Michigan UIA Unemployment Qualifying requirements

The UIA will be using your standard base period to determine if your income allows you to obtain unemployment benefits. The standard includes the base period of the first four of the last five completed quarters before you filed your claim. The four quarters in a year:

January-March, April-June, July to September and October to December.
If you can not qualify in terms of its standard base period, the UIA will verify their income on
“Substitute” base period, the most recent four quarters ended.
There are two ways in which their income can qualify for unemployment uia benefits:

The four calendar quarters in a year are:
January – March, April – June, July – September and October – December.
If you cannot qualify based on your standard base period, the UIA will check your earnings in the “alternate” base period, which is the four most recently completed calendar quarters.
There are two ways in which your earnings may qualify you for unemployment benefits:
• “Regular” qualifying method: (a) For benefit years beginning January 4, 2009, and after,
you must have wages in at least two quarters in your base period. In one quarter, your wages
must be at least $2,871; and (b) total wages for all four quarters must equal at least one and a
half times the highest amount of wages paid in any quarter of the base period. ($2,871 x 1.5 =
$4,306.50)
OR
• Alternate Earnings Qualifier (AEQ): (a) You must have wages in at least two quarters; and
(b) total wages for all four quarters must equal at least 20 times the state average weekly wage
(SAWW). For 2009, the AEQ amount is $16,695.80. [20 x $834.79 (SAWW) = $16,695.80]