Colorado Unemployment Benefits 2026: Amount, Eligibility & How to Apply
Laid off in Colorado? What the state pays, who qualifies, how to file with the CDLE, and what to do if you're denied. Benefit amounts, deadlines, and eligibility rules on this page are verified against official CDLE sources.
Last verified Sep 8, 2026
How much is Colorado unemployment, and how do you file?
Colorado pays $25 to $804 per week for up to 26 weeks in a benefit year, based on what you earned in your base period — not on what you were earning the day you were laid off. CDLE runs two calculations and pays whichever is higher: 60 percent of one twenty-sixth of your wages in the two highest consecutive base-period quarters, capped at 50 percent of the state average weekly wage; or 50 percent of one fifty-second of your total base-period wages, capped at 55 percent of the state average weekly wage.
File online with the CDLE as soon as you have worked your last day. There is a waiting week, so the first week you claim is not the first week you are paid. Plan on four to six weeks from filing to your first payment, and longer if there is a separation or wage issue to resolve. The first week you claim is an unpaid waiting week, so the first payment covers a later week.
- Estimated time
- 20–40 minutes to file
- Weekly benefit
- $25 to $804 per week
- What you need
- ID, last employer's details, work dates, bank details
File your Colorado claim
Apply through the official CDLE system — filing anywhere else is either a copy of the same form or a scam. Generally file in the state where you performed the work. If you worked across state lines or recently moved, interstate or combined-wage options may apply.
- CDLE Customer Service Center (1-800-388-5515 outside the Denver metro area)
- 303-318-9000
- When to file
- File as soon as you are unemployed or your hours drop below 32 a week. Processing typically takes four to six weeks because CDLE contacts every employer from the past 18 months, so filing early is the single biggest thing you control.
Quick facts: Colorado unemployment benefits (2026)
Structured reference fields. Amounts and exact rules change over time and vary by your situation — every sourced row links to the official CDLE page it was read from.
Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE)
$804 per week maximum (range $25–$804, effective Jul 1, 2026), based on your base-period wages.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with CDLEUp to 26 weeks — Colorado pays 13 to 26 weeks, and your total is capped at the lesser of one-third of your base-period wages or 26 times your weekly amount.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with CDLEThe first week of a Colorado claim is an unpaid waiting week. You must still request payment for it and meet every weekly requirement, or the waiting week is never credited and later payments stay blocked.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with CDLEEvery week. Request payment every week in MyUI+ or by phone at 303-813-2800 (1-888-550-2800 outside the Denver metro area), including while your claim is pending and while an appeal is open. The weekly deadline is 10 p.m. on Saturday — miss it and your claim moves to inactive status, which stops payments until you reopen it.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with CDLEYes. You must complete and document work-search activities every week and report them when you request payment; CDLE recommends at least five activities a week. You also register for work with Connecting Colorado when instructed, and CDLE can audit your records for two years.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with CDLE20 calendar days from the date the Notice of Determination was mailed
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with CDLEUnemployment benefits are taxable by both the federal government and Colorado. You can have taxes withheld from each payment or pay them later, but you may switch between those options only once during a claim. CDLE posts your Form 1099-G in MyUI+ by the end of January.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with CDLEUnder the Colorado Wage Act, wages are due immediately when your employer discharges you. If the payroll unit is offsite or closed, the employer has until six hours into its next workday, or 24 hours if the payroll function is offsite, to get you paid.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with CDLEColorado treats earned vacation pay as wages, so accrued, unused vacation must be paid out at separation and a policy that forfeits it is unenforceable. Paid sick leave under the Healthy Families and Workplaces Act does not have to be paid out.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with CDLEColorado has no mini-WARN law. Only the federal WARN Act applies, which generally requires 60 days' written notice for a plant closing or mass layoff at employers with 100 or more employees.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with CDLESep 8, 2026
Who qualifies for unemployment in Colorado?
CDLE reviews three things: how much you earned in the 18 months before you filed, why you are no longer working, and whether you are able and available for work each week. Colorado also contacts every employer you worked for in the past 18 months, which is why processing routinely takes four to six weeks.
1. You earned enough during the base period
To qualify on wages, all of the following must be true:
- You earned at least $2,500 in Colorado wages during the base period, reported on a W-2 by an employer that withheld taxes.
- Your base-period wages are at least 40 times your weekly benefit amount, or $2,500, whichever is greater.
- If you worked in more than one state, you can add out-of-state wages to a Colorado claim only if you also have Colorado wages in the base period.
What is the "base period"?
Your base period is four of the last five completed calendar quarters before the start date of your claim.
In plain terms: the quarter you file in does not count because it is not finished, and neither does the one just before it. File in October 2026 and CDLE builds the claim on roughly July 2025 through June 2026 — recent work may not show up in your weekly amount unless the alternate base period applies.
Alternate base period
If you did not earn at least $2,500 during the standard base period, CDLE can use an alternate base period made up of the most recent four completed calendar quarters, as long as you had wages in that period.
2. You lost the job through no fault of your own
You must have lost the job through no fault of your own — a layoff, a cut in hours, or a reduction in pay unrelated to performance. Quitting can qualify with good cause connected to the work, such as unsafe conditions, and Colorado also protects people who left because of domestic violence, stalking, or sexual assault. A discharge for misconduct disqualifies you.
A layoff, a position elimination, and a reduction in force all sit squarely inside this test. If your employer contests the claim and calls it something else, that dispute is decided in the appeal process below — not by whichever word appears on your separation paperwork. The distinction matters enough to be worth understanding before the hearing: laid off vs fired, and why the label changes your claim.
3. You are able to work and available for work
Each week you request payment, you must be mentally and physically able to work, available to accept new work immediately, legally authorized to work, and actively looking unless you are job or union attached. You also have to be working fewer than 32 hours and earning less than your weekly benefit amount.
How much will you get? Amounts and duration
Colorado does not pay a flat rate. Your weekly amount comes out of a formula applied to your base-period wages, then it is capped.
Weekly minimum
$25
Weekly maximum
$804
as of Jul 1, 2026
Maximum duration
26 weeks
current maximum; scales by rule
How your weekly amount is calculated
CDLE runs two calculations and pays whichever is higher: 60 percent of one twenty-sixth of your wages in the two highest consecutive base-period quarters, capped at 50 percent of the state average weekly wage; or 50 percent of one fifty-second of your total base-period wages, capped at 55 percent of the state average weekly wage.
Colorado pays 13 to 26 weeks. Your maximum benefit amount is the lesser of one-third of your total base-period wages or 26 times your weekly benefit amount, so uneven earnings across the base period can cut the number of payable weeks well below 26.
Worked example
Say your two highest consecutive quarters were $15,000 each. The first formula gives $30,000 ÷ 26 = $1,153.85, times 60 percent, or about $692. If your total base-period wages were $52,000, the second formula gives $52,000 ÷ 52 = $1,000, times 50 percent, or $500. CDLE pays the higher figure, $692. Twenty-six weeks of that is $17,992, but one-third of $52,000 is $17,333 — the lower number — so you would draw about 25 weeks, not 26.
Colorado unemployment estimator
Rough estimate only. It applies the state's published formula, minimum and maximum to the wages you enter; the state agency's monetary determination sets your actual amount.
Only the states with a dependents allowance use this, and each defines a dependent narrowly (usually a child you mainly support, sometimes a non-working spouse) — not every household member.
Alabama (ADOL): $45 to $275 a week, for up to 14 weeks. Formula: 1/26 of the average of the two highest base-period quarters. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 1/3 of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
Alaska (AK DOLWD): $56 to $370 a week, up to $442 with dependents, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: Table: roughly 0.9%-2.2% of total base-period wages (statutory schedule), plus $24 per dependent (up to 3). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: $50 plus 25% of wages over $50 disregarded. Current indexed amount unconfirmed — verify before you rely on any figure.
Arizona (AZ DES): $229 to $320 a week, for up to 24 weeks. Formula: 1/25 of high-quarter wages. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: $160.49 disregarded (2026), then $ for $.
Arkansas (ADWS): $81 to $451 a week, for up to 12 weeks. Formula: 1/26 of the average of the four base-period quarters (i.e., ~1/104 of BPW). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 40% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
California (EDD): $40 to $450 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: Statutory table: approximately 1/23 to 1/26 of high-quarter wages (sliding). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: Greater of $25 or 25% of wages disregarded, then $ for $.
Colorado (CDLE): $25 to $804 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: Higher of (a) 60% of 1/26 of wages in the two highest consecutive quarters (capped at 50% of state AWW) or (b) 50% of 1/52 of BPW (capped at 55% of state AWW). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 50% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $ (Colorado 2024 law: 50% of WBA).
Connecticut (CT DOL): $44 to $721 a week, up to $796 with dependents, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/26 of the average of the two highest quarters, plus $15 per dependent (up to 5, capped at 75% of WBA). Waiting week: no. Part-time earnings: 1/3 of gross wages disregarded, then $ for $ (2024 change; includes holiday pay).
Delaware (DE DOL): $20 to $450 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/46 of total wages in the two highest quarters. Waiting week: no. Part-time earnings: Greater of $10 or 50% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
District of Columbia (DOES): $50 to $444 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/26 of high-quarter wages. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 1/3 of wages plus $50 disregarded, then $ for $.
Florida (FloridaCommerce): $32 to $275 a week, for up to 12 weeks. Formula: 1/26 of high-quarter wages. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 8 x federal minimum wage ($58) disregarded, then $ for $.
Georgia (GDOL): $55 to $365 a week, for up to 14 weeks. Formula: Sum of the two highest base-period quarters divided by 42; the statutory alternate (highest quarter / 21) applies only when the regular monetary test fails. Waiting week: no. Part-time earnings: $50 disregarded, then $ for $ (excludes jury pay).
Hawaii (DLIR): $5 to $868 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/21 of high-quarter wages. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: $150 disregarded, then $ for $.
Idaho (IDOL): $72 to $624 a week, for up to 21 weeks. Formula: 1/26 of high-quarter wages. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 50% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
Illinois (IDES): $51 to $628 a week, up to $859 with dependents, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 47% of the claimant's average weekly wage in the two highest quarters (= 0.47 x sum of 2 HQ / 26); plus 9% for a nonworking spouse or 17.3% for dependent child (of prior-2-HQ AWW). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 50% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
Indiana (IN DWD): $37 to $390 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 47% of average weekly wage in the base period (BPW/52 x 0.47). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: Flat $100 disregarded, then $ for $.
Iowa (IWD): $96 to $644 a week, up to $790 with dependents, for up to 16 weeks. Formula: 1/23 of high-quarter wages (0 dependents); 1/22 (1), 1/21 (2), 1/20 (3), 1/19 (4+); caps = 53%-65% of state AWW. Waiting week: no. Part-time earnings: 25% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $ (excludes jury pay).
Kansas (KDOL): $165 to $663 a week, for up to 16 weeks. Formula: 4.25% of high-quarter wages. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 25% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
Kentucky (KCC): $39 to $746 a week, for up to 16 weeks. Formula: 1.1923% of total base-period wages. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 20% of wages disregarded, then $ for $.
Louisiana (LWC): $35 to $282 a week, for up to 12 weeks. Formula: 1/25 of the average of the four base-period quarters, capped. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: Lesser of 50% of WBA or $50 disregarded, then $ for $. Current indexed amount unconfirmed — verify before you rely on any figure.
Maine (MDOL): $108 to $623 a week, up to $1,090 with dependents, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/22 of the average of the two highest quarters, plus $25 per dependent (capped at 75% of WBA). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: First $123 disregarded, then $ for $ (as of June 1, 2025). Current indexed amount unconfirmed — verify before you rely on any figure.
Maryland (MD DOL): $50 to $430 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: Statutory table ~1/24 of high-quarter wages, plus $8 per dependent (up to 5) not to exceed the max. Waiting week: no. Part-time earnings: $50 disregarded, then $ for $.
Massachusetts (DUA): $60 to $1,105 a week, up to $1,657 with dependents, for up to 30 weeks. Formula: 50% of average weekly wage (2 highest quarters / 26, or HQ/13 if wages in 2 or fewer quarters), plus $25 per dependent child (dependency allowance capped at 50% of WBA). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 1/3 of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
Michigan (UIA): $218 to $530 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 4.1% of high-quarter wages, plus $19.33 per dependent (up to 5); rising to $614 max and $26/dependent on Jan 1, 2027 (PA 2024). Waiting week: no. Part-time earnings: WBA reduced 50 cents per $1 earned; wages plus benefits cannot exceed 1.5 x WBA.
Minnesota (DEED): $37 to $948 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: Higher of 50% of average weekly wage in the base period (cap 66 2/3% of state AWW = $948) or 50% of average weekly wage in the high quarter (cap 43% of state AWW = $611). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: WBA reduced 50 cents for each $1 earned (excludes jury/National Guard/volunteer firefighter pay).
Mississippi (MDES): $30 to $235 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/26 of high-quarter wages. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: $40 disregarded, then $ for $.
Missouri (MO DES): $35 to $320 a week, for up to 20 weeks. Formula: 4% of the average of the two highest quarters. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: Greater of 20% of WBA or $20 disregarded, then $ for $ (disregard excludes termination/severance pay).
Montana (MT DLI): $238 to $805 a week, for up to 24 weeks. Formula: 1% of total base-period wages, or 1.9% of wages in the two highest quarters, whichever is greater. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 25% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $. Current indexed amount unconfirmed — verify before you rely on any figure.
Nebraska (NDOL): $70 to $582 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/2 of average weekly wage in the high quarter (= HQ/26). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 25% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
Nevada (DETR): $16 to $631 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/25 of high-quarter wages (cap 50% of state AWW). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 1/3 of wages disregarded, then $ for $. Current indexed amount unconfirmed — verify before you rely on any figure.
New Hampshire (NHES): $32 to $427 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: Statutory table: about 1%-1.1% of annual (base-period) wages. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 30% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
New Jersey (NJDOL): $186 to $905 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 60% of the claimant's average weekly wage, plus dependency allowance (7% for first dependent, 4% each for next two; max 15%), capped at 57% of state AWW. Waiting week: no. Part-time earnings: Greater of 20% of WBA or $5 disregarded, then $ for $.
New Mexico (NMDWS): $116 to $624 a week, up to $674 with dependents, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 53.5% of the average weekly wage in the high quarter (0.535 x HQ/13), plus $25 per dependent child (up to 50% of WBA / max 2 per DOL range). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 20% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $ (excludes jury pay).
New York (NYSDOL): $140 to $869 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/26 of high-quarter wages (1/25 if high-quarter wages are $3,575 or less). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: Hours-based: no reduction for up to 10 hours of work per week if earnings do not exceed the max WBA; benefits reduced in steps (75%/50%/25%) for 11-30 hours worked.
North Carolina (DES): $15 to $350 a week, for up to 12 weeks. Formula: Wages in the last two completed quarters of the base period divided by 52, capped at $350. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 20% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
North Dakota (JSND): $43 to $800 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/65 of the sum of the two highest quarters plus one-half of the third-highest quarter. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 60% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $. Current indexed amount unconfirmed — verify before you rely on any figure.
Ohio (ODJFS): $176 to $624 a week, up to $842 with dependents, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 50% of average weekly wage, up to a maximum that depends on dependency class (A: 0 deps, B: 1-2, C: 3+). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 20% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
Oklahoma (OESC): $16 to $649 a week, for up to 16 weeks. Formula: 1/23 of high-quarter wages. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: $100 disregarded, then $ for $.
Oregon (OED): $211 to $902 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1.25% of total base-period wages (min 15% / max 64% of state AWW). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: Greater of 1/3 of WBA or 10 x state minimum wage (~$163) disregarded, then $ for $.
Pennsylvania (PA L&I): $68 to $605 a week, up to $613 with dependents, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: Statutory rate table: approximately (4% of high-quarter wages + $2) x 0.98 (about 50% of full-time weekly wage), plus $5 for a dependent spouse or child and $3 for a second dependent (max $8). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: Greater of $21 or 30% of WBA disregarded (partial benefit credit), then $ for $.
Rhode Island (RI DLT): $82 to $777 a week, up to $971 with dependents, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 3.85% of the average of the two highest quarters (cap 57.5% of state AWW), plus greater of $15 or 5% of WBA per dependent (up to 5). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 50% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
South Carolina (SC DEW): $42 to $350 a week, for up to 20 weeks. Formula: 50% of the average weekly wage in the high quarter (= HQ/26), capped. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 25% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
South Dakota (SD DLR): $28 to $575 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/26 of high-quarter wages. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 1/4 of wages over $25 disregarded, then $ for $.
Tennessee (TDLWD): $55 to $325 a week, for up to 12 weeks. Formula: 1/26 of the average of the two highest quarters (statutory table), max $325. Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: Greater of $50 or 25% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
Texas (TWC): $75 to $605 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/25 of high-quarter wages (cap 47.6% of state AWW). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: Greater of $5 or 25% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
Utah (UT DWS): $47 to $806 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 1/26 of high-quarter wages minus $5 (cap 62.5% of state AWW). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 30% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
Vermont (VDOL): $94 to $757 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: Wages in the two highest quarters divided by 45 (cap 57% of state AWW). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 50% of gross wages disregarded, then $ for $. Current indexed amount unconfirmed — verify before you rely on any figure.
Virginia (VEC): $160 to $478 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: Statutory table: approximately 1/50 of wages in the two highest quarters (max $478 requires $18,900.01 in two quarters). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: $100 disregarded (2025 law), then $ for $.
Washington (ESD): $383 to $1,208 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 3.85% of the average of the two highest quarters (min 20% / max 63% of state AWW). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: 1/4 of wages over $5 disregarded, then $ for $.
West Virginia (WorkForce WV): $24 to $662 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: Wage-class table: 55% of 1/52 of the median wages in the worker's wage class (max frozen at $662 by 2024 legislation). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: $60 disregarded, then $ for $.
Wisconsin (WI DWD): $54 to $370 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 4% of high-quarter wages (statutory max $370). Waiting week: yes. Part-time earnings: First $30 disregarded plus 33% of wages over $30; WBA reduced by 67% of earnings above $30.
Wyoming (WY DWS): $48 to $671 a week, for up to 26 weeks. Formula: 4% of high-quarter wages (cap 55% of state AWW). Waiting week: no. Part-time earnings: 50% of WBA disregarded, then $ for $.
This is a rough estimate: it applies Colorado's published formula, minimum and maximum from the same data as this page to the wages you enter, and the CDLE monetary determination sets your actual amount. Comparing states, or laid off somewhere else? Open the full unemployment benefits estimator
Can you work part-time and get Colorado unemployment?
Reduced hours do not end a Colorado claim. You can work part time and still draw a payment, as long as you work fewer than 32 hours in the week and earn less than your weekly benefit amount. Colorado's earnings allowance is one of the most generous in the country: half your weekly amount.
The earnings allowance, and the math above it
CDLE disregards the first 50 percent of your weekly benefit amount that you earn in a week. Earnings above that reduce the payment dollar for dollar.
Take half your weekly benefit amount as the earnings allowance. Subtract that allowance from your gross earnings for the week, then subtract what is left from your weekly benefit amount. If you work 32 hours or more, or earn as much as your full weekly benefit amount, no payment is due for that week.
Worked example
- Weekly benefit amount (WBA)
- $600
- Earnings allowance (50% of WBA)
- $300
- Gross earnings that week
- $450
- Potential benefit for the week
- $450
On a $600 weekly benefit amount, the first $300 you earn — 50 percent — costs you nothing. Earnings of $450 are $150 above that allowance, so $600 minus $150 leaves $450 for the week. Earn $600 or work 32 hours or more in the same week and there is no payment for it.
What a part-time week does not excuse you from
Report every hour you worked and every dollar of gross wages you earned each time you request payment, even a single hour or a single dollar, and report it for the week you did the work rather than the week you were paid. Unreported earnings become an overpayment that CDLE recovers, sometimes from later benefits or tax refunds.
A reduced week is still a claim week. You must request payment on schedule, stay able and available for work, and complete and document your work-search activities. Part-time work does not lift the work-search requirement unless CDLE has waived it because you are job or union attached.
Not sure what your weekly benefit amount is yet? The CDLE determination is the figure that counts — for a rough, salary-based placeholder until it arrives, try the unemployment benefits estimator, then run the numbers above against it.
How to apply for Colorado unemployment (CDLE), step by step
Your claim starts with the week you file it — Colorado does not backdate to your last day of work — and it runs for a claim year. You can cancel a claim only within 12 calendar days of filing it, by phone.
Before you start: what you'll need
- Social Security number and a photo ID for identity verification.
- Pay stubs or other income records for the last 18 months.
- Legal name, address, and phone number of every employer from the last 18 months.
- The dates you worked for each employer and your rate of pay.
- The reason each job ended.
- Amount and dates of any severance payment.
- DD Form 214 member 4 for military service, or SF-8 and SF-50 for federal civilian service.
- Bank routing and account numbers if you want direct deposit.
The filing sequence
Create your MyUI+ account and file the claim
Go to cdle.colorado.gov/myui-plus, create an account, and start a new claim. The account stays valid for future claims, so keep the login even after this claim ends.
Verify your identity right away
CDLE asks for a photo of your ID and a selfie, or in-person verification at a USPS location. No payment is released until identity verification is complete, so do this the same day you file.
Report severance when you request payment
Severance is any payment your employer designates as a severance allowance for a period you may be unemployed — not your final paycheck and not pay for hours you worked. Report it when you request weekly payment; CDLE may follow up to decide whether it is deductible.
Register with Connecting Colorado as instructed
Register for work online at connectingcolorado.com, or in person at your local workforce center, when CDLE tells you to. It is a separate account from MyUI+ and a condition of eligibility.
Request payment every single week
Request payment weekly in MyUI+ or by phone at 303-813-2800, even while your claim is still being processed and even during an appeal. If you fail to request payment by 10 p.m. Saturday, your claim goes inactive.
Log your work-search activities before you certify
Complete and document your work-search activities each week — CDLE recommends at least five — and report them when you request payment. Keep the records for two years; audits reach back that far.
When the money actually arrives
Plan on four to six weeks from filing to your first payment, and longer if there is a separation or wage issue to resolve. The first week you claim is an unpaid waiting week, so the first payment covers a later week.
How you get paid
Direct deposit to a verified checking or savings account, or a U.S. Bank ReliaCard prepaid debit card. Claims filed by phone default to the debit card.
Keeping your benefits: payment requests and work search
Approval is not the finish line. Benefits stop for people who miss the filing window or cannot produce a work-search log, and a missed week is far harder to recover than it is to claim on time.
Request payment every week
Request payment every week in MyUI+ or by phone at 303-813-2800 (1-888-550-2800 outside the Denver metro area), including while your claim is pending and while an appeal is open. The weekly deadline is 10 p.m. on Saturday — miss it and your claim moves to inactive status, which stops payments until you reopen it.
Work search: registration, minimums, and records
Deadline: Register for work online with Connecting Colorado, or in person at your local workforce center, when CDLE instructs you to.
CDLE recommends completing at least five work-search activities each week, and you report the activities you completed every time you request payment. Approved training can reduce the number required; job-attached and union-attached claimants may have the requirement waived for up to 16 weeks.
What counts:
- Applying or interviewing for a job you are reasonably qualified for.
- Contacting an employer you reasonably believe may have suitable work, to ask whether they are hiring.
- Being referred to a job by a state workforce center, or taking an exam required for a job application.
- Adding a resume to an online job board, using online career tools, or creating a profile on a professional networking site.
- Participating in reemployment services at a workforce center, job-related education or skills development, or networking events in your occupation.
For every activity, document the employer's name, address, phone, and email, the person you contacted and their title, what action you took, how you applied, and the type of work you were seeking. CDLE can audit your claim up to two years after it starts, and weeks you cannot document can be denied and clawed back.
What to do if your Colorado claim is denied
A denial is a first decision, not a final one. Employers contest claims routinely, and plenty of denials are reversed at the hearing — but only if you appeal inside the window.
Appeal deadline
20 days
Your appeal must be received within 20 calendar days of the mailing date on the Notice of Determination. If the twentieth day falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day. Submitting through MyUI+ is the fastest route and gets the appeal processed sooner.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with CDLEHow to file your appeal
- Online in MyUI+, by opening the Notice of Determination and filing the appeal there.
- By mail to Unemployment Appeals Section, PO Box 8988, Denver, CO 80201-8988.
- By fax to 303-318-9248, including the front and back of the determination form.
- Supporting documents go in separately through the CDLE appeals documentation form, not as the appeal itself.
What to include
- A clear explanation of what you disagree with and why.
- The Notice of Determination you are appealing, attached if you mail or fax it.
- Any address change and interpreter needs.
- Your signature and the date.
The hearing, and what comes after
After the appeal is received, CDLE schedules a hearing and mails you the date and time. A hearing officer takes testimony from you and your employer and issues a written decision.
If you disagree with the hearing officer's decision, the next step is the Industrial Claim Appeals Office at 303-318-8133, and after that the Colorado Court of Appeals. The deadline for each level is printed on the decision.
Do not stop filing while you appeal. Keep requesting payment every week during the entire appeal. CDLE pays only weeks you requested on time — a decision in your favor cannot recover weeks you never claimed.
Can you get unemployment in Colorado if you quit?
Quitting is not an automatic no. Every state disqualifies a voluntary quit without good cause; what counts as good cause is where states differ — and good cause only clears the separation question, not the weekly able-available-and-searching requirements.
If you quit: Colorado's good-cause rule
You may qualify if you left your last job and can show it was for a good cause related to the job, such as unsafe working conditions, or if you are unemployed because you or your child were a victim of domestic violence, stalking or sexual assault. Leaving for personal reasons unrelated to work generally does not qualify.
Two separate hurdles
- Good cause may avoid the separation disqualification for a voluntary quit.
- You must still meet the ongoing requirements every week you claim: able to work, available for work, and actively seeking it, plus the base-period wage or hours test.
Reasons the Colorado page names: Unsafe working conditions, Domestic violence or stalking.
Named as not enough on their own: Unhappy with the job, manager or pay.
Quitting makes a claim harder, not impossible. File anyway — the agency decides.
Source: agency page · last verified 2026-09-07
Severance, final pay, and PTO in Colorado
These three decide when your unemployment money starts and how much cash you have to bridge the gap. They are separate rules and they interact.
How severance affects your claim
Colorado severance delays benefits rather than reducing the total: CDLE allocates the payment to the weeks after your separation at your normal weekly wage, and you are not paid for the weeks it covers. Severance means money your employer designates as a severance allowance for a period you may be unemployed — not your final paycheck and not pay for hours worked. Report it when you request weekly payment; CDLE may contact you for details before deciding whether it is deductible.
Report it either way. An unreported payment that the agency finds later becomes an overpayment you have to pay back, sometimes with a penalty — a far worse outcome than a delayed start. For how the two interact in general, and how timing a severance payment changes it, see severance and unemployment.
Final paycheck timing
Under the Colorado Wage Act, wages are due immediately when your employer discharges you. If the payroll unit is offsite or closed, the employer has until six hours into its next workday, or 24 hours if the payroll function is offsite, to get you paid.
Check the figure before you cash it — unpaid commission, an expense reimbursement, or a promised bonus is easiest to raise while the separation is still fresh. The final paycheck calculator works out what you should be owed and when it is due.
Unused PTO and vacation
Colorado treats earned vacation pay as wages, so accrued, unused vacation must be paid out at separation and a policy that forfeits it is unenforceable. Paid sick leave under the Healthy Families and Workplaces Act does not have to be paid out.
Layoff notice: WARN and state law
Colorado has no mini-WARN law. Only the federal WARN Act applies, which generally requires 60 days' written notice for a plant closing or mass layoff at employers with 100 or more employees.
Whether your layoff should have come with notice — and what happens if it did not — is set out in full in the Colorado WARN Act guide, along with the notices employers have actually filed in the state.
Are Colorado unemployment benefits taxable?
Federal and state tax both apply
Unemployment benefits are taxable by both the federal government and Colorado. You can have taxes withheld from each payment or pay them later, but you may switch between those options only once during a claim. CDLE posts your Form 1099-G in MyUI+ by the end of January.
Benefits arrive with no tax taken out unless you ask for withholding. Choosing 10% federal tax withholding can reduce the chance of an unexpected tax bill, but whether withholding makes sense depends on your individual tax situation — your other income for the year, your filing status, and any credits you expect. Confirm your own situation with a tax professional.
Colorado unemployment FAQ
Where do I file for unemployment in Colorado?+
How much unemployment will I get in Colorado?+
Is there a waiting week for Colorado unemployment?+
Do I have to look for work to keep benefits in Colorado?+
Are Colorado unemployment benefits taxable?+
When do I get my final paycheck and is unused PTO paid out in Colorado after a layoff?+
Does Colorado have its own mini-WARN layoff-notice law?+
How long does it take to get Colorado unemployment benefits?+
What is the base period for Colorado unemployment?+
What do I do if my Colorado unemployment claim is denied?+
Does severance pay stop unemployment benefits in Colorado?+
Can I get unemployment in Colorado if I was fired or quit?+
How often do I have to certify or request payment in Colorado?+
Can I work part-time and still get Colorado unemployment?+
How much can I earn before Colorado unemployment benefits are reduced?+
What is the maximum Colorado unemployment benefit in 2026?+
Can you get unemployment in Colorado if you quit your job?+
Filed your claim? Here's what to do next
Unemployment replaces a fraction of a paycheck. The next hour is better spent on the things that actually decide how long your runway lasts.
Layoff Runway Calculator
Combine your CO benefit, severance, and savings into a months-of-runway number.
Open toolUnemployment Benefits Estimator
Sanity-check the weekly amount before your determination arrives.
Open toolCOBRA vs Marketplace Calculator
Health coverage is the second bill to solve, and COBRA is rarely the cheapest option.
Open toolSeverance Pay Calculator
See what a severance offer is worth before you sign the release.
Open toolOfficial Colorado sources
Benefit amounts, deadlines, and eligibility rules on this page are verified against official Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE) sources. Rules and amounts change — check the source before you rely on a number.
Nearby states
Colorado WARN noticesRelated resources
Educational content only. LayoffNext does not provide legal, financial, tax, insurance, employment, immigration, unemployment, investment, or mental health advice. Always consult a licensed professional or official government source for guidance specific to your situation.
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