Weekly benefit amount and weeks in West Virginia

The weekly benefit

Weekly benefit

$24–$662

Maximum: benefit table in W. Va. Code sec. 21A-6-10

How it is figured

Your weekly benefit rate comes from the benefit table in West Virginia law. It is based on your total base-period wages (your "wage class"), from $24 a week (base-period wages of $2,200) up to $662 a week (base-period wages of $62,650 or more).

Official

Official table or notice

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

The wage test

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

Your base period is usually the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you file. If you do not qualify with it, the alternative base period is used: the last four completed calendar quarters.

The state's wage tests

• At least $2,200 in base-period wages, earned in more than one quarter

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

Official source: Source page

Estimate your weekly benefit

Enter the gross wages (before taxes) you were paid in each quarter of your base period. We apply the state's own table and formula to your numbers.

How long it lasts

Up to 26 weeks.

Everyone who qualifies can get up to 26 weeks of full benefits (26 times the weekly rate). If you collect partial benefits because you work part time, the remaining balance can be paid over more weeks, but not beyond your 52-week benefit year.

Law: W. Va. Code sec. 21A-6-10(b), (c)

Official source: Source page

Waiting week

The first payable week of your claim is an unpaid waiting week. You must file a weekly certification and meet all requirements for it.

Law: W. Va. Code sec. 21A-6-1(4)

Official source: Source page

Working part time

You can work part time and still get partial benefits. Report all gross earnings, including tips and bonuses, for the week you earn them. West Virginia law says the part of your weekly earnings over $60 is taken off your weekly rate, rounded down to a whole dollar. A 2024 law also says that if you accept part-time work that pays less than your weekly benefit rate, you keep getting benefits without a cut for those wages. WorkForce WV decides how your earnings affect each payment.

Law: W. Va. Code sec. 21A-6-11; W. Va. Code sec. 21A-6-1d(g)

Law: W. Va. Code secs. 21A-6-11, 21A-6-1d(g)

Official source: Source page

What applies in every state

• You must have earned enough wages, or worked enough, during a period called the base period. In most states it is the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you file.
• It generally takes two to three weeks after you file to get your first payment. Some states require a one-week waiting period, so the second week you claim is the first week paid.
• Unemployment benefits count as income for federal income tax. You must report them on your federal tax return.

  Law: 26 U.S.C. 85(a)

Free help

Call 1-800-252-5627. Legal aid and other free help in West Virginia → Official sources →