What Are The Eligibility Requirements To Draw Unemployment Benefits?

To be eligible to receive benefits, the nonmonetary requirements each week are as follows:

1. Be physically and mentally able to work.
2. Be either totally unemployed or performing less than full­time work and earning less than one­and­one­quarter (1¼) times your weekly benefit rate (a claimant earning less than this amount and working less than full­time may qualify for partial benefits, with 80% of his earnings deducted from his weekly benefits).
3. Be available for suitable work and making a reasonable effort to find employment.
4. Register for work with the Department for Employment Services.
5. Claim benefits for each week of unemployment.

You must also meet monetary requirements as follows:

1. Earned at least $750 in one quarter of your base period;
2. Total base period wages equal to at least 1 1/2 times your high quarter wages and total base period wages outside the high quarter must be at least $750; and
3. wages in the last six months of your base period equal to not less than 8 times your weekly benefit rate.