How do I get my 1099-G from California EDD unemployment online?

I found the Tax Information section but it's just showing me a blank page, nothing loads. Is there a specific browser I should be using?

Try Chrome or Firefox, sometimes Safari or Edge can cause display issues with the California EDD site. Also make sure you're not using a VPN since that can block the document from loading.

Same issue happened to me, switching browsers fixed it immediately. The PDF viewer built into the EDD portal doesn't work well with all browsers.

I see the section now but when I click on 1099G it just spins and never loads, been trying for like 20 minutes

SAME. this has been happening all week. the site is clearly overwhelmed during tax season and EDD doesnt bother to upgrade their servers. classic EDD incompetence. I've been trying to get mine for THREE DAYS and every time I call I get disconnected before talking to anyone. the system is broken on purpose I swear

yeah the site gets really slow in january and february every year, try early morning like 7am before everyone else is trying to access it

Wait does this actually work? I've never been able to get through to a real person at EDD ever. How long did it take?

Got connected to an actual agent within the same day. I was honestly shocked because I'd given up on ever reaching a human at EDD. Definitely worth trying if you're stuck.

sounds too good to be true tbh but I'm desperate enough to try anything at this point lol

I'm skeptical of these services but I'm also on day 4 of trying to get my 1099-G so maybe I'll check out that video

My accountant needs it within the week so mail probably won't work but good to know as a backup

I requested mine by mail in 2024 and it took closer to 3 weeks, not 7-10 days. Just FYI so nobody cuts it too close with their taxes.

Fair point, mailing times can definitely vary. Online is definitely faster if you can get the portal to cooperate.

Oh wow I didn't know about the paperless setting. I think I might have checked that box when I first set up my account. That explains why I never got anything in the mail.

This is really important info that EDD doesn't make obvious at all. I had the same situation and assumed there was a problem with my account when actually I had just opted into paperless and forgotten about it.

wait so if you opt out of paperless you get BOTH a paper copy and online access? or just the paper one?

If you're opted into paper delivery you'll get a mailed copy but you should still be able to access it online through UI Online as well. The portal keeps records regardless of your delivery preference.

Good call on the SSN check, I'll make sure to verify that once I can actually access the form

what happens if the amount on the 1099-G seems wrong? like I feel like mine from last year was off but I didn't know how to dispute it

If the amount looks incorrect you need to contact California EDD directly to request a corrected 1099-G. Keep your own records of what you received — your payment history in UI Online shows every payment made to your claim which you can use to verify the total.

Unemployment insurance benefits ARE taxable at the federal level and must be reported on your federal tax return. At the state level California does not tax unemployment benefits so you won't owe California state income tax on your UI payments. But yes for your federal return you need to report it. If you missed it you may need to file an amended return.

oh no. oh no oh no oh no. I definitely didn't include it. how bad is this. should I be panicking

Don't panic, it's fixable. You'll need to file a 1040-X amended return for the year you missed it. It happens more often than you'd think and the IRS process for amendments is pretty straightforward. Talk to your accountant or a tax professional about it.

ok thank you this is slightly less terrifying. going to call my accountant tomorrow morning

Have you tried Claimyr? It's what finally got me through to an actual EDD agent after days of failed attempts. claimyr.com has the info and there's a walkthrough video at https://youtu.be/JmuwXR7HA10. Way less frustrating than the regular phone lines.

I'm past the point of caring because I already got my accountant to work around it but I'll keep that in mind for next time EDD inevitably makes my life difficult

the payment history workaround is actually really smart, wish I'd thought of that instead of stressing about the portal

Trying this right now actually

UPDATE: it worked!! I found my 1099-G through myEDD and it loaded immediately. Thank you so much!

Nice! Yeah the myEDD portal sometimes works better when the main site is overloaded during tax season

On your federal return (Form 1040) you'll report the amount from box 1 of the 1099-G on Schedule 1, Line 7 (unemployment compensation). It gets added to your total income. If you had federal tax withheld it'll show in box 4 and gets credited on your return. California state return doesn't tax UI so you generally don't need to add it there.

ok that actually makes sense thank you. I was worried it was going to be super complicated

also worth noting if you used tax software like TurboTax or H&R Block they have a specific section where you just enter the 1099-G info and it handles all the form placement automatically

To clarify: California State Disability Insurance (SDI) benefits are NOT reported on a 1099-G and are not taxable federally either. Paid Family Leave through EDD however IS taxable federally and gets reported. Just want to make sure nobody confuses their SDI with UI income.

Oh good to know I wasn't totally sure on that, thanks for the correction

wait so PFL is taxable but SDI isn't? that seems arbitrary

Oh that's scary. I was surprised my amount was higher than I expected but I think it's just because I forgot about some weeks I claimed. Worth double checking against my payment history though.

Definitely cross-reference with your payment history in UI Online. It's a really important step to verify before you file.

this happened to someone in my family. EDD sent a 1099-G for like $18,000 in UI benefits they never received. It was a nightmare to get resolved and took months of back and forth with EDD.

Yes, EDD has a specific fraud reporting process for this. You can report it online through their contact form or by calling. The IRS also has a process for handling fraudulent 1099-Gs if you can't get EDD to resolve it before your tax deadline — you can file your taxes showing $0 for that fraudulent amount and attach a statement explaining the situation.

Glad the thread helped! I finally got mine through myEDD portal and it was way smoother than the main UI site.

The myEDD portal is consistently better during tax season in my experience, glad you found it useful

ok adding this to my list of things to try because I still haven't sorted my tax situation

good to know it actually works, I was on the fence after seeing it mentioned

yeah I was skeptical too but when you literally cannot reach EDD any other way it's worth it

You can recover your myEDD account through the account recovery process on the login page. You'll need your SSN and some identity verification info. If you genuinely can't recover the account you'd need to call EDD to have them verify your identity and potentially mail you the form.

My email address I used for the account doesn't exist anymore which is making recovery really complicated

That's a tricky situation. You'll probably need to call EDD directly and explain the account recovery issue. They can look up your claim by SSN and help you get access restored or arrange another delivery method for the 1099-G.

If you're having trouble getting through to EDD by phone to sort out the account issue, claimyr.com helped me reach an actual agent when the regular lines were impossible. Might be worth using given how specific your situation is.

Already downloaded mine as a PDF and emailed it to myself and my accountant. Not taking any chances!

this is genuinely good advice, I lost access to mine during an EDD system maintenance window last year at the worst possible time

Also keep records of your weekly payment confirmations throughout the year so you have your own running total. Makes verifying the 1099-G amount much easier.

Yes, California EDD will issue a 1099-G regardless of how small the amount was. Even if you only received a few hundred dollars in UI benefits it gets reported. All unemployment compensation is taxable income federally so the full amount needs to be on your return no matter how small.

ok good to know, I'll make sure to look it up then. wasn't planning to bother since it was so small

Yeah don't skip it even for small amounts. The IRS also receives a copy of your 1099-G from EDD so they'll notice a discrepancy if it's not on your return.

Preach. They have one job during tax season and that's making sure people can access their 1099-G and somehow they still can't get it right.

The myEDD portal is marginally better but yeah overall the tech infrastructure is pretty rough for how many people depend on it

marginally' better is doing a lot of heavy liftinglol

Really glad you got it sorted! And yes the myEDD portal being more reliable for document access is definitely a pattern. Good tip to close out the thread.

Nice update! For anyone who still can't get through and needs to talk to an actual EDD agent, claimyr.com remains the best option I've found for getting past the phone line nightmare.

this whole thread was so helpful, glad it worked out for OP