This guide explains how to apply for unemployment in New Hampshire. Follow step by step instructions that will help you claim benefits through NH state unemployment office.
First and foremost, apply as soon as you lose the job. State unemployment offices generally take 1-3 weeks to process your application, especially for the initial claim. The compensation will be paid from the week you applied and if you delay, you will lose the benefits prior to the week of filing. You won't be allowed to back-date your claims or claim the benefits for prior weeks.
New Hampshire Unemployment Compensation Eligibility Requirements
There are some basic rules for eligibility. Even if you meet some of these rules partially, you should still apply for unemployment because state offices make a reasonable attempt to process your claim, as long as you provide a good justification.
- You must have lost your job through no fault of your own. That means if you have quit job voluntarily you may not qualify for unemployment insurance. However, there are exceptions - such as working in hazardous or inhuman working conditions etc. to this rule.
- You must be willing and able to work. If you are physically disabled, you do not qualify.
- You must have worked minimum number of weeks specified by the State. New Hampshire State minimum weeks of covered employment requirement (employer must have paid unemployment taxes on your behalf):
- You must have earned minimum amount of wages specified by State during this period. This amount may change every year. You can get get complete eligibility criteria and the benefits calculator from state website mentioned in the next section. Minimum wages earned during the base period:
Prepare documents required to apply for unemployment in NH
- Your name, address, social security number and other personal details such as telephone number, email address etc.
- Dependents name, date of birth and their social security number.
- Details of your previous employer. For each employer, you need to provide
- Name and address
- Telephone number
- Start and end dates of employment
- If you had out-of-state employment in the past 18 months, you also need to provide the employment details.
- Reason you lost the job – it has to be involuntary to be eligible to receive benefits.
- Your job skills summary
- If you are not an US citizen, keep your alien registration number and work authorization. However if you are on a work visa such as H1-B, immigration experts do not advise claiming unemployment insurance.
Apply for Benefits or Claim Extension
You can submit your application for unemployment compensation online, off-line (by mail or by visiting local employment office) or through telephone. Online application is the quickest and most efficient option which will also be available 24x7, 7 days a week.
Prepare and submit your application online here
If you choose to file over phone, call the unemployment compensation services toll-free number at 1-800-266-2252. Call Center Hours: Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
If you are applying for unemployment extension in New Hampshire, make sure you check the latest rules. Many states are in the process of revising the rules to extend the benefits beyond the initial period. Also, remember that you need to report unemployment benefits as an income when you file taxes with IRS at the end of the year.
All the major cities in New Hampshire including Concord City, Derry Uninc, Dover City, Keene City, Laconia City, Manchester, Nashua City, Portsmouth, and Rochester have an unemployment office location to process unemployment claims. You can visit the local office for consultation or to file for unemployment in person
New Hampshire Unemployment Rate (Trend)
The graph below shows the current and historical unemployment rate in the state
Base Period and Alternate Base Period
The actual amount you will receive if you meet all eligibility requirements depends on your earnings in what is called the Base Period. Your Base Period is established based on the Effective Date of your claim, which is normally the Sunday date of the week in which you file an application for benefits.
In order to estimate the amount of your WBA, you need to know which calendar quarters will make up your Base Period. If you have worked in covered employment and earned a total of at least $2800 in the four quarters that comprise your Base Period and any 2 of the 4 quarters have earnings of $1400 or more, you have sufficient earnings to establish a WBA. If you live in New Hampshire, wages earned in the Base Period in any other state, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands or Canada can also be used. Worker's Compensation payments for lost wages during the base period may also be used to establish or increase a weekly benefit amount.
The Primary Base Period is the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before the Effective Date of your claim.
Benefit Eligibility
Once determined eligible to collect UI benefits, an individual can receive the equivalent of twenty-six (26) weeks of benefits in one benefit year. Over the years, several supplemental benefit programs extending the benefit period for claimants were mandated on a temporary basis.
In order to interpret the UI claims information correctly, it is important to understand that the filing process is a two step procedure consisting of an initial claim and a continued claim. An initial claim is a request for determination of eligibility for UI compensation, whereas a continued claim or week claimed, is the request for financial compensation whether or not it is the first week claimed or any subsequent week claimed. When an individual becomes unemployed, he or she can file an initial claim for unemployment benefits. The claim can be done over the Internet at home or at the nearest Employment Security office. With the initial claim, a base period and a benefit year are established for each claimant. The total wages earned in the base period are used to determine the claimant’s weekly benefit amount and the claimant receives a Monetary Determination. In order to qualify for UI benefits the individual must have earned a certain minimum amount of wages in the base period.
When a claimant’s benefit eligibility is questioned for reasons other than reaching the minimum earnings requirement, a Nonmonetary Determination occurs. Reasons for nonmonetary determinations include: voluntarily quitting a job, leaving self-employment or closing one’s business, being currently self-employed, being fired for misconduct connected with one’s work, being unable and unavailable to accept full time work, and refusing an offer of suitable work. If the nonmonetary issue(s) affecting the claimant’s eligibility for benefits is found to be valid, benefits will not be paid for the weeks affected. Once benefit eligibility is established, a claimant files a continued claim for each week that they are totally or partially unemployed.
Next steps
After you have submitted your application, you should actively look out for work because the benefits you receive will not be enough to cover your living expenses. The best thing to do is to take a look at your job skills and determine if you want to improve or learn new skills so that you can use this opportunity to revive your career. There are plenty of online opportunities to earn a living while working from home.
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