Michigan Unemployment Benefits 2026: Amount, Eligibility & How to Apply
Laid off in Michigan? What the state pays, who qualifies, how to file with the UIA, and what to do if you're denied. Benefit amounts, deadlines, and eligibility rules on this page are verified against official UIA sources.
Last verified Sep 8, 2026
How much is Michigan unemployment, and how do you file?
Michigan pays $218 to $530 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. The UIA takes 4.1 percent of your highest-earning base-period quarter. That is your weekly benefit amount, and the UIA adds $19.33 per dependent for up to five dependents — but the total is capped at $530 for 2026.
File online with the UIA as soon as you have worked your last day. Michigan has no unpaid waiting week, so eligible benefits can start from your first properly filed week. The UIA cannot release the first payment on a new claim until 10 days after the mail date of your Monetary Determination, so plan on a few weeks from filing to first money. Once the claim is running, payments generally follow within a couple of business days of a completed certification.
- Estimated time
- 20–40 minutes to file
- Weekly benefit
- $218 to $530 per week
- What you need
- ID, last employer's details, work dates, bank details
File your Michigan claim
Apply through the official UIA 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.
- UIA Customer Service
- 1-866-500-0017
- When to file
- File as soon as you are unemployed or your hours are cut — ideally the same week. The claim cannot reach back past the Sunday of the week you file.
Quick facts: Michigan 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 UIA page it was read from.
Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA)
$530 per week maximum (range $218–$530, effective Jan 1, 2026), based on your base-period wages.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with UIAUp to 26 weeks — Michigan restored the 26-week maximum from 20 weeks under a 2024 law, but individual claims still run 14 to 26 weeks because the total is capped at 43 percent of your base-period wages
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with UIAMichigan does not hold back a waiting week. Your first eligible week is payable once the UIA has issued your monetary determination and cleared any separation issue.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with UIAEvery two weeks. Every two weeks you must certify that you are still unemployed and report your work search. Online in MiWAM you can certify any day during your certification week, 24 hours a day. By phone with MARVIN at 1-866-638-3993 you certify on the day and time assigned by the last two digits of your Social Security number, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with UIAYes. Since July 2026 you must complete three valid work search activities every week you claim and report them to the UIA when you certify — your certification is not complete, and nothing gets paid, until the work search details are in.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with UIA30 days from the mail date of the determination
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with UIAUnemployment benefits are taxable income for both federal and Michigan purposes and must be reported on both returns. Withholding is voluntary — you can choose to have federal and state tax withheld from each payment, or choose not to. Each January the UIA posts a Form 1099-G in your MiWAM account showing what you were paid and what was withheld.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with UIAAfter a layoff or discharge, Michigan requires your employer to pay all wages earned and due as soon as the amount can with due diligence be determined — in practice, the regularly scheduled payday for the pay period in which you were separated (MCL 408.475).
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with UIAMichigan does not require vacation or PTO payout by statute. Under the Payment of Wages and Fringe Benefits Act, fringe benefits are owed at separation only in accordance with a written contract or written policy — and a clearly written forfeiture-at-termination policy is enforceable.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with UIANo Michigan mini-WARN law — only the federal WARN Act applies, which generally requires 60 days' written notice of a covered plant closing or mass layoff at employers with 100 or more employees, given to the workers, to LEO Workforce Development, and to the local government.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with UIASep 8, 2026
Who qualifies for unemployment in Michigan?
Michigan tests three separate things: whether you earned enough in the base period, why the job ended, and whether you are able and available for work each week you certify. A layoff clears the second test — but Michigan runs three different wage tests before it gives up on the first, which is worth knowing if a first denial says you did not earn enough.
1. You earned enough during the base period
To qualify on wages under the standard test, all three of the following must be true:
- You have wages in at least two calendar quarters of the base period.
- Your highest-quarter wages are at least $3,589.
- Your total base-period wages are at least one and a half times your highest-quarter wages.
What is the "base period"?
Your standard base period is the first four of the previous five completed calendar quarters before the week you file your claim.
In plain terms: the UIA skips the quarter you are in and the one just before it, then measures the four quarters before that. A claim filed in September 2026 rests on wages from roughly April 2025 through March 2026 — which is why the raise you got this spring may not move your weekly amount.
Alternate base period
Yes, and Michigan actually has two fallbacks. If the standard base period does not qualify you, the UIA uses the alternate base period — the four most recently completed calendar quarters. If that also fails, the UIA tests the Alternate Earnings Qualifier, which asks only that you had wages in two quarters and total base-period wages of at least 20 times the state average weekly wage.
2. You lost the job through no fault of your own
You must be out of work or working reduced hours through no fault of your own. A layoff, a plant closing, or a discharge for something short of misconduct qualifies. Quitting qualifies only with good cause attributable to the employer, and the UIA takes statements from both you and your former employer before issuing a determination.
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
For each week you certify, you must be physically and mentally able to work, available to accept full-time suitable work, and actively seeking employment. Refusing an offer of suitable work, being out of the area, or restricting your availability can make an otherwise good week ineligible.
How much will you get? Amounts and duration
Michigan 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
$218
Weekly maximum
$530
as of Jan 1, 2026
Maximum duration
26 weeks
current maximum; scales by rule
How your weekly amount is calculated
The UIA takes 4.1 percent of your highest-earning base-period quarter. That is your weekly benefit amount, and the UIA adds $19.33 per dependent for up to five dependents — but the total is capped at $530 for 2026.
Your maximum benefit amount for the benefit year is 26 times your weekly benefit amount or 43 percent of your base-period wages, whichever is less. That 43 percent cap is why Michigan claims run anywhere from 14 to 26 weeks even though the statutory maximum is 26. A 2024 law restored the 26-week maximum from 20 weeks, and the maximum weekly rate rises again to $614 with $26 per dependent on January 1, 2027.
Worked example
If your highest base-period quarter was $9,000, your weekly amount is 4.1% × $9,000 = $369. Twenty-six weeks of that is $9,594. If your total base-period wages were $20,000, the 43 percent cap is $8,600 — the smaller figure — so you would draw about 23 weeks, not 26.
Michigan 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 Michigan's published formula, minimum and maximum from the same data as this page to the wages you enter, and the UIA 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 Michigan unemployment?
Reduced hours are not the same as no job, and Michigan pays a partial benefit when you are working less than full time. The mechanic is a 50-cent offset plus a ceiling on what you can collect in total for the week.
The earnings allowance, and the math above it
There is no flat dollar amount that Michigan ignores. Instead, every dollar of gross earnings reduces your payment by 50 cents — and your earnings plus your benefit together can never exceed one and a half times your weekly benefit amount.
Halve your gross earnings for the week and subtract that from your weekly benefit amount. Then check the ceiling: if earnings plus that benefit would exceed 1.5 times your weekly benefit amount, the payment is trimmed to bring the total back to the ceiling. Earn 1.5 times your weekly amount or more and nothing is payable for that week.
Worked example
- Weekly benefit amount (WBA)
- $400
- Combined ceiling (1.5 × WBA)
- $600
- Gross earnings that week
- $200
- Benefit for the week
- $300
On a $400 weekly benefit amount, $200 of earnings cuts the payment by half of that — $100 — so $400 becomes $300. Then check the ceiling: $200 earned plus $300 paid is $500, which is under the $600 limit, so the full $300 is payable. Earn $600 or more in that week and there is no payment for it.
What a part-time week does not excuse you from
Report gross earnings before deductions for the week you did the work, not the week you are paid, and report your hours. Part-time shifts, temporary assignments, contract work, self-employment, and cash jobs all count. Unreported earnings become an overpayment, usually with penalties.
A partial payment does not relax anything else. You still have to be able and available for full-time work, complete and report three work search activities for the week, and certify on schedule. Part-time work does not reduce the three-activity requirement.
Not sure what your weekly benefit amount is yet? The UIA 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 Michigan unemployment (UIA), step by step
Your claim starts on the Sunday of the week you file it, not the day you lost the job. To have the claim treated as timely, file by the Friday of the week after your last day of work.
Before you start: what you'll need
- Your Social Security number.
- Your Michigan driver's license or state ID number.
- Your address, phone number, email address, and date of birth.
- The name, address, and phone number of every employer you worked for in the past 18 months.
- The first and last day you worked for each of those employers and the reason you are no longer there.
- Your gross earnings from each employer, by quarter.
- Your bank routing and account numbers if you want direct deposit.
- DD Form 214 if you served in the military, or Standard Form 8 if you worked for the federal government.
The filing sequence
Set up MILogin and file your claim in MiWAM
Go to Michigan.gov/UIA, sign in through MILogin, and file in the Michigan Web Account Manager. If you cannot file online, call UIA Customer Service at 1-866-500-0017. Your claim starts the Sunday of the week you file, so file by Friday of the week after your last day of work.
Report your severance and any other separation pay
Michigan treats severance as deductible income and reduces your weekly amount for the weeks your employer allocates it to. Report it when you file so the UIA can allocate it and send you a determination, instead of finding it later and billing you for an overpayment.
Register for work and start your weekly job search
Register for work services and start looking immediately — since July 2026 you must complete three valid work search activities every week you want to be paid, beginning with your very first claimed week.
Choose your payment method
In MiWAM, choose direct deposit to your bank or credit union — you will need the routing and account numbers — or the UIA debit card. Set this before your first certification so nothing sits waiting on a payment method.
Watch for your Monetary Determination
The UIA mails a Monetary Determination showing your weekly benefit amount and total entitlement. The first payment on a new claim is not released until 10 days after that determination's mail date, so read it as soon as it arrives and protest anything wrong within 30 days.
Certify every two weeks and report your work search
Certify in MiWAM on any day of your certification week, or by phone with MARVIN at 1-866-638-3993 on your assigned day and time. Your certification is not complete until you report your three work search activities — do not hang up on the phone system before you have given them.
When the money actually arrives
The UIA cannot release the first payment on a new claim until 10 days after the mail date of your Monetary Determination, so plan on a few weeks from filing to first money. Once the claim is running, payments generally follow within a couple of business days of a completed certification.
How you get paid
Direct deposit to a bank or credit union account, or a UIA-issued 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 two weeks
Every two weeks you must certify that you are still unemployed and report your work search. Online in MiWAM you can certify any day during your certification week, 24 hours a day. By phone with MARVIN at 1-866-638-3993 you certify on the day and time assigned by the last two digits of your Social Security number, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Work search: registration, minimums, and records
Deadline: Register for work services and create a job seeker account on Pure Michigan Talent Connect at MiTalent.org, or through your local Michigan Works! office, as soon as you file your claim — the three-activity requirement applies from your first claimed week.
Three valid work search activities for every week you want to be paid, reported to the UIA at the time you certify.
What counts:
- Applying for a job in person, online, by mail, or by email.
- Interviewing for a position.
- Creating an account and posting a résumé on a job search site such as MiTalent.org.
- Attending a job fair, a Michigan Works! workshop, or a reemployment services appointment.
- Contacting an employer directly to ask about openings, or attending a professional networking event.
Save every confirmation email, application receipt, and interview record. The UIA asks for documented proof of the activities you reported, and a week you cannot support can be denied after the fact and recovered as an overpayment.
What to do if your Michigan 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
30 days
Michigan uses a two-step process. First you protest: the UIA must receive your written protest within 30 days of the determination's mail date, and it issues a Redetermination. If you disagree with the Redetermination, the UIA must receive your appeal within 30 days of that document's mail date, and the case goes to an administrative law judge.
Verified Sep 8, 2026 · verify with UIAHow to file your appeal
- Online through your MiWAM account — the fastest route and the one that timestamps your filing.
- By mail to the UIA using Form UIA 1733, Protest of a Determination.
- By fax to the UIA using the number printed on the determination.
- In person at a UIA office, if you need help completing the form.
What to include
- Your name, Social Security number, and current address.
- The determination or redetermination number and its mail date.
- A clear statement of what you disagree with and why.
- Copies of any pay records, separation letters, or emails that support your position.
- A phone number where the administrative law judge can reach you.
The hearing, and what comes after
An administrative law judge from the Michigan Office of Administrative Hearings and Rules holds the hearing, usually by telephone. You can ask for related issues to be combined into one hearing. You and your employer may each testify, bring witnesses, and submit documents.
If you disagree with the judge's decision, the UIA must receive your written appeal — or your request for a rehearing — within 30 days of the mailing of that decision. It goes to the Michigan Compensation Appellate Commission, and after that to circuit court.
Do not stop filing while you appeal. Keep certifying every two weeks and keep completing three work search activities a week while a protest or appeal is pending. The UIA pays only weeks you certified for, so winning later cannot recover weeks you never claimed.
Can you get unemployment in Michigan 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: Michigan's good-cause rule
If you quit without good cause attributable to the employer — the employer is not at fault for the quit — you are disqualified. Examples of bona fide problems include sexual harassment by co-workers, a clear safety hazard, or bouncing paychecks. A spouse's transfer is a good personal reason but, with no employer fault, is disqualifying.
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.
Before you quit: Before quitting you must first tell the employer about the problem and give them a chance to correct it. If it continues and you quit, you would not be disqualified.
Reasons the Michigan page names: Harassment or hostile treatment, Unsafe working conditions, Not being paid what I'm owed, My own health or disability.
Named as not enough on their own: Spouse or partner relocated (civilian job).
Quitting makes a claim harder, not impossible. File anyway — the agency decides.
Source: MCL 421.29(1)(a) · last verified 2026-09-07
Severance, final pay, and PTO in Michigan
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
Michigan treats severance as deductible income under the Michigan Employment Security Act. Your weekly benefit amount is reduced in the weeks your employer allocates the severance to, so a large severance allocated over several weeks can wipe out payment for those weeks entirely. Report every separation payment when you file and let the UIA allocate it — you will get a written determination you can protest.
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
After a layoff or discharge, Michigan requires your employer to pay all wages earned and due as soon as the amount can with due diligence be determined — in practice, the regularly scheduled payday for the pay period in which you were separated (MCL 408.475).
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
Michigan does not require vacation or PTO payout by statute. Under the Payment of Wages and Fringe Benefits Act, fringe benefits are owed at separation only in accordance with a written contract or written policy — and a clearly written forfeiture-at-termination policy is enforceable.
Layoff notice: WARN and state law
No Michigan mini-WARN law — only the federal WARN Act applies, which generally requires 60 days' written notice of a covered plant closing or mass layoff at employers with 100 or more employees, given to the workers, to LEO Workforce Development, and to the local government.
Whether your layoff should have come with notice — and what happens if it did not — is set out in full in the Michigan WARN Act guide, along with the notices employers have actually filed in the state.
Are Michigan unemployment benefits taxable?
Federal and state tax both apply
Unemployment benefits are taxable income for both federal and Michigan purposes and must be reported on both returns. Withholding is voluntary — you can choose to have federal and state tax withheld from each payment, or choose not to. Each January the UIA posts a Form 1099-G in your MiWAM account showing what you were paid and what was withheld.
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.
Michigan unemployment FAQ
Where do I file for unemployment in Michigan?+
How much unemployment will I get in Michigan?+
Is there a waiting week for Michigan unemployment?+
Do I have to look for work to keep benefits in Michigan?+
Are Michigan unemployment benefits taxable?+
When do I get my final paycheck and is unused PTO paid out in Michigan after a layoff?+
Does Michigan have its own mini-WARN layoff-notice law?+
How long does it take to get Michigan unemployment benefits?+
What is the base period for Michigan unemployment?+
What do I do if my Michigan unemployment claim is denied?+
Does severance pay stop unemployment benefits in Michigan?+
Can I get unemployment in Michigan if I was fired or quit?+
How often do I have to certify or request payment in Michigan?+
Can I work part-time and still get Michigan unemployment?+
How much can I earn before Michigan unemployment benefits are reduced?+
What is the maximum Michigan unemployment benefit in 2026?+
Can you get unemployment in Michigan 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 MI 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 Michigan sources
Benefit amounts, deadlines, and eligibility rules on this page are verified against official Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (LEO) (UIA) sources. Rules and amounts change — check the source before you rely on a number.
Nearby states
Michigan 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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