April 25, 2024
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1099-G tax forms for unemployment recipients now available

By J.T. Pedelty
FILE - This July 24, 2018, file photo shows a portion of the 1040 U.S. Individual Income Tax Return form. The IRS began accepting and processing tax returns for individuals on Monday, Jan. 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

1099-G tax forms - required for Illinois residents who claimed unemployment benefits in 2020, are now available online. (Mark Lennihan)

1099-G tax forms are now available for claimants who received unemployment insurance benefits in 2020, the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) announced today.

Claimants who collected benefits last year need the 1099-G tax form from IDES to complete state and federal tax returns. The form is necessary for individuals who received state or federal UI benefits. This includes claimants who received regular UI benefits and/or benefits under the new federal pandemic relief programs, including Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC), Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), Lost Wages Assistance (LWA) and state Extended Benefits (EB).

Claimants who opted to receive their 1099-G tax form electronically, which is an option available when claimants establish an IDES account, will receive an email notification with instructions to access the document from the IDES website. Claimants who opted not to receive their 1099-G tax form electronically will receive a paper form via regular mail; these claimants may also access and print their 1099-G form online by visiting the IDES website. Previous years’ 1099-G information is also available for claimants online for the prior seven years.

Additional information about the 1099-G form is available on the IDES website. Individuals who have questions can call 800-244-5631 and select the appropriate queue to speak with an expert.

Individuals who did not apply for or receive UI benefits in 2020 but receive a 1099-G tax form from IDES are asked to immediately contact the Department. Receiving this form without having applied for or received unemployment benefits is an indication of identity theft and that a fraudulent claim was filed using the personally identifying information of an individual.

More information about unemployment fraud and how to protect your information can be found on the IDES website. After fraudulent activity has been reported, the Department will investigate the matter and work with victims to get them a corrected form. Victims of identity theft will not be held responsible for repaying any benefits that may have been administered in their name by fraudsters, nor will they be held responsible for tax implications resulting from a fraudulent claim. To date, IDES has stopped more than 962,000 fraudulent unemployment claims since March 1, 2020.

IDES understands the urgency associated with tax season and is committed to ensuring Department resources are available to assist individuals with questions regarding the 1099-G tax form and filing process. For tax-filing information, individuals are encourage to call the Internal Revenue Service at 800-829-1040 or visit their website at IRS.gov.