Unemployment Eligibility and Qualifications

General Benefits Eligibility Criteria

To qualify for unemployment, you must:

• Make a sufficient amount of money during the claimed period
• Have worked a sufficient amount of time
• Be wholly unemployed or receiving earnings less than your weekly benefits
• Accurately report the reason for your separation from employment
• Be out of work through no fault of your own
• Be available and willing to work
• Actively seek reemployment
• Willing to accept suitable work
• Register with Nevada Job Services
• Develop an effective work search plan through Job Services

Benefits are not based on need, but on your earnings during the base period. The more money you made during your highest quarter, the more your weekly benefit amount will be until you reach the maximum. The base period is defined as the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters immediately preceding the date of your initial claim for unemployment insurance benefits.

Independent contractors are not eligible for unemployment benefits. If your employment meets the following terms, you will not qualify:

• You were free from control or direction from your employer while performing your duties
• Your services were outside the normal course of your employer and was performed outside of the normal place where your employer's business was provided
• Your trade or career is a traditionally independent trade, such as plumber or independent electrician

The best way to determine if you are eligible for Nevada unemployment insurance benefits is to apply with accurate information.  There are no penalties to workers who file claims that are ultimately denied.

Work Eligibility Criteria

To meet the work eligibility criteria for Nevada unemployment benefits, you will need to:

• Have worked at least four to six months
• Not be self-employed or an independent contractor
• Not have been fired for misconduct, criminal reasons,
• Not have quit your job without a good reason or personal problems  

Wages Eligibility Criteria

The monetary qualifications for unemployment in Nevada are fairly forgiving. To qualify under the wages eligibility criteria, you must have:

• Earned at least $400 in one quarter (three months) of the base period

• Have a total base period earning of no less than one-and-a-half times your highest earning quarter. For example, if your highest earning quarter was $7,000, your total earnings must exceed $10,500 in order to qualify.

You could be eligible for an alternate base period claim if you do not meet the wage requirements in establishing a standard base period for unemployment insurance, using the first four of the last five completed quarters. The base period used for an alternative base period is the last four completed quarters at the time the claim is filed. It is essential you meet all other eligibility requirements.

Unemployment Availability Limits

Nevada currently offers up to 26 weeks of unemployment. You will lose some of your benefits if you get a part-time job. Each week that you report earnings, your Weekly Benefit Amount will be decreased by 75 percent of the wages you have reported.

EXAMPLE: If you are receiving $300 in weekly benefits and earned $100 in a week, 75 percent ($75) of your earnings are subtracted from your weekly benefits ($225). Adding up your wages ($100) with this decreased amount ($225) will still put you ahead ($325).

Unemployment Extensions

Nevada has no provisions for unemployment extensions in Nevada, even though the state is experiencing a severe unemployment problem. The federal programs, the Emergency Unemployment Compensation and Extended Benefits, which offered extended benefits in times of crisis, were discontinued in 2012.