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Michigan Unemployment Benefits

File online
You may file a claim for unemployment benefits in Michigan on the Internet at Michigan.gov.

File by phone:
To file an unemployment insurance benefit claim in Michigan, call MARVIN toll-free at 1-866-638-3993.

Eligibility

When you phone MARVIN, you will be asked about your eligibility for the two calendar weeks that ended on the Saturday before your scheduled call-in day. If you are filing your continued claims by mail, you must answer the eligibility questions on your certification-by-mail form.

You must meet the following requirements every week unless they are waived:

1. Certify for benefits in a timely manner. Certify by calling MARVIN bi-weekly or sending in your certification form during the week following the week(s) you are claiming. If you do not, your payment may be held up or you may lose your benefits. Even if you must serve a requalification period or are protesting a denial of benefits, you should keep reporting as instructed.
2. Register for work. When you file your application for unemployment benefits, you must register for work by filing a resume application at a Michigan Works! Agency service center, unless this requirement is waived by the UA. The service center will do all it can to help you find employment. You can call 1-80-285-WORKS for the service center nearest to you.
3. If selected for the Profiling/Reemployment Services Program, report and participate as agreed upon.
4. Seek work. You must try to find a job yourself. Filing an application with a Michigan Works! Agency service center is not enough. If a person in your line of work usually finds a job by going in person to an employer's plant, place of business or employment office, registering with a union, answering help wanted ads, taking Civil Service examinations for government jobs, sending resumes or by any other method, then you are expected to do the same things to find work. If the chances of finding a job in your occupation are no good, you should look for other work compatible with your experience, training and earnings. The longer you are unable to find work in your regular occupation, the more you should look for work in other lines, and the more willing you should be to accept a job that pays less. Keep a log of places that contacted you for work, including the date contacted, address, phone number and person to whom you spoke.
5. Be able to work. You must be physically and mentally able to work full-time. You must be able to do the kind of work that you did in the past or other work that is in line with your experience, training and education.
6. Be available for work. You must be ready and willing to take a full-time job on any shift during which your work is ordinarily performed. If not, you should answer "no" when MARVIN asks you if you were available or when you respond on your certification forms.
7. Be unemployed. This means that you did not work at all during the week(s) for which you are claiming benefits, or, if you worked part-time, your total earnings were less than 1.5 times your weekly unemployment benefit amount. People who work enough hours to be considered full-time by the employer are not unemployed and cannot receive benefits even if they earn less than 1.5 timees their weekly benefit amount.

File a claim

To apply for unemployment insurance benefits in Michigan, report to the nearest UA office the first week that you are unemployed or during the following week. Take all of the following to your UA branch office:

• Your social security card or some piece of identification that has both your name and social security number on it.

A piece of picture identification such as a drivers license or state ID. Any Form UA 1711, Unemployment Notice to Employee, if given to you by your employer(s) and wage information such as pay stubs or W-2 forms to help identify the employers you worked for and the wages they paid you.

The clerk will review with you your application and the quarterly wage information submitted by your former employer(s) to determine if you meet the minimum requirements to qualify for benefits. Be prepared to give evidence of the wages you were paid fo rthe last 18 months in case the branch office does not have wage information available from your former employer(s). Payroll check stubs or federal W-2 forms can provide that information.

Your application and the wage information will be used to determine whether you are eligible to receive unemployment benefits. If you are entitled to benefits based on your wages, you will be informed at the time you file your claim of your weekly benefit amount and the number of weeks you may be paid.

Under most circumstances, after filing your claim at a UA branch office, a monetary determination will be mailed the next day to you, and to each employer on your claim, confirming your weekly benefit amount and number of weeks you will be paid.

You, and the employer(s) you worked for in the first four of the last five calendar quarters ending before you filed your claim, will have the opportunity to respond to, and disagree with, any of this information. Your monetary determination may be delayed if you were paid wages by an out-of-state employer, a federal employee, a branch of the military or if you were separated from your last employer for any reason other than lack of work.

If you are not entitled to benefits, the determination will explain why. The clerk will provide you with either a MARVIN (claims-by-phone) packet or the claims-by-mail form booklet to allow you to certify to weeks of entitlement to benefits. You may be required to report to the branch office if you stop certifying by telephone or mail for any reason.

You may file an additional claim by mail on Form UA 1785-1 WR, Continued Certification by Mail, or Form UA 1564-2 WR, Additional Claim by Mail, if you were laid off since you last claimed benefits. If your separation was other than a layoff, or you stopped claiming for any other reason, you must report in person to the branch office.

There are four ways to qualify for unemployment insurance benefits in Michigan:

• You must have worked for one of more liable employers and have paid wages in two quarters of the first four of the last five completed quarters. Further, you must have been paid wages of at least $1,998.00 in one of the four quarters, and have been paid wages during the first four quarters totaling at least 1.5 times the wages paid in the highest quarter. or
• You must have been paid total wages in at least two quarters during the first four of the last five completed quarters that are at least $13,566.60 (20 times the state average weekly wage of $678.23) for claims beginning in the year 2000. or
• You must have worked for one or more liable employers and have paid wages in two quarters in the last four completed quarters. Further, you must have been paid wages of at least $1,998.00 in one of the four quarters, and have been paid wages during the last four completed quarters totaling at least 1.5 times the wages paid in the highest quarter. or
• You must have been paid total wages in at least two quarters during the last four completed calendar quarters. You must additionally satisfy the following earnings requirements:
  • You must have worked after your prior benefit year began; and
  • You must have been paid, by a liable employer, at least five times the last weekly benefit amount that was in effect in your prior benefit year.

After you file your claim, you are required to certify to your continued eligibility to collect benefits. You will file your bi-weekly claims using Michigan's Automated Response Voice Interactive Network (MARVIN). MARVIN allows you to communicate with UA's automated system by using a touch-touch phone. You can:

• Phone in to certify for continued weeks of unemployment.
• Ask for information about your benefit check, such as the date your last payment was made and the amount.

To certify, phone MARVIN during your appointment date and time or during that Thursday or Friday following your appointment date, between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. If you do not, it could delay or prevent payment for the week(s) you are claiming.

If you are eligible for the week(s) claimed, a check for those week(s) will be mailed to you.

Using MARVIN is the standard method of certifying. However, you may certify in person and you may be required to certify by mail if:

• You are receiving weekly Trade Readjustment Allowances
• You are in a training program approved by a Michigan Works! Agency service center
• You are claiming a flexible week
• You are self-employed and submitting a profit and/or loss statement or
• You are not able to use MARVIN for some other UA-approved reason

If any of the above applies to you, contact your branch office for instructions. Do not let anyone else certify for you. If anyone else certifies for you, both you and the other person may be prosecuted.

You will be required to file your new claim in person at your nearest UA branch office. You may also be instructed to report in person. Keep that appointment to protect your rights concerning your benefit entitlement. This may be because you are participating in a Profiling/Reemployment Services Program or a question regarding your claim requires a statement by you.

Note: Whether you use MARVIN or certify for benefits using a different method, checks are always made. The branch offices do not issue checks. Always read the special messages on the check stubs. They contain important notices, reminders and other information that might affect your benefits.

Source: Michigan Bureau of Workers' and Unemployment Compensation

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