Unemployment benefits in Florida

Can I get benefits?

You must have wages in at least two quarters of your base period, at least $3,400 in total base-period wages, and total base-period wages of at least 1.5 times the wages in your highest quarter.

Law: Fla. Stat. secs. 443.091(1)(g), 443.111(2)

If you quit

If you quit, you are disqualified unless you had good cause.

If you were fired

If you were fired for misconduct connected with your work, you are disqualified.

Law: Fla. Stat. secs. 443.036(29), 443.101(1)-(2)

Quit, fired, refused work and the federal rules →

The wage test, the amount and your estimate →

How much and how long?

Weekly benefit

$32–$275

Weeks

Currently 12 weeks (it changes with the unemployment rate)

Waiting week

A waiting week

Working part time

The first $58 you earn in a week is not deducted.

How it is figured, the full rules and the estimate tool →

How to file in Florida

Apply online in Reconnect. You must first create a Reconnect login with multi-factor authentication and verify your identity with ID.me.

Apply as soon as you lose your job.

What to have ready

• Your Social Security number
• A government-issued photo ID, such as a driver's license or state ID card
• Each employer you worked for in the last 18 months: name, address and phone number, first and last day of work, gross pay (before taxes), and why you no longer work there

Certify (claim your weeks)

Every two weeks. Log in to Reconnect every two weeks and request your benefit payment.

Everything about filing →

Appeal a denial

• Request for reconsideration (monetary determination, or new information) — 20 calendar days from the date the Monetary Determination was mailed or delivered to you
• Appeal to an appeals referee (appeal hearing) — 20 calendar days from the date of the determination
• Appeal to the Reemployment Assistance Appeals Commission (request for review) — 20 calendar days from the date the appeals referee's decision was mailed or distributed
• Notice of appeal to the District Court of Appeal

Deadline calculator, appeal letter and hearing checklist: Appeal details →

The hearing

Format

Telephone.

Notice before the hearing

10 days

Overpayments and waivers

An overpayment means you got benefits you were not eligible for.

Appeal within

20 days from the date of the Notice of Disqualification (the distributed date)

Fraud penalty

15% added when the overpayment is fraud

Waiver

Not available in our data for regular benefits.

Law: Fla. Stat. sec. 443.151(6)

Waiver details and the hearing checklist →

Someone filed a claim in your name

If you get a Way2Go debit card, a payment or a Form 1099-G for a claim you did not file, or you cannot file because your Social Security number is already in use, report it through the Reemployment Assistance Help Center (choose "Report ID theft / fraud"). Florida's Identity Theft Victim Kit explains more steps.

• Report it online
• Phone: 1-833-352-7759

National steps

1. Report it to the state where the claim was filed and follow its instructions. Some states ask for a police report or a sworn statement.
2. If you got a 1099-G for benefits you did not receive, the state will send a corrected 1099-G. When you file taxes, report only the income you actually received; do not wait for the corrected form.
3. Check your free credit reports at AnnualCreditReport.com or 877-322-8228. Report other identity theft at IdentityTheft.gov.
4. You can also report unemployment identity fraud that happened after March 2020 to the U.S. Department of Justice National Center for Disaster Fraud. You must still report it to the state.

U.S. Department of Labor: report unemployment identity fraud

Good to know in Florida

• Florida's maximum is $275 a week, and for claims filed in 2025 and 2026 benefits last at most 12 weeks, so the most anyone can get is $3,300.

  Law: Fla. Stat. sec. 443.111

  Source: FloridaCommerce Claimant FAQ

• Florida's appeal deadlines are short: 20 calendar days from the date of the determination for the first appeal, and 20 calendar days from the date the referee's decision is mailed or distributed for the Commission appeal.

  Law: Fla. Stat. sec. 443.151(4)

• Florida requires 5 work search contacts a week (3 in counties of 75,000 people or fewer), and you can meet the rule with an in-person visit to a CareerSource center instead.

  Law: Fla. Stat. sec. 443.091(1)(d)

Changes in 2024–2026

No changes in 2024-2026 to the weekly benefit amount ($32-$275), the 12-23 week sliding scale, the waiting week or the 20-day appeal deadlines. The agency's name changed from the Department of Economic Opportunity to the Department of Commerce in 2023. The Appeals Commission's procedural rules were amended June 6, 2024 and June 22, 2026.

Law: ch. 73B-21

Questions about unemployment in Florida