How to File for Unemployment Insurance

You can file for unemployment benefits through a state office, which will determine your eligibility.

Unemployment insurance is administered in every state, following federal guidelines, for one purpose: to help you stabilize your financial situation and get back on your feet after becoming unemployed. Filing for unemployment benefits does not affect your credit rating or your ability to secure future work. You may feel emotional and even guilty when you file for benefits the first time, but recognize that if you need the money, this is what the system was created for.

Things You'll Need

• State-issued ID
• Past wage statements

Instructions

1. Locate your state's local unemployment office. You can typically do this by searching the government listings in your phone book or performing an Internet search. Do this immediately upon becoming unemployed.

2. Determine your options for filing an unemployment claim. Each state sets its own procedures, but typically you can file in person, over the phone or online. The unemployment office website should detail the possible ways to file.

3. Gather all the required information. You typically need your Social Security number, driver's license or other state government ID number, your address and phone number, contact information for previous employers over the past two years, and pay stubs or wage statements to demonstrate your previous earnings.

4. Contact the unemployment office using one of your state's available methods that you prefer. Phone or Internet filings often take less time than going to the office in person.

5. Provide all the information asked of you. This begins your claim, and your benefit check will arrive in the mail as soon as allowed by state law.

Tips & Warnings

• File your claim as soon as possible after becoming unemployed. Your claim begins the Sunday after your initial filing. Some states have a one-week waiting period before you receive your first check. You cannot claim previous weeks of unemployment, so any time you wait equals lost benefits.

• You must meet certain eligibility requirements to qualify for unemployment benefits. These requirements vary by state. You are not guaranteed benefits simply because you are unemployed.

References

• New York State Department of Labor: How to File an Unemployment Insurance Claim
• United States Department of Labor: State Unemployment Insurance Benefits
• Money Blue Book: How to File for Unemployment Insurance Benefits
• State of Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation: Welcome to the Florida Internet Claims Filing System
• Colorado Department of Labor and Employment: File for Unemployment