Do Independent Contractors Get Unemployment Benefits?
|
Posted by KC Morgan Apr 14, 2009 |
Do independent contractors get unemployment benefits? Self employment is a lonely road to walk, and sometimes the business and the work just isn’t there. Are you just completely out of luck and on your own, or can you get self employment assistance in the form of unemployment income?
Unemployment Benefits
Who qualifies for unemployment benefits? In the United States, only those who have contributed to the system of unemployment can potentially benefit from the system itself. Basically, this means that only those who have put money into unemployment are eligible to take it back out of state funds. People who have been continuously employed through a legal employer for six months are automatically eligible for unemployment benefits, depending upon the circumstances of their departure from the job.
Do independent contractors get unemployment benefits? Only if they pay into the system - something that is not done through the normal course of paying self employment taxes and working as an independent contractor. This does not mean, however, that self employment assistance is completely out of reach.
Self Employment Benefits for Independent Contractors
For those self employed professionals who can not receive traditional unemployment benefits, a federal assistance program is in place. This program provides independent contractors with an “allowance” that’s not unlike traditional unemployment benefits. The assistance program is in place for those times when there isn’t enough self employment income coming in through no fault of the professional.
Independent contractors may also choose to take advantage of unemployment insurance. These policies are provided by the federal government and work in the same way any insurance policy does: self employed professionals pay into the policy when income is steady; when income is not steady, the policy will return some financial support. Through special programs and safeguards, even independent contractors can receive a form of unemployment benefits.