PA UC reporting income from final paycheck while filing weekly claim - will I still get benefits?
Super confused about what to do with my weekly claim this Sunday! I filed my initial claim last week (waiting week) after getting laid off from my warehouse job. This coming week I'll be getting my final paycheck for my last 3 days of work before the layoff. When I file my weekly claim this Sunday, how exactly do I report this final pay? I didn't actually WORK any days this week, but I'm getting paid for previous work. Does this count as income for THIS week? Will this mess up my benefits? I really need unemployment to kick in asap since rent is due in 2 weeks. This is my first time on unemployment so I don't want to mess anything up and get flagged for fraud or something crazy!
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Diego Flores
When you certify for weekly benefits, you need to report any income for the week you're claiming (Sunday through Saturday), not when you actually get paid. So if you didn't work at all during this claim week, you don't report any earnings - even if you receive a final paycheck during this period. Only report wages for work performed during that specific claim week. Since you're saying these were days worked before getting laid off (presumably last week or earlier), you shouldn't report them on this week's claim.
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Anastasia Kozlov
•this is right! i got confused about this too when i first filed. the PA UC system only cares about when u EARNED the money not when it hits ur bank account
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Sean Flanagan
DONT DO THAT!!! The previous answer is WRONG and could get you in trouble! You absolutely MUST report income when you RECEIVE it, not when you earned it! PA UC goes by when you get paid not when you worked!!!! I got flagged for fraud for making this exact mistake and had to pay back 2 weeks of benefits plus a penalty. The system is designed to CATCH these discrepancies!!!
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Zara Mirza
•This is actually incorrect. For PA unemployment, you report wages in the week they were earned, not when they were paid. This is directly from the PA UC handbook: "Report all gross wages (before deductions) for work performed during the week, even if you have not yet been paid for it." If you received a paycheck for work performed in a previous week, you don't report it for the current claim week.
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NebulaNinja
Just went through this last month. The final paycheck is for work done in previous weeks right? If so u don't report it for this week. Only report $ for work u actually did THIS week. U should get full benefits if u didn't work at all this week. Good luck!
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Chloe Robinson
•Thanks for sharing your experience! That's a relief to hear. So just to be super clear - when filing this Sunday, I just put $0 for earnings and 0 days worked (since I didn't work at all this week), even though I'm getting that final check? I don't want to mess this up.
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Luca Russo
I kept getting busy signals for WEEKS trying to ask this exact question! Finally got through using Claimyr (claimyr.com) - they connected me to a PA UC agent in under 20 minutes. There's a video demo here if you're curious: https://youtu.be/CEPETxZdo9E?si=WL1ZzVZWG3KiHrg2. The agent confirmed what others are saying - report wages when EARNED not PAID. So your final check doesn't count for this week if you didn't work any days this week.
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Chloe Robinson
•Thanks for the tip! I've been trying to call to double check and keep getting disconnected. Might try this if I can't get through tomorrow.
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Nia Wilson
my situation was kinda similar but a bit different. i got laid off but had 2 weeks vacation pay they gave me. had to report that as income for the weeks it covered even tho i wasn't working. final paychecks for days already worked are different tho - u already reported those days when u worked them (or will report them for the week they were worked). its confusing lol
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Diego Flores
•This is a good point. Regular wages are reported when earned, but vacation/PTO payouts are handled differently and can sometimes be allocated across weeks. In your case, since it's just regular wages for previously worked days, you don't report it for this week's certification.
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Anastasia Kozlov
ur overthinking it lol just answer the questions honestly when u file. the system asks if u worked any days that week (no) and if u had any earnings for work that week (no). easy peasy
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Zara Mirza
To summarize what everyone has correctly pointed out: When filing weekly claims in PA, you report gross wages for work performed during that specific week (Sunday-Saturday), regardless of when you get paid for that work. Since you didn't work any days this week, you would report 0 days worked and $0 earnings, even though you're receiving a final paycheck for work done in previous weeks. You should be eligible for full benefits for this week. Just make sure you continue filing every week, complete your work search activities (you need to do at least 2 per week), and keep documentation of your job applications.
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Chloe Robinson
•Thank you SO much! This clears everything up perfectly. I'll make sure to do my work searches too - already applied to 3 places this week just to be safe. Really appreciate everyone's help!
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