SUI claims & rates

This guide covers: updating SUI rate when the annual notice arrives, reviewing historical rates, tracking SUI claims, and responding to a claim.

State unemployment insurance has two operational moments worth automating: the annual rate-determination notice (which sets what percent you'll be charged on wages for the year) and the per-claimant claim notice (which gives you ~7–14 days to protest before the account is auto-charged). Payrollix keeps both as first-class records on the client. Rates feed into payroll calculation by pay date; claims surface deadlines and let you record decisions.

Update SUI rate when the annual notice arrives

What it does: Records a new SUI/SUTA experience rate for a state and tax year, with the effective window and a copy of the rate notice PDF.

Where: Dashboard → Clients → [client] → SUI / SUTA Rates (/clients/{clientId}/sui-rates) → Add rate button.

Steps:

1. Click Add rate.
2. Pick the State, set Tax year, and choose Source (Rate notice / State portal / State API / Manual entry / New-employer default / Voluntary contribution).
3. Set the Effective date (typically Jan 1 of the year) and Expiration date (typically Dec 31).
4. Enter the Rate as a decimal — 0.027 means 2.7%. The form rejects values outside (0, 1].
5. Optional: Wage base (the state's taxable wage cap), Notice date, Voluntary-contribution deadline, Notes.
6. For composite-rate states (CA, NJ, PA, etc.), use the Components JSON field to break the rate into pieces — e.g. {"base_ui":"0.025","ett":"0.001"}. Payroll sums components on the calc side.
7. Upload the state's rate-determination PDF under "Rate-notice PDF (optional — archived to S3)".
8. Click Save rate.

Who: Accountant + SUPPORT.

Notes: Keep effective windows non-overlapping for the same state. Payroll resolves which rate applies by the pay date, so overlapping rows lead to ambiguity. The percent-vs-decimal validation will catch the common mistake of typing 2.7 instead of 0.027.

Review historical rates

What it does: Shows every rate ever filed for the client, by state and year.

Where: SUI / SUTA Rates page (main table).

Steps:

1. Open SUI / SUTA Rates.
2. The table shows: State · Year · Window · Rate · Wage base · Source · Notice · Actions.
3. Rate is displayed as a percentage (e.g. 2.7000%).
4. Click the PDF link in the Notice column to open the archived rate-determination notice in a new tab.
5. To delete a rate, click the trash icon — the confirmation prompt notes that the archived PDF (if any) is retained.

Notes: Don't delete a rate that was in effect during a previously filed quarter — the historical filing references it. Add a new row with a new effective window instead.

Track SUI claims

What it does: Logs unemployment claim notices from state agencies so the response deadline doesn't slip.

Where: Dashboard → Clients → [client] → SUI Claims (/clients/{clientId}/sui-claims).

Steps:

1. Open the SUI Claims page.
2. The table shows: State · Claimant · Claim # · Received · Deadline · Position · Status · Decision · Actions.
3. Overdue rows show the deadline in red with an (OVERDUE) tag.
4. If anything is past deadline, a red banner reads: "N overdue — these are auto-charging the account."
5. Use the Status filter to scope to Open / In progress / Responded / Decision received / Closed.

Who: Accountant + SUPPORT.

Notes: State SUI response windows are tight — typically 7 to 14 days from the notice date. Missing a deadline waives the protest and auto-charges the client's unemployment account, which feeds into next year's experience rate. Treat these as drop-everything work.

Log a new claim

What it does: Captures a state notice about a former employee filing for unemployment.

Where: SUI Claims page → Log claim button.

Steps:

1. Click Log claim.
2. Required fields: State (two-letter code) and Received date (defaults to today).
3. Recommended fields: Claim number (from the notice), Claimant first name / last name / SSN last 4 (matches the notice to your records), Notice date, Response deadline, Last day worked, Separation reason (lack_of_work · voluntary_quit · discharge · misconduct · reduction_in_force · still_employed · other).
4. Fill in Description with a one-line summary; use Notes for internal context.
5. Upload the Claim notice PDF (optional, archived).
6. Click Log claim.

Respond to a claim

What it does: Sets your employer position (protest vs. accept), tracks status through the agency's decision, and records whether the account was charged.

Where: SUI Claims page → inline dropdowns on each row.

Steps:

1. Find the claim row.
2. In the Position column, choose Pending, Protesting, Accepting, or Withdrawn. This is your stance going into the response.
3. In the Status column, advance the row through the pipeline — Open → In progress → Responded → Decision received → Closed — as you work it.
4. When the state issues its decision, the Decision column shows the result. If the decision flag indicates the account is charged, the badge is red; if not charged, green.
5. Use the trash icon to delete a record (e.g. duplicate entries). The archived PDF (if any) is retained.

Who: Accountant + SUPPORT.

Notes: Position and Status are independent — Position is what we're going to do; Status is where in the workflow we are. A claim can be Protesting (Position) and Responded (Status) at the same time.

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Related: State tax settings · State tax filing coverage · How tax payments work · Terminations.