Established as a constitutional amendment back in 1976, the Permanent Fund Dividend program is administered by the construction of the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation, or APFC, whose board members manage and invest our state’s oil revenues. Longtime Alaska Governor Jay Hammond and Legislator Clem Tillon, who’s from Halibut Cove, right across Kachemak Bay in Homer, were instrumental in its creation. 

The PFD is an investment fund designed to benefit all Alaskans. Each year, the APFC board of trustees pays all eligible Alaskans a share of the profits from income-producing investments like the trans-Alaska pipeline. Payments from this dedicated fund will support Alaskans for generations to come.

To be eligible for this year’s PFD:

• You must have lived in the state for all of 2023.
• You must intend to remain in Alaska indefinitely.
• You must not have claimed residency or obtained residency benefits in any other state or country since December 31, 2021.
• You must not have left Alaska for more than 180 days unless it was for an allowable absence (Don’t worry, we’ll get to that below).
• You must have physically been in Alaska for at least 72 consecutive hours during 2021 or 2022.
• You must not have been sentenced or incarcerated due to a felony conviction during 2022.
• You must not have been sentenced or incarcerated due to a misdemeanor conviction in Alaska if you have been convicted of a felony or two-plus misdemeanors since January 1, 1997.

1. What Are Allowable Absences?
   You can find a complete guide to allowable abseances here. Official reasons you’re allowed to leave Alaska while still receiving your PFD include:
2. receiving secondary or post-secondary education on a full-time basis
   receiving vocational, professional, or other specific education on a full-time basis for which, as determined by the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education, a comparable program is not reasonably available in the state.
3. serving on active duty as a member of the armed forces of the United States or accompanying, as that individual’s spouse, minor dependent, or disabled dependent, an individual who is
   1. serving on active duty as a member of the armed forces of the United States
   2. eligible for a current year dividen
4. serving under foreign or coastal articles of employment aboard an oceangoing vessel of the U.S. merchant marine
5. receiving continuous medical treatment recommended by a licensed physician or convalescing as recommended by the physician who treated the illness if the treatment or convalescence is not based on a need for climatic change
6. providing care for your parent, spouse, sibling, child, or stepchild with a critical life-threatening illness whose treatment plan as recommended by the attending physician, requires travel outside the state for treatment at a medical specialty complex
7. providing care for your terminally ill family member
8. settling the estate of your deceased parent, spouse, sibling, child or stepchild provided the absence does not exceed 220 cumulative days
9. serving as a member of the United States Congress
10. serving on the staff of a member from this state of the United States Congress
11. serving as an employee of the state in a field office or other location
12. accompanying a minor who is absent under reason (5) above
13. accompanying another eligible resident who is absent for reasons (1), (2), (5)-(12) as the spouse, minor dependent, or disabled dependent of the eligible resident
14. serving as a volunteer in the federal peace corps program
15. training or competing as a member of the United States Olympic Team
16. participating for educational purposes in a student fellowship sponsored by the United States Department of Education or by the United States Department of State
    
    Even if you’ve been out of state for an allowable absence, you need to have returned to Alaska for a minimum of 72 consecutive hours during the past two years to maintain PFD eligibility.

Think you qualify? Here’s how to get started.

Apply Online

You can easily apply online by clicking here. Although the application is now closed, it will become active again when the next filing period begins at 9AM on January 1st.

The filing period lasts from 9AM on January 1st of any given year to March 31 at 11:59:59 PM.

Once the filing period opens, it’s easy to access the materials you need. Simply click this link and fill out all the forms your particular application requires.

Once you submit your PFD application, you can monitor its status through the myPFD portal.

The PFD payout varies each year. Here’s of a breakdown of what it is now as well as what it’s been in the past:

• 2023: $3,800 (estimated)
• 2022: $3,284.00
• 2021: $1114.00
• 2020: $992.00
• 2019: $1,606.00
• 2018: $1,600.00

• Treat yo’ self! Indulge in an Uncle Herb’s shopping spree and enjoy some cannabis goodness. Stop by our Anchorage Boniface, Anchorage Arctic Spur, Anchorage King Circle or Homer locations—and check out our deals page to get the best bang for your PFD buck.
• Donate using the Pick Click Give program, which makes it easy to use your PFD funds to benefit our community by effortlessly donating to programs you care about statewide.
• Stash it away. Many Alaskans consider their PFD a good source of funds for college or retirement savings accounts.
• Support your favorite local business. Uncle Herb’s is all about shopping local, so if you’d like to spread the bounty to additional local businesses or organizations, check out our handy directory to discover some of our personal favorites.
• Make some home improvements. The PFD is a nice opportunity to buy new furniture or high-quality tools.
• Use it on essentials. Groceries and gas are getting more expensive, and the PFD payment can take the edge off.
• Take a vacation! Celebrate Alaska by using your PFD to head into the wilderness for some hunting, fishing, or outdoor relaxation.