Appealing a Service Center Determination to a UC Referee

The claimant or the employer who was unsuccessful may file an appeal to a determination no later than 21 calendar days after the determination date provided on the notice of determination to a UC Appeals Referee and a hearing will be scheduled. When the 21st day of the appeal period falls on a day on which the department is closed (i.e., Saturday, Sunday or holiday), the appeal period is extended to the next business day. The last day to appeal will be listed on your determination.  If an appeal is not filed on time, the UC Appeals Referee will determine if there was good cause for filing a late appeal.

Appeals may be filed:

• Online from your UC account;
• By completing the Petition for Appeal (included with your determination) and mailing, emailing or faxing the appeal form to the department;
• By mailing, emailing or faxing an appeal letter to the department; or
• By delivering a Petition for Appeal or appeal letter in-person to a PA CareerLink® office.

An appeal letter must include:

1.  Name and address of the claimant
2.  Last four digits of the Social Security number of the claimant
3.  Claim number or the determination number (if known)
4.  Date of the determination being appealed
5.  Reason for the appeal, and
6.  Name, mailing address, phone number and email address of the individual filing the appeal.

If you receive a notice of a determination but are not able to file an appeal from that determination electronically through your UC account, you must use one of the other methods to file an appeal, such as USPS mail, email, fax or personal delivery, as described below. The Petition for Appeal (to UC Appeals Referee) form can be found here.

Appeals may be delivered by:

        Mail:    Mail Processing Unit
                     651 Boas Street, 5th Floor
                     Harrisburg PA 17121

        Fax:    855-728-2329

        Email: UCAppeals@pa.gov

        In-person to a PA CareerLink® office.

You may not file an appeal in person at a UC Service Center.

To file online (Best Option)

•  Go to: benefits.uc.pa.gov
•  Log in
•  Click Unemployment Services → Appeals → Determination
•  Select File Appeal
•  Fill out the questions, including why you disagree with the determination
•  Submit

You should see: “Appeal Successfully Filed.”  If you don’t see this message, try again or use another method right away.

See step-by-step guide: Appeals  Guide and video: How to File an Appeal Online

Need help filing your appeal? Call the UC Service Center at 1-888-313-7284 and staff will talk you through your options.

Important: Your appeal must be sent on time. Each filing method has rules that decide your filing date. 

If you appeal by mail:

• US Postal Service: The filing date is the US Postal Service postmark date, the date of a Postal Service certificate of mailing or the date of a Postal Service certified mail receipt. To obtain a postmark aligning with the date of mailing, you may request a manual (local) postmark at a retail USPS location.  Customers who wish to retain a record or proof of the date on which the Postal Service first accepted possession of their mail may purchase a Certificate of Mailing.  Registered Mail and Certified Mail services also provide mailing receipts for individual mail pieces. In the absence of these dates, the filling date is the date of a postage meter mark. In the absence of all of the above dates, the filing date is the date the department receives the appeal.   
• Common Carrier: The filing date is the date the envelope containing the appeal is delivered to a common carrier. If that date cannot be determined, the filing date is the date the department receives the appeal.
• If the sources above are not available, the date the appeal is filed will be the date it is received by the department.

If you appeal by fax:

• The filing date is the date imprinted by the receiving fax machine. If the receiving fax machine does not imprint a legible date, the appeal is filed on the date of transmission imprinted by the sending fax machine. If the faxed appeal does not contain a legible date of transmission, it is filed on the date recorded by the department when it receives the appeal.
• The fax number for your appeal is: 855-728-2329
• You are responsible for any delay, disruption, or interruption of electronic signals and the readability of the appeal, and you accept the risk that the appeal may not be properly or timely filed.

If you appeal by electronic mail (email):

• If you file your appeal by email, the appeal is filed on the date of receipt recorded by the department's electronic transmission system.
• You are responsible for using the proper format and email address
• The email address for your appeal is: UCAppeals@pa.gov.
• If you file your appeal by email to UCAppeals@pa.gov, you should receive a confirmation email that your appeal was received. Keep this confirmation email for your records. If you don't receive a confirmation email, check that you sent the email to the correct address. If you did, contact the UC Service Center or file your appeal by another method prior to the appeal deadline.
• You are responsible for using the proper format, sending the appeal to the designated electronic address, for delay, disruption, interruption of electronic signals and readability of the document and accept the risk that the appeal may not be properly or timely filed.
• Please be advised that the department cannot guarantee the security of personally identifiable information submitted electronically.

If you appeal in person at a PA CareerLink®:

•  The filing date is the date you deliver the appeal to a PA CareerLink® office during regular business hours. The PA CareerLink® will forward your appeal to the UC Service Center.
•  Keep a date-stamped copy of the appeal for your records.
•  The PA CareerLink® office is not able to answer questions regarding determinations, appeals, or specific information on your claim.

The appeal will be assigned a docket number and forwarded to a UC Referee. The Referee will send all interested parties a Notice of Hearing. This hearing notice will give you, and the other interested parties, the time and place of the hearing and the issues and parties involved.  The hearing notice will also inform you whether any of the parties are scheduled to participate in the hearing remotely by telephone.

The purpose of the hearing, and the duty of the Referee, is to obtain all evidence related to the issues being appealed. After getting all the facts on the record, the Referee will then apply the appropriate laws, rules, procedures, and precedent court decisions in order to make a proper decision. The Referee is unbiased and has no special or personal interest in the ultimate outcome of the hearing. The outcome will be based on the evidence and testimony provided at the hearing.

The hearing is not a "round table" discussion. Testimony and evidence must be limited to the issue(s) before the Referee. Each party in attendance has the right to present testimony and evidence.

Following the hearing, the Referee will consider the facts presented at the hearing and issue a decision based on these facts. The decision will be delivered to you by USPS mail and/or email, based on your chosen contact method in the UC System.

If you feel that a conflict of interest would be created if the hearing were to be conducted by the assigned Referee, you may advise the Appeals System Administrator, in writing, giving your reasons and requesting that another Referee be assigned. Send your request to:

Mail:       Appeals System Administrator
                   UC Board of Review
                   651 Boas St.
                   Room 1116
                   Harrisburg, PA 17121-0751

Email: ra-li-ucbr-CentralOf@pa.gov

Fax:        717-787-6125

If a party is scheduled to appear by telephone and you want to make a request that they appear at the hearing in person, you must send a written objection to the Referee Office.  You must state the reason for your objection in your request.  Send the objection by mail, email or fax or deliver it to the Referee Office listed on the hearing notice.

If you are scheduled to attend the hearing in person and want to appear remotely by telephone, make a request in your UC account or send a written request by mail, email or fax or deliver it to the Referee Office listed on your hearing notice.  If you are scheduled to attend remotely and want to appear in person, contact the Referee Office. 

The Referee may deny untimely requests so make your request as soon as possible.

When making a written request, include:  

1.    Claimant’s name 
2.    Docket number 
3.    What you are asking for  (e.g. phone or in-person hearing, objection to phone hearing, etc.)
4.    The reason for your request 

You should organize the facts and circumstances relating to the appeal. Review the appeal file available either on your UC account or included with your hearing notice. Gather any additional documents having to do with the case, make copies, and take the documents to the hearing. If it is a phone hearing, make sure you supply the documents to the Referee Office five days in advance of the hearing so they can be circulated to all parties.

Although the hearings are informal, they do involve testifying under oath, cross-examination, rebuttals and witnesses. All hearings are recorded.

Representation

As a claimant or employer, you can represent yourself before the Referee or the Board. You can also have an attorney or another person represent you (at your own expense).

If you are a claimant, free legal aid might be available. Contact a local legal service organization, bar association, or law school clinic. They may have resources to help you.

Documents

Hearing exhibits can be viewed online in your UC account or at the Referee Office. For telephone hearings, the case file will be sent to you with the hearing notice by your chosen contact method in the UC system.  If the hearing exhibits are delivered to you electronically and you wish to receive paper copies, contact the Referee Office listed on the hearing notice.  If you wish to review the case file at the Referee Office, a form of identification must be provided such as the hearing notice. If documents are missing or you want to provide additional documents, please mail, email, fax or deliver them to the Referee Office or upload them into the appeal case file on your UC account as soon as possible.

Instructions to view the exhibits in the appeal case file after a hearing is scheduled and to upload documents into the case file through your UC account can be found here.

Assistance

If you need assistance because of a disability with hearing, speech, and/or vision, or for a language other than English, contact the Referee Office listed on the hearing notice as soon as you receive it or make a request through your UC account.

Witnesses

It is important for the parties and any other witnesses with firsthand knowledge of the facts or issues on appeal to appear and testify at the hearing. Firsthand knowledge means that witnesses directly observed, heard, or participated in the matters about which they are to testify.

If there are any witnesses who have firsthand knowledge of the matter, and you wish to have them testify or bring documents to the hearing, you must notify them of the date, time, and place of the hearing and arrange for them to be present. If a witness can testify only to what they were told by someone else, such testimony alone cannot be used in making the decision.

Subpoenas

If your witness refuses to appear or provide documentary evidence, you may submit a request to the Referee to issue a subpoena to compel the witness to attend the hearing. If the subpoena is issued by the Referee, you will have to serve the subpoena on the witness, and it will require their presence at the hearing. Requests for subpoenas may be submitted through your UC account or by mail, email or fax to the Referee Office listed on your hearing notice.

Claimant Appeals

If you are a claimant appealing an ineligible determination, the benefit weeks involved will be paid only if the decision is reversed. If you are eligible for benefits but appealing for a higher weekly benefit rate, the benefit weeks will be paid at the current rate. If the appeal is decided in your favor, you will be issued supplemental benefits for the difference between the two rates.

Continued Filing of Claims – IMPORTANT

If you are a claimant who is still partially or fully unemployed while an appeal concerning your eligibility is pending, continue to file your weekly claims for benefits. If the appeal is decided in your favor, only benefits for the weeks you claimed will be released for payment.

Employer Appeals

If you are an employer appealing an eligible determination, the claimant will continue to be paid benefits during the appeal. If the eligibility determination is reversed, you may be eligible for relief from charges.

Note: An appeal on an employee's eligibility is not the same as an employer's request for relief from charges. The request for relief from charges must be filed separately from the eligibility appeal. An employer who does not appeal an eligibility determination may not later dispute that determination in a relief from charges proceeding.

The party who filed the appeal may request to withdraw the appeal at any time prior to a decision being issued by the Referee. The party must contact the Referee Office responsible for the hearing to withdraw the appeal. A withdrawal request must be submitted through the party’s UC account or in writing by mail, email or fax to the Referee Office listed on the hearing notice.

If you cannot attend a hearing, make a request for a continuance (postponement) of the hearing right away to the Referee Office listed on the hearing notice. A continuance will be granted only for "proper cause" and upon terms deemed proper by the Referee. If a continuance of the hearing is granted, the hearing will be rescheduled.  The Referee may deny the request if it is untimely.  If you request a continuance and do not receive a response, assume the request was not approved and appear for the hearing as scheduled.

If you were prevented from attending the scheduled hearing because of a compelling reason, you may request to have the hearing reopened. You must set forth the specific reasons and circumstances that prevented you from appearing at the hearing.

It is important that you submit the request in writing as promptly as possible. If the Referee receives the request after the decision is issued, it is considered a request for further appeal to the Board. The Board then rules upon the request for further hearing. The written request may be submitted through your UC account or be mailed, emailed, faxed or delivered to the Referee Office listed on the hearing notice.

The information provided on this site does not constitute a determination of eligibility to receive unemployment compensation.