New Hampshire Unemployment Benefits

The New Hampshire Employment Security (NHES) offers Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits to the unemployed people who meet certain state defined eligibility criteria. On this page, we will tell you the eligibility requirements you must meet to receive New Hampshire (NH) unemployment benefits and many more.

Eligibility To Apply For UI Benefits In New Hampshire

You must meet monetary and job separation requirements to qualify for New Hampshire unemployment benefits.

Monetary Eligibility

To monetarily qualify for New Hampshire unemployment benefits, you must:

• Have earned at least $2,800 in your entire base period
• Have earned at least $1,400 in each of two-quarters of your base period

In New Hampshire, the standard base period is the first four of the five complete calendar quarters before the start date of your unemployment claim. On the other hand, the alternative base period is the last four completed calendar quarters preceding the first day of your benefit year.
Note – If you don’t have sufficient wages in your standard base period, NHES will consider wages in your alternative base period.

Find out more about eligibility requirements

Job Separation

Besides monetary requirements, you must meet job separation requirements to be eligible for the Unemployment Insurance in New Hampshire. The requirements include:

• You must be fully or partially unemployed
• You must have lost your job through no fault of your own
• You have quit your job due to medical conditions
• You quit your job due to an unsafe working environment
• You quit your job due to the domestic violence

Note that New Hampshire Employment Security may contact your employers to determine the reason for your job separation. If NHES determines that you have hidden facts about your job separation, it may disqualify you from receiving unemployment benefits.

Eligibility requirements – overview

Maintaining Eligibility

You should maintain your eligibility throughout your benefit period to continue to receive benefits. The ways in which you can maintain your eligibility are listed below:

• You must actively look for a job
• You must be able to work and available to work
• You must maintain work search records and submit them to NHES whenever required
• You must accept a suitable job offer
• You must file a weekly certification
• You must register with the Job Match System

Find out on job search requirements

How To Apply For UI Benefits in New Hampshire?

You will need the following documents to file for New Hampshire unemployment benefits:

You can file for unemployment benefits in New Hampshire through any of the following methods:

Online

Online is one of the easiest ways to apply for unemployment benefits in New Hampshire. If you lost your job on Thursday or Friday, open your unemployment claim on Sunday or Monday. If your employment was in New Hampshire, but you live in another state, you may apply for benefits over the Internet.

Visiting NHES Office

You can also file for unemployment benefits by visiting the nearest NH Employment Security office.

How To File Weekly Claims?

You must file your first continued unemployment claim between the first Sunday through Saturday following the week you opened your claim. After that you must file a claim for each week that you wish to receive benefits.

Learn how to claim weekly benefits

UI Benefits Amount

The amount you will receive depends on your earnings in your base period. The maximum weekly benefit amount you can receive in New Hampshire is $427, and the minimum is $32.

Know more about the Benefits Calculator

Things To Know After Filing An Application

There are many aspects that you must know to collect New Hampshire unemployment benefits without any trouble.

Overpayment And Fraud

Sometimes, you may receive benefits more than you are entitled to. Overpayments occur due to various reasons, including fraudulent practices, administrative errors, or reversal of previous awards. Whether you receive overpayment due to fraudulent practices or non-fraudulent, you will have to repay overpaid unemployment benefits.
NHES will mail you an overpayment notice when you receive an overpayment and ask you to repay the overpaid amount. You can request a waiver if you cannot pay back overpaid benefits or believe that overpayment was due to administrative errors, and it is unfair for you to pay back.
You can request a waiver by filling out a waiver request along with a financial affidavit and mail them to [email protected]. New Hampshire Employment Security will review your request and be in touch regarding a decision on your waiver request. Note that while your waiver request is pending, NHES will not collect your overpayment.

Fraud/ Willful Misrepresentation

If you receive overpayments due to fraudulent practices, you will be disqualified from receiving benefits and may have to pay the penalty. NHES may also take legal action against you.

Benefits Extension

Normally, the state of New Hampshire provides benefits for up to 26 weeks. However, if the unemployment rate is too high or there is an economic-downturn, it may provide extended benefits. Contact NHES to know more about the benefits extension programs.

Job Training Assistance

1. New Hampshire Employment Security’s Economic & Labor Market Information Bureau’s (ELMIB) career resources include information on jobs and careers to help educators, the dislocated workers and job seekers to prepare for a suitable job.
2. The state’s Return to Work initiative is a voluntary program that aims to provide structured and supervised training opportunities to non-claiming unemployed NH residents and eligible NH claimants. The training program may be up to 6 weeks and a maximum of 24 hours/week.
3. The Mature Worker Program assists residents of age 55 and over with job search activities and re-employment. This program is a pilot grant offered by NHES in collaboration with the NH Department of Business and Economic Affairs (BEA) in conjunction with Southern NH Services and other community action programs across the state.
4. mySkills myFuture assists laid-off workers to find new occupations. You can identify jobs that require skills similar to your previous job, locate local training programs, learn more about the suggested matches, and apply for jobs.
5. The Job Match System (JMS) allows users to search for a job using Internet spider technology, view jobs, and match skills to positions posted on private industry websites and national job boards.

Know more job training opportunities in NH