Will COVID-19 affect whether I can get benefits?
Yes. There are two ways that COVID-19 will affect if you can get benefits. The amount of time you can receive unemployment is increased by 13 weeks.
People who cannot get regular unemployment insurance might be able to get benefits from a new program called Pandemic Unemployment Assistance. This will give benefits to people who are usually not eligible for unemployment insurance such as independent contractors, people who are self-employed, gig workers, and people who have done some work recently but not enough to get regular unemployment insurance. This program is only available to people who cannot work for a COVID-19 related reason. This special program started accepting applications on April 28. Please apply on EDD’s website.