Posted 6 July, 2026
Iowa Workforce Development, as part of its required annual review of unemployment insurance (UI) wages, announced that the maximum weekly benefit for unemployed Iowans will increase effective the benefit week of July 5, 2026.
Per Iowa law, IWD uses a formula each year to determine the maximum and minimum benefit amounts, taking into account the number of Iowans covered by unemployment insurance and their gross wages.
This year’s review has determined that the maximum weekly benefit for unemployed Iowans will increase to $790 in Fiscal Year 2027, up from $763 in FY2026.
The annual review undertaken by IWD also recalculates the state’s taxable wage base, or the portion of employee wages that employers are required to pay taxes on to fund unemployment insurance (UI). Last year, Governor Reynolds signed legislation that simplified the state’s UI tax tables and significantly decreased the maximum rates that Iowa employers paid on UI taxes. The taxable wage base for Calendar Year 2027 will be $21,100, up slightly from CY 2026 but down from $39,500 in CY 2025.
Iowa’s average annual wage is also recalculated by Iowa Workforce Development every year at this time as part of determining the above numbers. The average annual wage in 2025 was $63,213.58.