Unemployment benefits in West Virginia

Can I get benefits?

You must have been paid at least $2,200 in your base period, with wages in more than one quarter.

Law: W. Va. Code secs. 21A-1A-5, 21A-6-1(5)

If you quit

If you quit without good cause involving fault on the part of your employer, you are disqualified.

If you were fired

If you were fired for misconduct, you are disqualified for that week and the next six weeks, and your total benefits are cut by six times your weekly rate (restored if you work 30 days in covered employment in your benefit year).

Law: W. Va. Code sec. 21A-6-3(1)-(3), (6)

Quit, fired, refused work and the federal rules →

The wage test, the amount and your estimate →

How much and how long?

Weekly benefit

$24–$662

Weeks

Up to 26 weeks

Waiting week

A waiting week

How it is figured, the full rules and the estimate tool →

How to file in West Virginia

File online (fastest, available 24 hours a day), call 1-800-252-JOBS (5627) Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., or visit a WorkForce WV local office. Job service registration is part of the online application.

File as soon as you lose your job or your hours are cut.

What to have ready

• Your Social Security number
• Your contact information and email address
• Your work history for the last 12 to 18 months and the reason you are no longer working

Certify (claim your weeks)

Weekly. File a weekly claim certification online for each week you are totally or partially unemployed, between Sunday and 5 p.m. Friday of the week right after the week you claim.

Everything about filing →

Appeal a denial

• Appeal to an Administrative Law Judge — 8 calendar days from the mailing date on the Deputy's Decision (the appeal date is printed on the decision)
• Appeal to the Board of Review — 8 calendar days from the mailing date on the Administrative Law Judge's decision
• Appeal to the West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals — 30 calendar days

Deadline calculator, appeal letter and hearing checklist: Appeal details →

The hearing

Format

Most hearings are by telephone; the ALJ calls the number you give.

Notice before the hearing

10 days

Overpayments and waivers

An overpayment is benefits you got but were not entitled to, for example from unreported earnings or a decision reversed on appeal.

Appeal within

8 days from the date the overpayment determination is mailed

Fraud penalty

20% added when the overpayment is fraud

Waiver

Not available in our data for regular benefits.

Law: W. Va. Code secs. 21A-10-8, 21A-10-21

Waiver details and the hearing checklist →

Someone filed a claim in your name

To report unemployment fraud, including a claim filed in your name, email reportunemploymentfraud@wv.gov or call the fraud hotline at 1-800-252-JOBS (5627), option 5.

• Report it online
• Phone: 1-800-252-5627

National steps

1. Report it to the state where the claim was filed and follow its instructions. Some states ask for a police report or a sworn statement.
2. If you got a 1099-G for benefits you did not receive, the state will send a corrected 1099-G. When you file taxes, report only the income you actually received; do not wait for the corrected form.
3. Check your free credit reports at AnnualCreditReport.com or 877-322-8228. Report other identity theft at IdentityTheft.gov.
4. You can also report unemployment identity fraud that happened after March 2020 to the U.S. Department of Justice National Center for Disaster Fraud. You must still report it to the state.

U.S. Department of Labor: report unemployment identity fraud

Good to know in West Virginia

• Since July 1, 2024, you must do at least four work search activities every week and keep proof.

  Law: W. Va. Code sec. 21A-6-1d, Jobs and Reemployment Act, 2024 SB 841

• West Virginia has very short appeal deadlines: 8 calendar days to appeal a Deputy's Decision and 8 days to appeal an ALJ decision to the Board of Review.

  Law: W. Va. Code secs. 21A-7-8, 21A-7-9

• The weekly benefit is based on total base-period wages, not your highest quarter, and every eligible claimant gets the same 26 weeks.

  Law: W. Va. Code sec. 21A-6-10

Changes in 2024–2026

July 1, 2024: 2024 SB 840/841 added the Jobs and Reemployment Act (four weekly work search activities with proof, mandatory applications to referred jobs within one week, employer reporting of refusals) and amended the eligibility and benefit-rate sections (21A-6-1, 21A-6-10). 2025 HB 2441 amended the disqualification section 21A-6-3. No change to the $662 maximum or the 8-day appeal periods found.

Questions about unemployment in West Virginia