How to File a Weekly Claim Certification - Unemployment Insurance
A weekly claim certification is your request to be paid unemployment insurance (UI) benefits for a particular week of unemployment.
After you apply for UI benefits (also called filing an initial claim) you are required to file weekly claim certifications on time. If you do not, your UI benefit payments may be delayed or denied.
When to File
For Maryland UI purposes, a benefit week is Sunday to Saturday.
- File your claim certification (immediately after the benefit week for which you are requesting payment) between Sunday at 12:01 a.m. and Saturday at 11:59 p.m.
Example: For a benefit week that started Sunday, May 9, and ended
Saturday, May 15, file your weekly claim certification between Sunday, May
16, and Saturday, May 22.
Methods for Filing
You may file weekly claim certifications:
- Online - Use the BEACON UI system; or,
- BEACON is the most efficient way to file your weekly claim certification.
- To get started, log in to BEACON and select the Weekly Certification option from the left menu. For more about BEACON, see the BEACON System Overview web page.
Mobile App - Use MD Unemployment for Claimants (download from iOS App Store or Google Play Store); or,
Phone - Call the Interactive Voice Response (IVR) phone system at 410-949-0022 or 800-827-4839, toll-free.
NOTE: The questions you answer and the information you are asked to provide are the same no matter which method you use to file.
Filing Process
The weekly claim certification is a legal document and includes several questions that you must answer accurately to certify your eligibility for UI benefits.
- After you begin the claim filing process, please review the filing guidelines.
- Then, you will answer the weekly claim certification questions (see below).
- For detailed information about the questions, see the Weekly Claim Certification Questionsflyer.
Review Job Contact(s) and Reemployment Activities - After you answer the questions, review the job contact(s) and reemployment activities that you completed during the previous benefit week.
- NOTE: You are required to complete at least three valid reemployment activities, including a minimum of one job contact, each week and keep a record of these activities (for more, see the Maryland Work Search Requirements web page).
- You are strongly urged to keep this record in the Maryland Workforce Exchange (MWE) Job Contact and Reemployment Activity Log (instructions are included in this tutorial video).
Any information you entered in the log (for the designated week) will automatically be displayed in BEACON.
If you do not use the log to keep your record, continue the claim certification process. You may be contacted to provide additional information.
- Review your answers to the questions and your job contact and reemployment activities to ensure the information is correct.
- Then, read the acknowledgement statement at the bottom of the screen and select the check box. Select the “submit” button to file your claim certification.
Confirmation Number
If your weekly claim certifications are filed properly, you will receive a confirmation number. If you do not receive a confirmation number, contact a claims agent immediately at 667-207-6520 (8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday to Friday).
- If you make a mistake during the filing process, immediately call 667-207-6520.
For additional resources, see the Claims Filing - Weekly Claim Certifications FAQs.