What you need to apply for unemployment benefits

You should apply for unemployment benefits during your first week of total or partial unemployment.

Required information

To apply for unemployment, you need to provide personal information including your Social Security number, birth date, home address, email address (optional), and phone number.

You also need information about your employment history from the last 15 months, including:

• Names of all employers, plus addresses and phone numbers
• Reasons for leaving those jobs
• Work start and end dates
• Recall date (if you were laid off but have a set date to return to work)

You may need additional information in certain situations:

• If you are not a U.S. citizen — your Alien Registration number
• If you have children — their birth dates and Social Security numbers
• If you’re in a union — your union name and local number
• If you were in the military — your DD-214 Member 4 form. If you don’t have it, you can request your DD-214 online.
• If you worked for the federal government — your SF8 form (optional)

To receive payments by direct deposit, you’ll also need your bank name, account number, and routing number. Otherwise, the Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA) will send you a debit card.