligible workers. We appreciate your patience.
Federal funds are available to get you back to work quickly, including supportive services for basic needs, such as housing, child care, and transportation costs. For more information, visit COVID-19 Additional Funds for Workers and Businesses.
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