Unemployment Insurance Fraud

Claimants, employers, and third parties can commit unemployment insurance fraud under Maryland law. 

Claimant fraud is when someone receives or attempts to receive unemployment insurance benefits by knowingly providing incorrect information or intentionally failing to disclose information. 

Employer fraud can include taking certain actions to avoid tax liability or making false statements to prevent or reduce benefit payments to a claimant. 

Fraud can also be committed through identity theft, “hijacking” legitimate claims, or creating fictitious employer accounts that permit fake claims to be filed against that account.

Report Fraud

To report unemployment insurance fraud, please complete a Request for Investigation of Unemployment Insurance Fraud form and submit it by either:

• Emailing: ui.fraud@maryland.gov 
• Mailing:
  Benefit Payment Control
  100 South Charles Street
  Tower 1
  Baltimore, MD 21201

Claimants: Report an Incorrect 1099-G 

If your 1099-G tax form is incorrect or if you think you received a 1099-G by mistake because you didn’t receive unemployment insurance benefits in Maryland during the previous year, please complete this affidavit form and send it with a copy of your photo ID to dlui1099-labor@maryland.gov.

Employers: How to Report Fraudulent Benefit Charges 

If you’re an employer and believe a fraudulent claim was charged to your account, you can file a benefit charge protest in the Maryland Unemployment Insurance Portal (BEACON)  by:

• Selecting “Benefit Charge Functions” from the left menu
• Choosing the “Year/Quarter” hyperlink
• Selecting the “Claimant’s Social Security Number”
• Selecting “Request Relief of Charges”
• Choosing the reason for the protest
• Entering the reason for the protest (there will be an option to upload supporting documentation)

Employers may protest a fraudulent claim after the 30-day protest period by mail to:

• Division of Unemployment Insurance
  Review Determination Unit
  100 S. Charles Street, Tower 1, Suite 3100
  Baltimore, MD 21201

Employers will not be charged for benefits that are determined to be fraudulent.

Employers can help prevent fraud by:

• Reporting required information about new hires and rehires in the Maryland State Directory of New Hires
• Participating in audits by the Maryland Division of Unemployment Insurance to verify employment information (wages, reason for separation or reduced hours, job application information)
• Reporting the reason for separation when a former employee applies for unemployment insurance benefits
• Filing quarterly reports and paying unemployment insurance taxes

Fraud Resulting in Benefit Overpayment

If you knowingly make false statements, misrepresent your situation, or fail to give important facts to get or increase your unemployment benefits, you may be committing unemployment insurance fraud.

Some examples of fraud include:

• Filing for benefits while working and not reporting your earnings
• Not reporting payments (including wages, severance, pension/annuity, vacation/holiday pay) when filing your initial claim or completing your weekly certification

A fraud overpayment is the amount of unemployment insurance benefits you were paid for any weeks in which you committed fraud. If you are found to have committed fraud,  you may be:

• Considered overpaid for all benefits acquired fraudulently
• Required to repay the fraudulently acquired benefits, with a 15% penalty and a 1.5% monthly interest payment
• Disqualified from receiving UI benefits for at least 1 year
• Subject to imprisonment, a fine of up to $1,000, or both

If your overpayment is due to fraud because you worked part-time and had unreported earnings that were less than your weekly benefit amount, you must repay your entire weekly benefit amount for each week the fraud occurred. 

Many overpayments are not due to fraud. If you receive notice of an overpayment not related to fraud, you may be required to repay a portion of your weekly benefit amount. Learn more about audits and overpayments. 

Avoiding Scams

The Maryland Division of Unemployment Insurance is aware of scams where people are impersonating us through email, text message, and social media.

If something looks suspicious, do not provide any of your information. To verify that a message is from the Maryland Division of Unemployment Insurance, check your messages in the Maryland Unemployment Portal (BEACON) or theMaryland Unemployment Insurance Portal (BEACON) mobile apps. You can also call a claims agent at 667-207-6520, Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

Remember that we will never:

• Request payment for helping you
• Ask for yourMaryland Unemployment Insurance Portal (BEACON) password or financial information (for example: your bank account or credit card number) over email or social media
• Send a text message with links to verify your account
• Conduct adjudication or fact-finding interviews on an online platform, such as Zoom, Google Meet, or Skype

We do not reach out to claimants through direct message on social media platforms like Facebook, X (Twitter), or LinkedIn. We will never request your personally identifying information on social media.

Fraudulent social media accounts may look similar to the Division of Unemployment Insurance’s accounts. Signs that an account isn’t official may include: the account is newly created, the account doesn’t have a long history of posts, or the account includes misspellings.

If you find a fraudulent social media account, please report it to the social media platform immediately and do not respond to their messages. Links to the official Maryland Department of Labor’s social media accounts are listed below:

• Facebook - Maryland Department of Labor
• X (Twitter) - @MD_Labor
• LinkedIn - Maryland Department of Labor
• Instagram - @MD_Labor

Do not provide any sensitive information about your Maryland unemployment insurance claim (like your Social Security number) by email. For questions that require sharing sensitive information, call the Division at 667-207-6520, Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Note: If we receive a request from a claimant through a social media direct message, our team may respond to provide you with appropriate contact information to reach the Division of Unemployment Insurance, such as our phone number or email address. 

Identity Theft Resources

If you believe you are a victim of identity theft, please see the:

• Maryland State Police's Identity Theft Protection Quick Guide
• Commissioner of Financial Regulation identity theft page
• Maryland Department of Labor and Maryland State Police information

Quick Links

• Identity Verification Process
• Audits and Overpayments
• “How-To” and Technical Help
• Legal Services and Collections
• Contact Us