To keep benefits coming, file an Oregon unemployment weekly claim for every week you want paid, using Frances Online or the automated phone line. Each claim covers one Sunday-through-Saturday week that has already ended, and you confirm that you were able and available to work, list your work search activities, and report any earnings. Skip a week and you have to restart your claim before you can file again.1Oregon Employment Department. Frequently Asked Questions
When to File
Oregon’s benefit week runs Sunday through Saturday, and you file for the week that just ended.2Oregon Employment Department. Glossary The filing window opens at midnight Sunday and closes at 11:59 p.m. the following Saturday.3Oregon Employment Department. Weekly Claims That gives you seven days to file on time. For the very first week of your benefit year, you get 13 days instead of seven.4Oregon Secretary of State. Oregon Administrative Rules 471-030-0045
File your first weekly claim the Sunday after you submit your initial application, even if you haven’t received a decision yet. If your claim is approved later, Oregon pays retroactively for the weeks you claimed on time.1Oregon Employment Department. Frequently Asked Questions
Your first eligible week is a waiting week. You file it and meet every eligibility requirement, but Oregon does not pay benefits for that week.5Oregon Public Law. Oregon Revised Statutes 657.155 – Benefit Eligibility Conditions You won’t get waiting week credit if you worked full time that week, earned more than your weekly benefit amount, or didn’t file on time.1Oregon Employment Department. Frequently Asked Questions
What to Have Ready Before You Log In
Every weekly claim asks the same core questions. Gather the answers before you start so nothing on the screen catches you off guard.
Work Search Records
Oregon requires at least five work search activities per week, and at least two of those must be direct contacts with employers. Direct contact means reaching out to an employer in whatever way that employer prefers: online application, phone, email, or in person.6Oregon Employment Department. Unemployment Insurance Claimant Handbook The other three can be things like updating your resume, reviewing job listings, or attending a WorkSource Oregon workshop.
For each direct employer contact, the form asks for the employer’s name, your potential job title, the location, the date, how you made contact, and the result.7Oregon Employment Department. How to File a Weekly Claim Keep a running log during the week. You’ll also need to create a Job Seeker profile in iMatchSkills through WorkSource Oregon as part of your work search obligations.8WorkSource Oregon. Job Seeker Services
Earnings From Any Work
Report gross earnings, meaning the total before taxes and deductions, for the week you performed the work, not the week you were paid. Even if you worked a few hours and haven’t been paid yet, those wages belong on the claim for the week you did the work. Vacation pay and holiday pay count too.9Oregon Employment Department. Working While Claiming – Reporting Earnings On Your Weekly Claim
Ability and Availability
You’ll confirm you were physically able to work and available to accept a full-time job during the entire week you’re claiming. If you turned down a job offer that week, be ready to explain why. Refusing suitable work without good cause can disqualify you from benefits.10Oregon Employment Department. How to Apply for Unemployment Insurance Benefits
Filing Through Frances Online
Most claimants use the Frances Online portal. The flow is straightforward:
- Sign in at frances.oregon.gov/claimant with your email and password.
- On your home screen, find the “Ready to File” message and select “File Now.”
- Answer the eligibility screens about job offers, separations, and whether you were able and willing to work.
- Enter each direct employer contact (name, job title, location, date, method, and result) plus any additional work search activities.
- Enter gross wages for any work performed during the week, including hours you haven’t been paid for yet.
- Confirm your mailing address, check the accuracy box, and submit.
Frances Online shows a confirmation once your claim is in. The Employment Department also publishes a step-by-step visual guide if you want to see each screen before you file the first time.7Oregon Employment Department. How to File a Weekly Claim
Filing by Phone
The automated phone line is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There is no wait for a live agent; the system walks you through the same questions using your keypad, and you can choose your language after dialing.3Oregon Employment Department. Weekly Claims The toll-free number is 1-877-345-3484 (1-877-FILE-4-UI). Regional lines are 503-451-2400 in the Portland area, 541-388-6207 in Bend, and 541-686-7800 in Eugene.11Oregon Employment Department. Ways to Contact Us
How Much You’ll Get, and When
Your weekly benefit amount equals 1.25 percent of your total gross earnings during your base year, roughly the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you filed. As of July 2025, the minimum weekly benefit is $204 and the maximum is $872. Those figures update every July 1. Oregon provides up to 26 weeks of regular benefits within a 52-week benefit year, and you can’t start a new initial claim until that 52-week period ends.2Oregon Employment Department. Glossary If you’re working part time and earning less than your weekly benefit amount, you may still qualify for a partial benefit, but you must report all gross earnings.
Once a weekly claim is processed without issues, payments usually arrive within a few business days, though your bank’s timing and federal holidays can add a day. Oregon pays electronically by direct deposit or a ReliaCard Visa prepaid debit card; if you don’t set up direct deposit through Frances Online, the state automatically issues a ReliaCard.2Oregon Employment Department. Glossary You can track each week in Frances Online, where the status changes from “Pending” to “Paid” with the amount and date sent.12OED Unemployment Insurance. Status Messages
What Happens If You Miss a Week
If you stop filing for any reason, whether you forgot, went on vacation, or were sick, you have to restart your claim before you can file again. Oregon does not pay retroactively for weeks you never claimed.1Oregon Employment Department. Frequently Asked Questions Even if nothing about your situation has changed, the state treats the gap as an interruption. File every single week you want a benefit, including during holidays and while any pending decision or appeal is unresolved.
Why Accuracy Matters on Every Claim
If Oregon later determines you were paid benefits you weren’t entitled to, you have to repay the full amount whether the mistake was intentional or not, and the state can deduct the overpayment from future benefits.13Oregon Public Law. Oregon Revised Statutes 657.310 – Repayment or Deduction of Benefits Paid
If the overpayment involved a false statement or misrepresentation, Oregon adds a penalty of 15 to 30 percent of the overpaid amount. Unpaid overpayments accrue interest at 1 percent per month starting 60 days after the decision becomes final, and the debt can be referred to the U.S. Treasury for offset against your federal tax refund.13Oregon Public Law. Oregon Revised Statutes 657.310 – Repayment or Deduction of Benefits Paid The best defense is honest reporting of earnings, hours, and job refusals on the weekly claim.
Taxes on Your Benefits
Unemployment benefits are taxable at both the federal and state level. Oregon sends you a Form 1099-G after year-end showing the total paid, which you use when you file your tax return.14Internal Revenue Service. About Form 1099-G, Certain Government Payments
To avoid a bill in April, you can ask Oregon to withhold from each payment: 10 percent for federal income tax, 6 percent for state. You can choose one, both, or neither, and you can turn withholding on or off at any time by submitting the form to the Employment Department.15Oregon Employment Department. Tax Liability Unemployment Insurance If you don’t opt in, nothing is withheld and you’re responsible for setting money aside on your own.