Reopen a Claim

How do I restart my claim?

When you initially file your claim, a benefit year is established for you. Your claim is available for you to access during this year. If you quit certifying for more than two consecutive weeks, your claim becomes inactive and you must reopen it before any further benefits can be paid.

Your claim is available to be reopened should you become unemployed again during the benefit year. In order to receive benefits after your claim has gone to inactive status, you must first reopen your claim.

• To prevent missing a week of potential eligibility you should file your claim during the week you are laid off.
• Your claim becomes effective the Sunday of the week you reopen your claim. Please note that for unemployment insurance purposes, the week always starts on Sunday and ends on Saturday.

If you do not complete your weekly certifications in a timely manner, you will be required to reopen your claim prior to receiving any further benefits. In order to ensure that your certifications are timely, you should stay within the following time frame when certifying:

• Certify within 13 days of the Saturday of the week in which you started your claim; or
• Certify within 13 days of the Saturday of the last week you had previously certified.

You can reopen your claim via the Unemployment Insurance Internet Claims Entry System (UI ICE), or by calling the Unemployment Insurance Claims Center at 701-328-4995.