Employers must pull activation codes from the old system before Nov. 2, and an outside administrator cannot do it for them
Michigan employers have one week to do something nobody else can do for them. Until 4:30 p.m. on November 2, they can retrieve an activation code from the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency’s (UIA) soon-to-close Michigan Web Account Manager (MiWAM) and use it to open an account in the replacement system, MiUI. The UIA says activation is required to reach employer services for both unemployment insurance tax and benefits functions, so an employer that skips the step cannot manage claims in the new system.
MiWAM, a decade-old platform, goes offline permanently at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, November 2. MiUI’s benefits functions go live at 8 a.m. on Monday, November 9. In between, both systems are unavailable and UIA phone lines and local offices are closed. The agency’s October 2026 Michigan Employer Advisor newsletter adds that offices are also unavailable on Election Day, November 3, and Veterans Day, November 11.
What employers must do before November 2
Every Michigan employer has to set up its own MiUI account, including those that outsource unemployment insurance administration to a payroll provider or third-party administrator (TPA). The UIA is blunt on the point: a TPA cannot activate an employer’s account, and only the employer can complete the step. Employers with a Master access security role will see a MiUI Activation Code tab on the MiWAM landing page, and the code is eight digits long.
Plenty of employers have not got there yet. According to the Detroit Regional Chamber, about 23,165 Michigan employers, roughly 10 percent of businesses in the state, had not activated their MiUI accounts as of August 14, 2026, despite UIA reminders that date back to at least July.
Employers that use a TPA face more tasks. They must associate the TPA with their MiUI account so it can file the quarterly wage report on their behalf, and the UIA notes that report is required even when an employer has no employees or wages to report. MiUI also introduces two benefits permissions, “Edit Claims Forms Mailing” and “Edit Benefit Charges.” The UIA has warned that TPAs holding existing tax-related permissions may not receive the new roles automatically. Employers must assign them manually through MiUI University before November 9, or those administrators will not be able to manage benefits functions at launch.
Why the cost stakes are higher than a routine system change
Michigan’s maximum weekly unemployment benefit has climbed under legislation signed in December 2024, from $362 to $446 in April 2025, then to $530 on January 1, 2026, with $614 scheduled for January 1, 2027. Each increase raises the cost of a charge that goes unchallenged, and an employer locked out of MiUI cannot protest an improper charge in time.
Claims activity tends to follow the labor market, and US job growth slowed to 29,000 in September as unemployment rose. That leaves little room for blind spots in claims handling. Administrative slips carry a price as well, with EY analysis finding payroll errors cost organizations $289,722 per 1,000 employees a year.
State rules on claim timing are also moving elsewhere, as a pharmacy overtime fight halved Pennsylvania’s wage claim window. Michigan’s switch is a reminder that deadlines tied to a platform can be as unforgiving as those written into statute.
The UIA names account activation, access management and administrator permissions as the three priorities before November 9. Employers with Michigan operations should confirm today that their MiUI account is active and that any TPA or payroll provider holds the right permissions for benefits work.
