What is required to apply for unemployment - NYS Department of Labor eligibility requirements?

The basic eligibility requirements for NYS Department of Labor unemployment benefits are: you must have worked and earned wages in covered employment during your base period (usually the first 4 of the last 5 completed calendar quarters), you must be totally or partially unemployed through no fault of your own, you must be physically able and available for work, and you must be actively seeking work. You'll need your Social Security number, driver's license or state ID, employment history for the past 18 months including employer names and addresses, and your most recent separation information.

You should file as soon as possible after becoming unemployed because there's a one-week waiting period anyway. Make sure you have your employment dates, gross wages earned, and reason for separation for each job in the past 18 months. The NYS Department of Labor will verify everything with your employers so be accurate. Also be prepared to start your weekly claims immediately and begin your job search - you'll need to register with the state job bank and document your work search activities.

I had trouble getting through to NYS Department of Labor to ask questions about my eligibility before filing. The phone lines are always busy and it's frustrating when you just need basic information. I ended up using Claimyr.com to get connected to an actual agent who could answer my questions about the requirements. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Really helped me understand what I needed before starting my claim.

One thing to keep in mind is the monetary requirements - you need to have earned enough wages during your base period to qualify for benefits. For 2025, you generally need at least $2,600 in one quarter of your base period AND total base period wages of at least 1.5 times your highest quarter. If you don't meet the regular base period requirements, they might be able to use an alternate base period that includes more recent wages.

Don't forget you'll also need to be able to prove you're actively looking for work once you start collecting. The NYS Department of Labor requires you to make at least 3 job contacts per week and keep a record of your job search activities. They can ask to see your job search log at any time, so start keeping track from day one!