Can I apply for new EDD benefits after benefit year ended with no job?
I just hit the end of my benefit year last week and realized I'm in a weird situation. My UI claim officially expired, but I still don't have a job (had a few interviews but nothing panned out yet). I'm confused about what happens next - can I immediately file a new claim for unemployment, or do I have to wait until after I file my taxes for 2025? The EDD website is super confusing about this. My previous claim was from getting laid off from my restaurant management position. I've applied to about 15 jobs in the past month but the market seems really slow right now. Anyone know what the rules are about starting a new benefit year?
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Chloe Zhang
Yes, you can file a new claim right away after your benefit year ends - you don't need to wait for tax season! However, there are important qualifications: you need to have earned enough wages in the base period (usually the 12-15 months before filing) from W-2 employment to qualify for a new claim. Did you work at all during your last benefit year? If not, you might not qualify for a new claim since you need new earnings since your last claim started.
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Sophia Carter
•Thanks for explaining! I did work for about 8 weeks (part-time) back in November/December before getting laid off again. Would that be enough to qualify for a new claim? Or is there some minimum amount I needed to earn?
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Brandon Parker
u dont need 2 wait for taxes lol. just make a new claim on ui online same place u did before. they check ur income anyway not ur taxes
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Adriana Cohn
•This is why I hate EDD website... nowhere does it clearly explain any of this stuff!! I had the same question when my benefit year ended last month.
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Jace Caspullo
To qualify for a new claim, you need to have earned at least $1,300 in your highest quarter during the base period, or at least $900 in your highest quarter plus 1.25 times that amount across the entire base period. Since you worked part-time for 8 weeks, it really depends on how much you earned during that time. You need to file a new claim, and EDD will determine if you qualify based on your earnings. If you don't have enough earnings, you won't qualify for a new claim. There's no waiting period related to taxes - that's completely separate from unemployment eligibility.
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Sophia Carter
•That's super helpful, thank you! I think I made around $3,200 during those 8 weeks, so hopefully that's enough. I'll file the new claim today and see what happens.
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Melody Miles
I just went through EXACTLY this last month!!! My benefit year ended Feb 15th and I panicked because I still hadn't found a job. I tried calling EDD for THREE DAYS STRAIGHT and couldn't get through - kept getting that stupid "we're experiencing high call volume" message and it would hang up on me! 😡😡😡 Finally I used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an EDD rep in like 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/JmuwXR7HA10?si=TSwYbu_GOwYzt9km The rep told me I could file a new claim immediately, but I needed to have earned enough wages during the base period. Turns out my gig work didn't count for regular UI (only W-2 earnings). So definitely check if your part-time work was enough!
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Sophia Carter
•That's good to know about Claimyr - I might need that if my application gets stuck. Did they tell you exactly how much you needed to earn to qualify? I'm getting worried my part-time work might not be enough.
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Nathaniel Mikhaylov
Be careful about your expectations - I filed a new claim after my benefit year ended and while I qualified, my weekly benefit amount was WAY lower than my previous claim because it was based on my part-time earnings during the pandemic. If you only worked part-time for 8 weeks, your weekly benefit amount (if you qualify) will probably be much lower than what you received before. Also, when you file your new claim, you'll have a one-week unpaid waiting period again. So even if approved, your first week claimed won't be paid.
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Brandon Parker
•yep the waiting week SUCKS everytime u start a new claim!!
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Eva St. Cyr
why doesnt anybody talk about how the base period is so confusing?? when i filed in april last year they didnt count january-march of THAT year. they use some weird system where they look at quarters but not the most recent complete quarter. does anyone know why they do it this way?? seems designed to make us fail tbh
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Jace Caspullo
•The standard base period is the first 4 of the last 5 completed calendar quarters before you file. They exclude the most recent completed quarter because employers have time to report wages, and EDD needs time to process them. It ensures they have complete wage data to determine your eligibility and benefit amount. So if you file in April 2025, your base period would be January 2024 through December 2024. They'd exclude January-March 2025 even though that quarter just completed.
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Adriana Cohn
Wait... when your UI runs out, aren't you supposed to apply for Fed-ED? Or is that gone now? I got extensions last time my benefits ran out.
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Chloe Zhang
•The extension programs like Fed-ED, PEUC, and PUA were special pandemic programs that ended years ago. Now we're back to normal UI rules - when your benefit year expires, you need to qualify for a new claim based on earnings during the base period. Extensions only exist during periods of very high unemployment when authorized by Congress.
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Sophia Carter
Update: I filed my new claim and got hit with the ID verification requirement again! Do I seriously have to go through ID.me AGAIN even though I just did this last year? Has anyone else had to reverify their identity for a new claim?
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Jace Caspullo
•Yes, EDD often requires identity verification when you file a new claim, even if you've done it before. It's part of their fraud prevention measures. However, if you've already created an ID.me account, the process should be quicker this time. Just log into your existing ID.me account rather than creating a new one.
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