If your Pennsylvania unemployment compensation (UC) benefits claim was denied and you missed the deadline to file your appeal, you’re probably wondering if you still have a chance to receive PA UC benefits. In some cases, you can still successfully appeal your PA UC determination even if you are late in filing the appeal.
In Pennsylvania, employees are given just 15 days from the Notice of Determination to file an appeal in order to obtain a referee hearing, who will hear testimony form the employer and employee and determine whether the employee is eligible for PA UC benefits. 15 days is not a whole lot of time and often times employees miss the appeal deadline.
Section 501(e) is the section that applies to the time limit for PA UC appeals. This section states that the time limit is mandatory and can only be extended beyond the time limit when “through acts of fraud, the authorities have denied the claimant the right to appeal.” An example of fraud would be the unemployment office mailing you a notice several days after the mailed on date indicates on the notice depriving you of the opportunity to appeal.
Furthermore, in some limited circumstances, an appeal nunc pro tunc may be granted. This occurs if the appeal is late due to non-negligent circumstances and an appeal is filed within a very short time after the deadline. The best example of circumstances when a nunc pro tunc would be permitted is if the Claimant had a medical or family emergency and they did not have access to their mail.
If you missed the deadline to appeal your PA UC benefits determination and wondering if you would be able to appeal despite the untimeliness of the appeal, please call (484) 362-9286 for a consultation.
