If you have an overpayment, we'll send you a decision letter. It will say how much you owe. It's important to read the letter and follow the instructions.
Overpayment causes
Overpayments occur for several reasons. You need to pay us back in all cases.
You received more benefits than you should
Example: You got benefits while we reviewed an issue on your claim. During our review, we found you were not eligible for the benefits you got.
You did not respond to our information request
Example: You received a notification that we need more information. Maybe we needed to verify your identity. Or we needed more information about why you left your job. You had 10 days to respond but did not. As a result, we had to deny your benefits, including those we already paid you.
Contact us if you have an overpayment because you did not respond to an information request from us. You may not have to repay the overpayment if you complete the original request. If you missed the deadline, you can appeal a decision and send us the information we asked for. We may remove the overpayment when we can confirm you are eligible.
We got new information that showed you were not eligible
Example: You filed a claim saying you left your job because of a lack of work. We later found out you were fired for misconduct. In this case, you were not eligible for the benefits you got.
We made an error and paid you when we should not have
Example: We identified an issue on your claim. We stopped paying you while we looked into it. While we were still checking your eligibility, we started paying you again. We should have finished checking before we paid you benefits.
Repaying an overpayment
Learn how to pay back an overpayment. This webpage also explains:
- How to get help if you are not able to afford to repay.
- The penalties for not repaying it.
Appealing our decision
You may appeal a decision that caused an overpayment. Follow the instructions on the letter we send to you.
It is still possible to owe money even if your appeal is successful. You might have another issue on your claim. Or you might owe an overpayment on another claim.