Reporting Rover dogsitting income on DEO weekly claims - 1099 confusion
Hey everyone, I recently started dogsitting through Rover to make ends meet while I'm on unemployment in Florida. I know it's a 1099 position, but I'm confused about reporting this income when claiming my weeks on CONNECT. Do I have to report what I earn from Rover? How does this affect my weekly benefit amount? I've searched the DEO website but couldn't find any clear answers about gig work or 1099 income specifically. Anyone dealt with this before? I don't want to mess up my benefits or get hit with an overpayment notice later!
18 comments
Melody Miles
YES! You absolutely need to report ALL income when you claim weeks, including any 1099/gig work like Rover. When you do your weekly certification, there's a question specifically asking if you worked or earned any income during that week. You must report the gross amount (before Rover takes their cut) for the week you PERFORMED the work, not when you got paid. DEO compares reported income with IRS records eventually, so don't risk an overpayment situation by not reporting it.
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Jace Caspullo
•Thanks for the quick answer! So I report the full amount before Rover takes their percentage? That seems unfair since I'm not actually getting that full amount... And do I report it the week I dog sit or when Rover actually pays me? Sometimes there's a delay of a few days.
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Nathaniel Mikhaylov
i did instacart while on unemployment last year & reported everything. u gotta put down what u EARNED in the week u did the work, not when it hits ur bank. DEO will reduce ur benefit that week depending how much u made
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Jace Caspullo
•That makes sense. Do you know if there's a certain amount I can earn before they start reducing benefits? I'm only getting a few dog sitting gigs here and there, nothing consistent yet.
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Eva St. Cyr
Florida allows you to earn up to $58 per week without any reduction in benefits - this is called the earnings disregard. After that, they reduce your weekly benefit dollar-for-dollar. So if your weekly benefit amount is $275 and you earn $100 from Rover in a week, they'll deduct ($100-$58) = $42 from your benefit, meaning you'd receive $233 for that week. And yes, you must report the GROSS amount before Rover takes their commission, even though that feels unfair. Report earnings for the week you performed the service. The DEO system compares tax records, so they will eventually catch any unreported income.
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Jace Caspullo
•Thank you so much for explaining that! The $58 disregard is good to know. I'm trying to build up my dog sitting business slowly so this helps me understand how to balance it with my benefits.
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Kristian Bishop
Make sure you're still doing your 5 work searches each week too! Even with the Rover income you still have to meet all the other requirements to keep getting benefits.
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Kaitlyn Otto
•This is correct! The work search requirement doesn't change just because you have some part-time or gig income. You still need those 5 work search activities per week. Make sure you're logging them properly in CONNECT when you claim your weeks. If you get selected for a work search audit and can't provide evidence of your searches, they can make you pay back benefits - even if you reported your income correctly.
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Axel Far
I went through this EXACT situation with DoorDash last year while on unemployment. DEO's system is a NIGHTMARE for gig workers! I reported everything correctly but still ended up with an "overpayment notice" because their system couldn't properly categorize 1099 income. Spent WEEKS trying to get someone on the phone to fix it. I finally discovered Claimyr (claimyr.com) which got me through to an actual DEO agent in under 30 minutes! They have a video demo here: https://youtu.be/UzW_hbUy-ss?si=zORd51jeq1GX5Ldj. The agent fixed my claim immediately once I explained the situation. Saved me from having to repay $2,100 that I didn't actually owe!
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Nathaniel Mikhaylov
•did u have to pay for that service? seems weird to pay money just to talk to unemployment ppl
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Jasmine Hernandez
The DEO doesn't care where your income comes from, they just care THAT you have income. I reported my Etsy shop earnings and it all went fine. Just be honest!!
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Melody Miles
One more important thing - make sure you're setting aside money for taxes on your Rover income. Unlike W-2 employment, 1099 work doesn't have taxes withheld. You'll need to pay both income tax AND self-employment tax (15.3%) on that income when you file. This can be a shock if you're not prepared for it.
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Jace Caspullo
•Oh wow, I hadn't even thought about the tax implications. So I need to save extra from my Rover earnings for taxes? That's going to make it even harder to make ends meet. But I appreciate the heads up - better to know this now!
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Kaitlyn Otto
I'm in the exact same situation with Uber Eats! From my experience, you absolutely must report all income when it's earned. I made the mistake of not reporting a few small deliveries last year thinking it wasn't enough to matter, and ended up with an overpayment notice for over $1,800! DEO has access to your tax records and they will catch any discrepancies. The key things to remember: - Report income in the week EARNED (when you do the dog sitting) - Report GROSS earnings (before Rover's cut) - Keep detailed records of all your gigs - You can earn up to $58/week without reduction in benefits - After $58, benefits reduce dollar for dollar If your weekly benefit is $240 and you earn $100 dog sitting, you'll get $240 - ($100-$58) = $198 that week.
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Nathaniel Mikhaylov
my cousin got in trouble for not tellin DEO about his side gig. they made him pay back like $4000!!! dont mess with them fr
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Jace Caspullo
•Yikes, that's exactly what I'm worried about! I definitely don't want to end up owing thousands back to DEO. I'll make sure to report all my Rover income. Thanks for sharing that.
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Axel Far
Has anyone else noticed that the CONNECT system is ridiculously confusing about where to report 1099/gig income? Like they intentionally make it complicated so they can hit you with overpayment notices later? 🙄
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Kristian Bishop
•Omg yes!! When I was claiming last month I sat there for like 20 mins trying to figure out where to put my Instacart money. Not like there's anyone to ask for help either!!
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