Each year, we determine premium rates for employers based on a number of factors, including the amount of money already paid and unemployment benefit payments made to former employees. Employers must pay annual premiums for each employee's chargeable wages.
The chargeable wage limits are:
- $20,400 for 2023
- $17,000 for 2022
- $13,600 for 2021
- $13,600 for 2020
- $13,100 for 2019
- Beginning Rate for New Employers
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New employers start paying UI premiums at a beginning rate depending on the type of business activity. For rate year 2023 the rate consists of only the base rate. There are no surcharges in effect for 2023. For more information about surcharges, see the below tab.
- Computed Rate
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After an employer has paid wages for a sufficient number of quarters the employer is eligible for a computed rate based on the experience of the business.
The formula for a computed rate is:Total Premiums Paid in to the account minus Total Benefits Charged to the account divided by the Average Chargeable Payroll. The result of this formula is the percent of excess.
Look for the percent of excess in the left hand column of the rate chart and follow that line to the right across the chart to the column heading "Reserve Ratio .000 - Deficit". The point of intersection is the base rate for 2023.
(Rates for years prior to 2013 used a different rate chart with columns based on the level of the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund on any June 30.)
- Rate Increases
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There may be several reasons why your business sees a rate increase.
Some of the common reasons include:- The average annual payroll increased.
- There were new benefit charges to the account.
- The level of the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund decreased.
- The business stopped paying wages for a period of time and lost its computed rate.
- Claims for Benefits
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Premiums are contributions paid by Colorado employers to help protect the economy. We administer these contributions by paying unemployment insurance benefits to persons unemployed through no fault of their own.
- Rate Protest
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If you believe there is an error in the figures used to calculate your rate, you may submit a written protest.
Rate protests can be submitted online starting December 1, 2022. The deadline for a Rate Protest to be submitted is January 13, 2023. - Solvency Surcharge for Rates
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Employer rates may be impacted by a solvency surcharge, depending on the state of the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. When the trust fund experiences a deficit, employer rates are likely to increase in the following year(s). In accordance with SB22-234, the solvency surcharge is suspended for the year 2023, but will likely go into effect in the year 2024. This solvency surcharge is a result of the UI Trust Fund’s level of solvency decreasing below a level that ensures the ability of the UI program to pay UI benefits.
Contact Unemployment Employer Services
cdle_employer_services@state.co.us
303-318-9100 (Denver-metro area)
1-800-480-8299 (outside Denver-metro area)
UI Employer Services
P.O. Box 8789
Denver, CO 80201-8789