PUA claimants who were double paid benefits in July 2020 are eligible for an overpayment blanket waiver.
Blanket waivers are different from regular overpayment waivers because you do not have to apply for it.
The PUA system mistakenly paid some claimants twice in July of 2020. If you were one of those claimants and previously verified your identity, you will be granted an overpayment waiver.
Getting an overpayment blanket waiver means that you do not have to pay the overpayment back. You will also get a refund if you already paid back some of the overpayment waiver.
How can I check if I'm eligible for the blanket waiver?
If you’re not sure whether or not you are eligible for the blanket waiver, log in to your PUA portal and check your Message Center. If you are eligible for the blanket waiver, there will be a notice in your Message Center called “Waiver Notice.”
Is there anything I need to do to for my blanket waiver to be granted?
Yes!
To verify your identity you need to:
- Log in to your PUA portal.
- Upload your identity document(s) to your PUA portal. You can either upload scans of 1 primary identity document or 2 secondary identity documents.
3. After you upload your documents, email [email protected] with your name and last four digits of your Social Security Number. State in the email that you uploaded your identity documents to your PUA portal so that you can be granted the blanket waiver.
Is there anything I need to do to get my refund?
Then call the UC Service Center (888-313-7284) or email them ([email protected]) to let them know you updated your mailing address in your PUA portal so you can get your blanket waiver refund.
If I'm owed a refund, how will I get the money?
If a you are owed a refund and have a MoneyNetwork (My Banking Direct) debit card that was issued to you in March of 2023 or later, you may get your refund on this debit card.
Otherwise, you will get your refund by paper check to the address listed in your PUA portal.
Frequently Asked Questions
First, see if you can reset your password through the “reset password” link at https://pua.benefits.uc.pa.gov.
If you still cannot access your PUA account, call the UC Service Center hotline 888-313-7284 or email them at [email protected] for help accessing your PUA portal.
Login to your PUA portal. On your dashboard, click the “Menu” icon in the upper left hand corner.
In the side menu, click on “Upload a Document.”
On the “Add a Document” page, write in “Primary Identity Document” or “Secondary Identity Document” (depending on which kind of identity document you are uploading) to the “Document Tags” box. Click “Select File” to attach the document to the page. Then click “Save” to fully upload the document.
Once your identity document(s) is uploaded, you can view those documents by clicking on the “Menu” icon in the upper left hand corner and selecting “View my Documents.”
On this page, you can see what documents you have uploaded to you PUA portal and see when they were uploaded.
Login to your PUA portal. On your dashboard, click the “Menu” icon in the upper left hand corner.
In the side menu, click on “Unemployment Services.”
On the next page, click on “Update Contact Information.”
This will take you to the “Update Contact Information” page.
Scroll down to the section that says “Residential Address.” If you need to update the address info, type the new address info into the boxes.
Scroll down to the section that says “Mailing Address” If you need to update the address info, type the new address info into the boxes.
Scroll to the bottom of the page and click “Save.”
PUA claimants who are granted the blanket waiver will only get a refund if they already paid back the overpayment out-of-pocket, or if some of their unemployment benefits were taken by the government to pay back the overpayment.
If you are granted the blanket waiver, but never paid the overpayment back out-of-pocket or did not have any of your unemployment benefits taken, that means you will not get a refund. But the overpayment debt itself will be waived (meaning, it will be $0).
Yes! This deadline is misleading. You are still eligible for the blanket waiver if you verify your identity and/or update your mailing address after March 30th, 2024.
If you verify your identity and/or update your mailing address after March 30th, it just means that you will have to wait longer to get your refund than claimants who did those things before March 30th.
The email was sent to the email address listed in your PUA portal. If your email changed since you last updated it in your PUA portal, then the refund email may have been sent there. You should login to your PUA portal and check what email address is listed there.
If it is not the email address you currently use, call the UC Service Center (888-313-7284) or email them ([email protected]). Tell them you think you should qualify for a PUA blanket waiver refund and want to confirm.