This system is BROKEN!!! I know people who've been waiting 3+ MONTHS for appeal hearings! And the DEO keeps "accidentally" denying obvious approvals to manipulate their numbers. They WANT low unemployment stats so they just deny everyone and make appeals impossible. Meanwhile people are losing homes and can't feed their families. DISGUSTING!!

UPDATE: I finally got through to someone at DEO using the Claimyr service (thanks for that recommendation @commenter). The agent confirmed my Q4 wages were missing from their system, apparently because my employer submitted them under a slightly different company name after a corporate restructuring. She's escalated my case to a claims examiner for review. The agent said it should be resolved in 5-7 business days and that I can withdraw my appeal if it gets fixed before the hearing date. Huge relief! Will update again when it's resolved.

I know others have mentioned it, but I want to emphasize: document EVERYTHING during this process. Take screenshots of all uploads, note the time/date of all calls, and keep copies of everything you submit. Florida's DUA verification process has been problematic for many claimants. Another tip: If you submit documents and don't see them reflected in your CONNECT account within 48 hours, call immediately. Sometimes documents get "lost" in their system, and you don't want to miss deadlines because of their technical issues.

In CONNECT, you can check document status under the "Determination, Pending Issue and Decision Summary" section. Any documents you've submitted should eventually show up there with a status. To answer your earlier question - no, documents don't need to be notarized for DUA claims. Regular copies are fine as long as they're legible. Just be sure your name and the relevant dates are clearly visible on all documents. One final recommendation: if you have any 1099 or self-employment income in addition to your regular job, be sure to document that too. DUA can potentially cover income losses from multiple sources affected by the disaster.

Update: The $600 payments just showed up in my payment history today! 4 days after the regular payments appeared. All is well and I'm so relieved. Thanks everyone for your help and advice!

my sister had this exact thing happen but it turned out she wasn't eligible for the $600 bcuz she filed under the wrong program to begin with... might wanna double check which program ur actually approved for

idk about lawyers but make sure u keep claiming weeks while ur appeal is pending!!!! i didnt know this and lost out on 6 weeks of payments even tho i eventually won my appeal. u have to keep doing the work search and claiming every 2 weeks or they wont pay u retroactively

Oh wow, I didn't realize this! I thought since I was denied I shouldn't claim weeks anymore. Thanks for letting me know - I'll make sure to keep up with the work search requirements and claiming while waiting for the appeal.

One final note - if you do end up having to file a new claim application, make sure to answer the question about whether you've filed for benefits in the last 12 months as "Yes." This helps link your new claim to your previous one in their system. Also, when you get to the employment history section, try to enter your work history EXACTLY as you did in your original claim (same employer names, dates, etc). This helps their system recognize it's the same person and can sometimes speed up processing.

UPDATE: I got through to DEO! Used that Claimyr service after failing to get through on my own this morning. The agent confirmed what many of you said - my claim wasn't actually terminated, but was flagged as "inactive" due to missing the filing window. She was able to reactivate my existing claim and set up my account so I could claim my missed weeks! No need to file a new application after all. Such a relief. Thanks everyone for your help and advice - would have been completely lost without this forum.