How do you get Unemployment Insurance in New York?
Unemployment Insurance pays $140 to $869 a week, for up to 26 weeks, to eligible workers who lost their jobs through no fault of their own. Your first step is to file a claim with the New York State Department of Labor, online with an NY.GOV ID or by phone.
File by phone with the Telephone Claims Center: (888) 209-8124
Who can collect
You must have lost your job through no fault of your own and have earned enough from work to set up a claim. For every week you claim, you must also be ready, willing, and able to work and be actively looking for work. Who qualifies covers the 2026 wage rules and what can disqualify you.
Your first steps
- File a claim online with your NY.GOV ID, the sign-in for the Department's online services, or by phone. How to file lists what to have ready.
- Check the wages on the Monetary Benefit Determination the Department mails you.
- Claim benefits every week, starting with the unpaid waiting week. See weekly claims and work search.
How your weekly amount is set
Your weekly benefit rate is figured from your pay in the best-paid calendar quarters of your base period, a year of wages that ends before the quarter you file in. The maximum has been $869 a week since October 6, 2025, and the minimum $140 since January 1, 2026. How much it pays shows the formula and worked examples.
Who pays for it and who decides your claim
Unemployment Insurance is a joint federal and state program paid for by federal and state taxes on employers, and nothing is deducted from your paycheck for it. The Department of Labor decides whether you are eligible and sends each decision as a determination notice. If one denies you benefits or affects your amount and you disagree, you can request a hearing before an impartial Administrative Law Judge, as denials, appeals, and overpayments explains.
New York unemployment guides
- How to fileWhen to file, what to have ready, and filing online or by phone
- Who qualifiesReasons that can disqualify you, the 2026 wage rules, and base periods
- How much it paysYour weekly benefit rate, with examples, part-time rules, and other cuts
- How long it lastsThe 26-week limit, your benefit year, extensions, and what to do after
- Weekly claims and work searchSigning in, the claim window, the waiting week, payments, and work search
- Denials, appeals, and overpaymentsHearing requests, the Appeal Board, repayment, waivers, and fraud penalties
- TaxesFederal, state, and city tax on benefits, withholding, and your 1099-G
- Offices and phone numbersThe claims line, other Department numbers, and Career Center addresses
- DisabilityState disability pay, illness during a claim, and Social Security disability
- JobsThe NYS Job Bank, Career Center help, JobZone, and more job boards
- Questions and answersHealth coverage, food aid, 2-1-1, being fired, part-time work, and a new job