About Unemployment Insurance

• Unemployment insurance compensation is available to individuals in all states who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own and earned a minimum amount of money while working. Most states also require unemployment insurance recipients to be able to work full time. While receiving benefits, individuals must typically look for work and accept all suitable job offers. Most states offer unemployment benefits for a maximum of 26 weeks.
  
  

About Emergency Unemployment Compensation

• EUC is available for individuals who exhaust their state unemployment benefits and are still unable to finds suitable employment. The first tier of EUC is available to individuals in all states and lasts for 20 weeks. The second tier is also available in all states and lasts for 14 weeks. The government offers the third tier of unemployment, which lasts for 13 weeks, only to individuals in states where the unemployment rate exceeds 4 percent. The fourth tier of unemployment, which lasts for six weeks, is available only in states where the unemployment rate exceeds 6 percent. If you exhaust benefits in all tiers and your state's unemployment rate exceeds 8 percent, you may qualify for the FED-ED extension, which lasts for 20 weeks.
  
  

Determining Your Tier

• If you have received benefits for less than 26 weeks and have never applied for EUC, you aren't in any tier. If you have received benefits for more than 26 weeks but less than 46 weeks, you are in Tier 1. If you have received benefits for more than 46 weeks but less than 60 weeks, you are in Tier 2. If you have received benefits for more than 60 weeks but less than 73 weeks, you are in Tier 3. If you have received benefits for more than 73 weeks but less than 79 weeks, you are in Tier 4. Finally, if you have received benefits for more than 79 weeks, you are receiving FED-ED benefits.
  
  

Considerations

• As of October 2011, you can't receive unemployment insurance compensation for more than 99 weeks based on a single claim. To receive benefits after you have exhausted all extensions offered in your state, you must work at a job long enough to qualify for a new claim. Most states require individuals whose state benefits have ended to formally apply for Tier 1 benefits, but not for the subsequent tiers.