Basics of UIB Eligibility

Types of Claims

The type of UIB claim filed depends on the type of employer and where the claimant worked:

If the Claimant...	Then the Claim is...
Worked in California in a job covered by the unemployment insurance law.	California UI
Has exhausted their regular UI claim, they may be eligible to collect up to 13 additional weeks of compensation if a Cal-ED period is in effect. (EDD Form DE 8714B)	Cal-ED
Provides eligible claimants with additional benefits beyond their regular claim. CTB is for claimants who lack competitive job skills to receive benefits while attending an approved training/retaining program.	CTB
Has earnings in more than one state, including California.	Combined Wage Claim
Is a former service member no longer on active military service.	Ex-service Members
Was a federal civilian employee. Federal civilian employees may have worked for the USPS or the IRS.	Federal Claim
Qualifies and has collected all the money in their UIB regular claim and they are not eligible for any other UIB claims. AND Legislation is enacted to provide a Federal Extended Benefits program. EDD notifies individuals by mail and/or through the media when they become potentially eligible for these benefits.	Federal Extended Benefits
Has exhausted their regular UI claim, they may be eligible to collect up to 13 additional weeks of compensation when the Fed-ED period is activated by the state. (EDD Form DE 8714B)	Fed-ED
Had earnings in another state, a claim can be filed in California against the other state. Reminder: Out-of-state claims do not show up on IEVS or on the EDD Real-Time Match.	Interstate Claim
Received both Federal wages and wages in California.	Joint Claims

Eligibility Requirements

To receive UIB payments, all eligibility requirements must be met when filing a claim and when certifying for benefits.

Requirements to File a Claim

When filing for UIB, enough wages must have been earned during the 12-month base period to establish a claim and claimants must be:

Totally or partially unemployed
Unemployed through no fault of their own
Physically able to work
Available for work
Ready and willing to accept work immediately
Actively looking for work

Payments

These rules apply to UIB payments when UIB eligibility rules are met and the claimant has completed and mailed in their weekly claim form:

The first payment on a new California claim is usually issued within three (3) weeks after filing.
California law requires every person to serve a one-week, unpaid waiting period.
For interstate claims, the first payment will normally be issued after the other state receives the claim.
Payments are issued after the week(s) has/have ended and the completed claim form is received.
No payment is made in advance.
UIB is normally paid on the EDD Debit Card every two weeks.
An individual who works less than FT may still be eligible for benefits.

Determining the Base Period

The claimant's base period is a 12-month period, which is based on the month the claim was filed. Each base period has four (4) quarters of three (3) months each.The quarter with the highest earnings determines the weekly benefit amount of UIB:

There are two (2) types of base periods that may be used to establish a claim:

Standard Base Period
Alternate Base Period

If the beginning date of the claim is in...	Then the base period is the 12-month period that ended the previous...
January, February or March	September 30th
April, May or June	December 31st
July, August or September	March 31st
October, November or December	June 30th

For a UIB claim to be valid, the individual must have at least $1,300 in earnings in one quarter of their base period or at least $900 in earnings in the highest quarter and total base period earnings of 1.25 times their high quarter earnings.

Refer to Chart Book, “UIB Weekly Benefit Amount,” page 7-4 for the Weekly Benefit Amount Table.

Alternate Base Period

The Alternate Base Period can only be used to file a UI claim when there are not enough wages earned in the Standard Base Period to file a monetarily valid UI claim, and there are enough wages in the Alternate Base Period.

IF the beginning date of the claim is in...	THEN, The base period is the 12-month period that ended the previous...
January, February or March	December 31st
April, May or June	March 31st
July, August or September	June 30th
October, November or December	September 30th