President Joe Biden has approved, at the request of Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a major disaster declaration for Virginia as it recovers from Hurricane Helene.
The declaration allows the Virginia Employment Commission to provide temporary financial assistance to individuals whose employment or self-employment was impacted by Hurricane Helene in the following communities: Giles, Grayson, Smyth, Tazewell, Washington, and Wythe counties, and the City of Galax.
Unemployed individuals, including self-employed individuals, who lost jobs, businesses or had their work hours reduced due to the hurricane may qualify for Disaster Unemployment Assistance. The VEC will accept applications for 60 days from October 2 through December 1, 2024. You may be eligible if you don’t qualify for regular Unemployment Insurance (UI) and were living, working or scheduled to work in an affected area when the disaster occurred.
DUA applies to losses beginning Sept. 25, 2024. The last payable week of the emergency benefit ends April 5, 2025, if your unemployment or self-employment continues as a direct result of the disaster. Eligibility for DUA benefits will be determined on a week-to-week basis for each week a claim is filed.
To be eligible for DUA, individuals cannot be eligible for regular unemployment benefits in any state. When you apply, you must be able to work, ready and willing to accept work, and have the time and means to work, unless you suffered injuries directly linked to the disaster.
DUA is a federal unemployment program that provides temporary payments for individuals who, as a direct result of Hurricane Helene:
- No longer have the job that provided their primary source of income.
- Are unable to reach their place of employment.
- Cannot work because of an injury caused by the storm.
- Were unable to begin employment or self-employment due to the storm.
- Became the primary support of your family because of the death of the head of the household because of the disaster
Unemployment is a direct result of the major disaster if the unemployment resulted from:
- The physical damage or destruction of the place of employment.
- The physical inaccessibility of the place of employment due to its closure by the federal, state, or local government in immediate response to the disaster.
- Lack of work, or loss of revenues, if, prior to the disaster, the employer or self-employed business received at least a majority of its revenue or income from an entity in the major disaster area that was damaged or destroyed in the disaster or an entity in the major disaster area closed by the federal, state, or local government.
Apply for the DUA benefits online at VEC’s Claimant Self Service, which can also be found on VEC’s website or you may call VEC’s Customer Contact Center at 1-866-832-2363. You will first have to complete the UI form to determine eligibility for UI benefits or DUA benefits.
To complete your application, you will need to provide your Social Security Number (SSN), and the name, address and dates of employment of all your employers for the past two years, including out-of-state employers.
You will need to provide all supporting evidence no more than 21 days after the application has been filed. The documents you need to provide might vary depending on your circumstances and previous employers but could include proof of identity, your most recent federal income tax form, and other documents proving that you were working or self-employed when the disaster happened. If you need to submit proof of income for the past year, you can submit documents after the 21 days deadline but no later than the end of the disaster assistance period. Delays in submitting documents can impact benefits and overall processing times.
Visit VEC’s website for more information about DUA and other programs for which you may qualify. You can also contact the VEC at 1-866-832-2363. To learn about all the federal assistance programs, you and your family might qualify for, the VEC recommends contacting FEMA’s helpline at 1-800-621-3362.
Reemployment services are available at Virginia Works offices around the state.
Share
Rebecca Barnabi
