New York Unemployment Benefit Eligibility Requirements

To be eligible for Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits in New York State, you must meet the following requirements:

Earnings Requirements

• Have worked and earned enough wages in covered employment. In New York State, employers pay contributions that fund Unemployment Insurance. To establish a claim, you must have earned at least $5,544 in wages in the highest quarter of your base period and at least one and one-half times that amount ($8,316) in the entire base period.

Work Search Requirements

• You must be ready, willing, and able to work. This means that you must be actively looking for work and be able to accept work if offered. You must be able to work full-time and must not be restricting your availability to work.
• You must be actively seeking work. This means that you must be making efforts to find work, such as contacting employers, submitting resumes, and attending job fairs. You must be able to document your job search activities.

Job Loss Requirements

• You must have lost employment through no fault of your own. This means that you must not have been fired for misconduct or left your job voluntarily. You must have been laid off, discharged due to company downsizing or closure, or separated from your job for reasons beyond your control.

Additional Requirements

• You must be able to work full-time. This means that you must be able to work 40 hours per week.
• You must not be restricting your availability to work. This means that you cannot be limiting the types of jobs you are willing to accept, the hours you are willing to work, or the locations you are willing to work in.
• You must be physically and mentally able to work. This means that you must not have any medical conditions that prevent you from working.
• You must be a U.S. citizen or legally authorized to work in the United States.

If you meet all of these requirements, you may be eligible for UI benefits. The amount of your benefit will be based on your earnings history. You can file a claim for UI benefits online, by phone, or in person at your local unemployment insurance office.

For more information on UI benefits in New York State, please visit the New York State Department of Labor website: https://unemployment.labor.ny.gov/