How Do I File for Unemployment Insurance?

The U.S. Department of Labor's unemployment insurance programs provide unemployment benefits to eligible workers who become unemployed through no fault of their own and meet certain other eligibility requirements.

Unemployment insurance is a joint state-federal program that provides cash benefits to eligible workers. Each state administers a separate unemployment insurance program, but all states follow the same guidelines established by federal law.

Am I Eligible?

Each state sets its own unemployment insurance benefits eligibility guidelines, but you usually qualify if you:

Are unemployed through no fault of your own. In most states, this means you have to have separated from your last job due to a lack of available work.
Meet work and wage requirements. You must meet your state’s requirements for wages earned or time worked during an established period of time referred to as a "base period." (In most states, this is usually the first four out of the last five completed calendar quarters before the time that your claim is filed.)
Meet any additional state requirements. Find details of your own state’s program.

How Do I Apply?

To receive unemployment insurance benefits, you need to file a claim with the unemployment insurance program in the state where you worked. Depending on the state, claims may be filed in person, by telephone, or online.

You should contact your state's unemployment insurance program as soon as possible after becoming unemployed.
Generally, you should file your claim with the state where you worked. If you worked in a state other than the one where you now live or if you worked in multiple states, the state unemployment insurance agency where you now live can provide information about how to file your claim with other states.
When you file a claim, you will be asked for certain information, such as addresses and dates of your former employment. To make sure your claim is not delayed, be sure to give complete and correct information.
It generally takes two to three weeks after you file your claim to receive your first benefit check.

State Unemployment Insurance Offices

State	Agency	Phone Number(s)	Website
Alabama	Alabama Department of Labor	866-234-5382	https://labor.alabama.gov/uc/ICCS/
Alaska	Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development	907-269-4700	https://my.alaska.gov/
Arizona	Arizona Department of Economic Security	1-877-600-2722	https://des.az.gov/services/employment/unemployment-individual/apply-ui-benefits
Arkansas	Arkansas Department of Workforce Services	501-682-2121	https://www.ezarc.adws.arkansas.gov/
California	California Employment Development Department	1-800-300-5616	https://edd.ca.gov/Unemployment/Filing_a_Claim.htm
Colorado	Colorado Department of Labor and Employment	303-318-9000	https://www.colorado.gov/cdle/unemployment
Connecticut	Connecticut Department of Labor	1-800-956-3294	http://www.ctdol.state.ct.us/UI-OnLine/
Delaware	Delaware Department of Labor	New Castle County: 302-761-6576 Other Areas: 1-800-794-3032	https://uics.delawareworks.com/Forms/Form_WL1
District of Columbia	District of Columbia Department of Employment Services	202-724-7000	https://does.dcnetworks.org/InitialClaims/
Florida	Florida Department of Economic Opportunity	1-800-204-2418	http://www.floridajobs.org/Reemployment-Assistance-Service-Center/reemployment-assistance/claimants/apply-for-benefits
Georgia	Georgia Department of Labor	1-877-709-8185	https://dol.georgia.gov/
Hawaii	Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations	Oahu: 808-586-8970 Hilo: 808-974-4086 Kona: 808-322-4822 Maui: 808-984-8400 Kauai: 808-274-3043	https://huiclaims.hawaii.gov/
Idaho	Idaho Department of Labor	208-332-8942	https://www2.labor.idaho.gov/ClaimantPortal/Login
Illinois	Illinois Department of Employment Security	1-800-244-5631	https://www2.illinois.gov/ides/individuals/UnemploymentInsurance/
Indiana	Indiana Department of Workforce Development	1-800-891-6499	https://www.in.gov/dwd/2362.htm
Iowa	Iowa Workforce Development	1-866-239-0843	https://uiclaims.iwd.iowa.gov/UIInitialClaim/
Kansas	Kansas Department of Labor	1-800-292-6333	https://www.getkansasbenefits.gov/
Kentucky	Kentucky Career Center Office of Unemployment Insurance	502-564-2900	https://kcc.ky.gov
Louisiana	Louisiana Workforce Commission	1-866-783-5567	https://www.louisianaworks.net/hire/vosnet/
Maine	Maine Department of Labor	1-800-593-7660	https://reemployme.maine.gov/accessme/faces/login/login.xhtml
Maryland	Maryland Department of Labor	410-949-0022	http://www.dllr.state.md.us/employment/unemployment.shtml
Massachusetts	Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance	617-626-6338	https://www.mass.gov/unemployment-insurance-ui-online
Michigan	Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity	1-866-500-0017	https://www.michigan.gov/leo/0,5863,7-336-78421_97241---,00.html
Minnesota	Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development	Twin Cities Area: 651-296-3644 Greater Minnesota: 1-877-898-9090	https://uimn.org/applicants/
Mississippi	Mississippi Department of Employment Security	601-493-9427	https://www.mdes.ms.gov/unemployment-claims/claims-information/
Missouri	Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations	1-800-320-2519	https://uinteract.labor.mo.gov/benefits/home.do
Montana	Montana Department of Labor and Industry	406-444-2545	https://montanaworks.gov/Job-Seeker-UI-Claimant
Nebraska	Nebraska Department of Labor	1-855-995-8863	https://neworks.nebraska.gov/vosnet/
Nevada	Nevada Department of Employment Training and Rehabilitation	Northern Nevada: 775-684-0350 Southern Nevada: 702-486-0350 Rural Areas and Out of State Callers: 1-888-890-8211	http://ui.nv.gov/css.html
New Hampshire	New Hampshire Department of Employment Security	1-800-852-3400	https://nhuis.nh.gov/claimant/
New Jersey	New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development	North New Jersey: 201-601-4100 Central New Jersey: 732-761-2020 South New Jersey: 856-507-2340 Out-of-state claims: 1-888-795-6672	https://myunemployment.nj.gov/labor/myunemployment/before/about/howtoapply/
New Mexico	New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions	1-877-664-6984	https://www.jobs.state.nm.us/vosnet/Default.aspx
New York	New York Department of Labor	1-888-209-8124	https://applications.labor.ny.gov/IndividualReg/
North Carolina	North Carolina Department of Commerce	1-888-737-0259	https://des.nc.gov/
North Dakota	North Dakota Job Service	701-328-4995	https://www.jobsnd.com/unemployment-individuals/resources-unemployment-individuals
Ohio	Ohio Department of Job and Family Services	1-877-644-6562	http://jfs.ohio.gov/ouio/index.stm
Oklahoma	Oklahoma Employment Security Commission	405-525-1500	https://oklahoma.gov/oesc
Oregon	Oregon Employment Department	1-877-345-3484	https://secure.emp.state.or.us/ocs4/
Pennsylvania	Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry	1-888-313-7284	https://www.uc.pa.gov/unemployment-benefits/file/Pages/File%20an%20Initial%20Claim.aspx
Puerto Rico	Puerto Rico Department of Labor and Human Resources	787-625-7900	https://www.trabajo.pr.gov/desempleo_en_linea.asp
Rhode Island	Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training	401-243-9100	http://www.dlt.ri.gov/ui/
South Carolina	South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce	1-866-831-1724	https://dew.sc.gov/individuals/apply-for-benefits/claims-process
South Dakota	South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation	605-626-3179	https://dlr.sd.gov/ra/individuals/file_claim.aspx
Tennessee	Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development	1-877-813-0950	https://www.tn.gov/workforce/unemployment.html
Texas	Texas Workforce Commission	1-800-939-6631	https://www.twc.texas.gov/jobseekers/unemployment-benefits-services
U.S. Virgin Islands	U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Labor	340-773-1994	https://www.vidol.gov/how-and-where-to-apply/
Utah	Utah Department of Workforce Services	Salt Lake and South Davis Counties: 801-526-4400 Weber and North Davis Counties: 801-612-0877 Utah County: 801-375-4067 Other Counties and Out of State: 1-888-848-0688	https://jobs.utah.gov/ui/home/initialclaims
Vermont	Vermont Department of Labor	1-888-807-7072	https://labor.vermont.gov/unemployment-insurance/ui-claimants/establishing-unemployment-claim
Virginia	Virginia Employment Commission	1-866-832-2363	http://www.vec.virginia.gov/unemployed/online-services/apply-for-unemployment-benefits
Washington	Washington Employment Security Department	1-800-318-6022	https://secure.esd.wa.gov/home/
West Virginia	Workforce West Virginia	1-800-379-1032	https://uc.workforcewv.org/consumer/
Wisconsin	Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development	1-844-910-3661	https://dwd.wisconsin.gov/uiben/
Wyoming	Wyoming Department of Workforce Services	307-473-3789	https://wyui.wyo.gov/benefits/home.do

Guidance on Unemployment Insurance Flexibilities During COVID-19 Outbreak

NOTE: Check with your state’s unemployment insurance program regarding the rules in your state.

Federal law permits significant flexibility for states to amend their laws to provide unemployment insurance benefits in multiple scenarios related to COVID-19. For example, federal law provides states flexibility to pay benefits where:

An employer temporarily ceases operations due to COVID-19, preventing employees from coming to work;
An individual is quarantined with the expectation of returning to work after the quarantine is over; and
An individual leaves employment due to a risk of exposure or infection or to care for a family member.

In addition, federal law does not require an employee to quit in order to receive benefits due to the impact of COVID-19.

Webpages on this Topic

Office of Unemployment Insurance

State Unemployment Insurance

The Federal-State Unemployment Insurance Program provides unemployment benefits to eligible workers who are unemployed through no fault of their own (as determined under state law), and meet other eligibility requirements of state law.

Disaster Unemployment Assistance

Disaster Unemployment Assistance provides financial assistance to individuals whose employment or self-employment has been lost or interrupted as a direct result of a major disaster declared by the President of the United States.

Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees

The Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees program provides benefits for eligible unemployed former civilian federal employees.

Unemployment Compensation for Ex-Service Members

The Unemployment Compensation for Ex-Service Members program provides benefits for eligible ex-military personnel.

Unemployment Insurance Extended Benefits

Extended Benefits may be available to workers who have exhausted regular unemployment insurance benefits during periods of high unemployment.

Trade Readjustment Allowances

Trade Readjustment Allowances are income support to persons who have exhausted Unemployment Compensation and whose jobs were affected by foreign imports.

Self-Employment Assistance

Self-Employment Assistance offers dislocated workers the opportunity for early re-employment.

Unemployment Insurance Improper Payments By State

The U.S. Department of Labor collaborates with our state partners to identify several robust strategies that focus on the prevention of overpayments and will yield the highest impact in reducing unemployment insurance improper payment rates.

Through American Job Centers, all citizens can access services tailored to their individual needs. This includes employment and job training services, career planning and guidance and much more.

CareerOneStop provides online tools to assist workers with finding a job, utilizing available training opportunities or conducting career planning. There is no cost to businesses or workers who use this service.

The Department of Labor's toll-free call center can assist workers and employers with questions about job loss, layoffs, business closures, unemployment benefits and job training: 1-877-US-2JOBS (TTY: 1-877-889-5627).

Additional information on topics relevant to the unemployed can be found on the Department of Labor's web interface, Find It! By Audience - Job Seekers/Unemployed.