Find information on how to respond to TWC employer notices, including a Notice of Application for Unemployment Benefits, Earnings Verification request and Notice of Maximum Potential Chargeback. You can also set up a designated address, appeal a TWC decision, and access our online Employer Benefits Services.
Use Online Employer Benefits Services
Log on to EBS to respond to notices and manage your account and claims.
When someone applies for unemployment benefits, TWC mails a Notice of Application for Unemployment Benefits for a new claim or a Request for Work Separation Information for an existing claim to the employer the claimant last worked for. You should respond promptly to either notice with detailed information about the claimant’s job separation. Detailed information from employers and claimants helps TWC make better decisions regarding unemployment benefits.
Include in your response:
- Dates worked
- Separation reason
- Additional pay if given
- Details on the separation, including the final incident, prior warnings, copies of relevant policies, and applicable witness statements
- Contact person’s name and phone number
If you have not designated an address for unemployment claim notices, we mail the correspondence to the address provided by the employee as their last work address. If you designate an employer mailing address, you can receive unemployment and chargeback notices at one specified location.
Responding to a Notice
You have 14 calendar days from the date we mail you a Notice of Application for Unemployment Benefits or Request for Work Separation Information to respond online or by fax, mail, or phone. TWC recommends you use the online Employer Response to Notice of Application. For help with responding online, see our Employer Response User Guide. The Employer Response Frequently Asked Questions also provides tips on using the online system.
After You Respond
If we receive your response to a Notice of Application for Unemployment Benefits within the 14-day deadline, you become an interested party to the claim.
If we receive your response to a Request for Work Separation Information within the 14-day deadline, and either we notified you we would charge your account for the claim or you were an interested party to the original claim, you are an interested party to the claim.
If you are an interested party, we mail you a copy of the claimant’s Determination on Payment of Unemployment Benefits, which explains whether the claim will be paid. By responding on time, you preserve your right to appeal the payment decision.
If we do not receive a response within the 14-day deadline, you are not an interested party to the claim. This means you do not receive a determination on the claim, and you do not have the right to appeal the determination. However, we mail you a determination indicating the response was late, and you may appeal this determination. If we plan to charge you for benefits paid to the claimant, the determination will include that information.
If the claimant does not have sufficient wages to qualify for unemployment benefits, you will receive a letter with that information.
Appealing the Decision
The claimant or the employer, if an interested party, can submit an appeal to a determination that is not in his or her favor. Each party has 14 calendar days from the date a determination is mailed to file a timely appeal. For more information, see Appeals Process for Employers.
After a claimant receives their first benefit payment, TWC mails a Notice of Maximum Potential Chargeback to base-period taxed employers, except the last employer, showing the maximum amount of benefits that TWC may potentially charge to the employer’s account. If you disagree with the chargeback amount, you must respond within 30 calendar days of the mail date listed on the notice. Log on to Employer Benefits Services (EBS) and navigate to the Other Services Information page or follow the instructions on the notice.
For more information, see Employer Unemployment Benefit Chargebacks.
If you do not designate an address for chargeback notices, we mail the correspondence to your address recorded with the TWC Tax Department.
For help with responding online, see our user guide on Employer Benefits Services: Other Services.
Texas law allows Texas employers with a Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) tax account number to designate mailing addresses for unemployment claim notices and/or chargeback notices.
Using a designated address allows you to receive unemployment and chargeback notices at one specified location.
You may designate any business-related address, such as:
- Human resources department
- Payroll department
- Service agent or third-party representative
You should choose a location where staff can access required information.
Staff who respond to a Notice of Application for Unemployment Benefits or Request for Work Separation Information must have access to information about job separations, so they can provide TWC with facts.
Staff who respond to a Notice of Maximum Potential Chargeback should have access to wage and separation information necessary for TWC to determine if charges should be applied to your account.
Choose one mailing address for your unemployment insurance notices, even if you have multiple locations, to receive unemployment notices at a single location. If you do not designate an address for chargeback notices, we mail the correspondence to your address recorded with the TWC Tax Department.
Log on to Employer Benefits Services (EBS) or complete and submit the Employer Designated Mailing Address Form to set up your designated address.
For more information, see: Designate an Employer Mailing Address
TWC sends a Wage Verification Form to employers, especially reimbursing employers, that shows the wages they reported in a claimant’s base period. Employers should review the wages reported and the charges they are responsible for if TWC pays benefits on the claim. If the employer disagrees with the reported wages, they must file a corrected quarterly wage report with Tax. For more information on correcting a quarterly wage report, see: How to Adjust a Filed Wage Report Online
TWC sends employers an Earnings Verification Request form requesting they report wages for a specific employee or former employee weekly instead of quarterly. TWC sends this form when an employer reported quarterly wages or reported a new hire, and the claimant was on unemployment during the weeks that the employer reported the earnings or new hire information. This allows TWC to correct earnings as needed.
To log on, you need the claimant's Social Security number and an Access Key, provided on the Request for Earnings Information letter or Earnings Verification form.
Electronically submit return-to-work information to the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).
Submit your return-to-work information by logging on to our Employer Benefits Services (EBS) portal. You can submit return-to-work dates for an individual employee(s), for a number of employees statewide, or upload a specific list of employees.
- For more information, see: Online Employer Benefits Services
- See a user guide on the Return-to-Work Information process
- See an EBS Administrator Duties user guide
To be eligible for unemployment benefits, claimants must be willing, able, and available for full-time work and they must apply for and accept suitable work. If you made a job offer to an applicant or gave your employees a chance to return to work but they refused, TWC needs to know. Please report these instances on our online Employer Work Refusal Documentation form. Although TWC will take appropriate action when you submit a report on individuals receiving unemployment benefits, not all submissions will prompt a return correspondence.
If the person did not appear for the interview or refused the job due to a reason not listed on the Documentation form, select Other from the Reason for Refusal drop-down menu, and give a short description in the Refusal Other Description field.
Employers can use these instructions to help with completing the form.
Employers who posted a job on WorkInTexas.com can follow these instructions to report why an applicant was not hired.
View our contact information for employers.
Learn more about Unemployment Tax Services or log on to UTS to manage your account.
If you have information that someone is fraudulently receiving unemployment benefits, or that an unemployment claim was filed using a stolen identity, report the Unemployment Fraud claim here: Report UI Fraud