Unemployment Benefits

If you quit or were fired, a hold will be placed on your claim until a determination of eligibility can be made by OESC. You may be ineligible for benefits if you leave work voluntarily without a good cause. For more information about what is considered a "good cause", reference Oklahoma Statute Title 40 Section 2-405. For information about provisions for leaving work due to compelling family circumstances, reference Oklahoma Statute Title 40 Section 2-210.  For information on being discharged or fired for misconduct, reference Oklahoma Statute Title 40 Section 2-406.

In order to complete your application, you'll need the following information and documents:

• Social Security Number
• Name, mailing address, telephone number and e-mail address
• Alien registration number and expiration date, if a non-citizen
• Oklahoma driver's license or state-issued ID card number
• Name and address of the company on your paycheck stub or W-2 form
• Employment start and end date
• Wages earned and how you were paid (hourly, weekly and monthly)
• Form SF8 or SF 50 if employed by the Federal government in the last 18 months
• DD Form 214 for military service in the previous 18 months

The amount that you qualify for is based on wages earned from covered employers during the base period. The base period is the first four of the previous five completed calendar quarters (approximately first 12 of the last 15 months). You can find more information on the full method of calculation for weekly benefit amounts and maximum benefit amounts in sections 2-104 and 2-106 in the Oklahoma Employment Security Act.

Yes, all the unemployment benefits are taxable. You will receive a 1099-G tax form from the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission if you filed for and received unemployment benefits. 

When you file for unemployment, you can choose to have taxes taken out when benefits are paid. If you opt to have the deductions taken out of your unemployment benefits, the standard deduction used is 10% for Federal taxes and 3% for State taxes. When filing your yearly income taxes, you will include the 1099-G as part of your income documents and report accordingly.

Once your claim is filed, OESC will first determine if you are monetarily eligible for benefits. We may need to request wages from other states, complete investigations on missing wages, request federal agency or military wages or adjust your claim’s base period to accurately determine monetary eligibility. 

Once we have determined that you are monetarily eligible, we will review your claim to determine if you are allowed benefits under the Oklahoma Employment Security Act. The U.S. Department of Labor has established that this eligibility determination should be issued within 21 days of a claim becoming monetarily eligible. After a determination is met, you will be mailed a letter detailing the decision and further information.

You are required to serve a one week waiting period per Oklahoma law (Title 40 Section 2-206) if you are filing for unemployment. The first week when you file a weekly certification during which all eligibility requirements are met, will be considered the waiting period, during which no payments will be issued. This will not subtract from your total benefit amount.

Yes, you can draw unemployment if you work part-time. Part-time is defined as 31 hours or less. You must report the hours worked and gross amount of money you earned before any deductions were made. Earnings must be reported during the week you earn them, not when you actually receive the payment. “Work” means anything you do for wages during the seven (7) days of the week you are claiming unemployment benefits.

According to the Oklahoma law, if you are a victim of domestic violence or abuse that has resulted in your separation from employment, you may be eligible for unemployment insurance (UI) benefits.

For additional information and assistance, please visit your nearest Oklahoma Works office.

To complete work registration for unemployment insurance, you must have an active job seeker account and an active resume:

• Answer all questions in My Personal Information (accessible from My Profile)
• Select an occupation in the Work Wanted section
• Create a resume and select Publish to activate it
• Maintain an active resume at all times

Log in regularly to prevent your account from being disabled due to inactivity.

Once you begin, you will have 15 minutes before your session times out. If you do not complete the process within the 15 minute window, your progress may be lost.

The accepted forms of ID for online verification are your driver’s license or a state-issued ID from any US state (except PA) or your resident card/green card. In rare cases when the information from an ID can't be validated, you will be requested a secondary ID. At this time, only your passport is acceptable as a secondary ID online. No other forms of ID are valid for online verification.

Your unemployment benefits will be paid to a debit card provided by the state's vendor, Conduent. You can leave funds on this card or set up automatic transfers from the debit card to your own banking account for no fee. 

To set up automatic transfers, you must receive and activate your card and then visit GoProgram.com or call 866-320-8699 to use the automated system to enter your banking information.

If you were previously issued a debit card for benefit payments within the past three (3) years, your payment will be issued to that debit card unless otherwise specified. If you no longer have your previously issued debit card, please contact Conduent at 866-320-8699.

If you have previously filed unemployment and received a debit card within the previous three years, you will receive funds on that debit card within 2-3 days of filing your first eligible weekly certification.

If you have not filed unemployment previously, or if it has been more than three years, an unemployment debit card will be mailed to you after your first eligible weekly certification has been filed. Please allow 10-14 days to receive the card. When you receive the card, it may already have funds issued to it.

If it has been more than 14 days since you filed your first eligible weekly certification and you have received confirmation from OESC that you are eligible for benefits and payments have been issued, please contact Conduent at 866-320-8699 to resolve your missing card.

Your cards can be expedited by Conduent, but there is a fee for the additional mailing costs. These will be deducted from the balance on the card. There is a limited number of debit cards Conduent can issue in a single day, so in rare cases you may be unable to expedite cards. To expedite a card, please contact our Unemployment Service Center at 405-525-1500, your nearest Oklahoma Works office or Conduent at 866-320-8699.

All unemployment benefits are issued to a pre-paid debit card provided by our card vendor Conduent. If you would like these funds automatically transferred to your personal banking account, you can do so after receiving and activating your card. To set up recurring transfers, contact Conduent at 866-320-8699 or visit their website at goprogram.com.

If your claim is valid and you file an eligible weekly certification, payments are typically issued the following day to your unemployment debit card. Please keep in mind that weekends and holidays may delay deposits. Also, if you have set up recurring transfers to your personal banking account, an additional day may be required depending on your bank's processing time. 

You can access a digital version of your 1099-G form on Unemployment.oesc.ok.gov. If you have trouble accessing it, please contact OESC's Unemployment Service Center at (405) 525-1500 for assistance or contact your nearest Oklahoma Works office.

If you received a 1099-G form and didn't file for unemployment benefits, you may have had a fraudulent unemployment claim filed in your name so please contact us.

Additionally, the Internal Revenue Service has provided resources to help you navigate this issue. You will find detailed information on what steps you should take by accessing the following link Employment Related Identity Theft | Internal Revenue Service (irs.gov)

Your 1099-G reflects the total amount paid to you or on your behalf, which may include regular unemployment compensation, federal unemployment benefits (PUA, FPUC and PEUC), child support deductions, any backpay or lump sum deposits made during the year, as well as any benefits used to offset an overpayment(s) during the tax year.

If you believe there are still incorrect funds showing, please contact us. You may need to provide all monthly Conduent statements for review.