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Lost your job in Delaware? How unemployment works

Delaware pays regular unemployment insurance through the Delaware Department of Labor, Division of Unemployment Insurance. Weekly benefits run $20–$450 for up to 26 weeks. Total benefits are the lesser of 26 times the weekly amount or 50% of base-period wages. No waiting week. Last checked .

What to do this week

  1. File your claim now. File your application as soon as you become unemployed, even if you will get severance. The benefit year begins on the Sunday of the first week you file a monetarily eligible claim, and weekly requests start the Sunday after you open the claim. You can file online, by phone. Open the DUI filing page or call 302-761-8446 (Local offices 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m., Monday-Friday except state holidays (2020 handbook). TeleBenefits (weekly claims and info): 302-761-6576 or 800-794-3032, 24 hours.).
  2. Gather your records. The agency will ask for your last employers, dates and pay. To qualify: Base-period wages of at least 36 times your weekly benefit amount.
  3. Start certifying every week. Weekly each Sunday-Saturday week: online (WebBenefits) or by phone (TeleBenefits), starting the Sunday after you open the claim. Make at least one new work search contact each week, keep a work search log, and register with Delaware JobLink within 3 business days when required. Missing a required week makes you ineligible for that week.
  4. Line up other help. Delaware SNAP income limits, Delaware health coverage, Delaware take-home pay calculator.

Delaware unemployment at a glance

Agency
Delaware Department of Labor, Division of Unemployment Insurance (DUI)
Weekly benefit
$20–$450 (table in force from April 2, 2023)
Most weeks
26 — Total benefits are the lesser of 26 times the weekly amount or 50% of base-period wages.
Waiting week
Delaware has no waiting week: Title 19 chapter 33 sets no waiting period, and DOL lists Delaware as having none.
Appeal deadline
By statute (19 Del. C. 3318(b)) an appeal must be filed within 15 calendar days after the Claims Deputy's determination was mailed or otherwise delivered. The Department's FAQ and 2020 handbook still say 10 days, so file as early as you can.
Spanish / Chinese help
Delaware DOL offers a Spanish claimant handbook and a Haitian Creole handbook (https://labor.delaware.gov/divisions/unemployment-insurance/claimant-handbook/) and a Spanish and Haitian Creole self-application form (claimant-services page). No Chinese pages found.

How much you could get

The weekly amount is $20 to $450 for benefit years beginning April 2, 2023 and after (the DUI handbook, dated 2020, still shows $400). How it is figured: One forty-sixth of your total wages in the two highest base-period quarters, rounded down to the dollar, between $20 and $450.

At the top of the table — $450 a week for 26 weeks — the most a claim can pay is $11,700. That is a ceiling, not a typical claim; most people get less because the amount follows past wages.

Who qualifies

  • Base period. Standard: the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters. Alternate: the four most recent completed quarters if you lack enough wages.
  • Work and wages. Base-period wages of at least 36 times your weekly benefit amount.
  • If you quit. You are disqualified if you left work voluntarily without good cause attributable to the work, until you have worked 4 weeks and earned at least 4 times your weekly amount.
  • If you were fired. You are disqualified if discharged for just cause in connection with the work (such as lateness, unexcused absences or violating company rules), until you have worked 4 weeks and earned 4 times your weekly amount.
  • Part-time, gig and self-employed work. You may earn 50% of your weekly benefit amount without any deduction; anything over that is deducted dollar for dollar. Self-employed people are not eligible, and self-employment must be reported.

Weekly certification, taxes and appeals

How to file
File a new or reopened claim online at ui.delawareworks.com. Claims that cannot be filed online (for example partial claims on employer slips or out-of-state work) are filed by calling 302-761-8446 or emailing the claims office. The self-application form is offered in Spanish and Haitian Creole.
Weekly certification
Weekly each Sunday-Saturday week: online (WebBenefits) or by phone (TeleBenefits), starting the Sunday after you open the claim.
Work search
Make at least one new work search contact each week, keep a work search log, and register with Delaware JobLink within 3 business days when required. Missing a required week makes you ineligible for that week.
Taxes
Benefits are taxable; you may elect 10% federal withholding, and you pay any state tax yourself when you file your Delaware return.
State withholding
No. State tax is not withheld from Delaware UI payments.
If you are denied
Division of Unemployment Insurance Lower Authority Appeals Unit (local office, mail P.O. Box 9950 Wilmington DE 19809, or dol_dui_appeals_request@delaware.gov) Keep certifying every week while the appeal is pending.
Overpayments
Overpaid benefits must be repaid even if the mistake was not yours. For a non-fraud overpayment the Department may deduct only 50% of your weekly benefit from future benefits and may not charge interest; fraud adds interest (the handbook says 18% a year), a 15% penalty, a one-year disqualification, and no benefits until the overpayment and penalty are repaid in full. For non-fraud overpayments the Department may waive recovery if repayment would be against equity and good conscience or the overpayment was Department error; the waiver application is due within 30 days of the notice. You can appeal an order for recoupment within 15 days of mailing.

Good to know in Delaware

  • The Delaware claimant handbook is dated April 2020 and shows a $400 maximum; the statute (19 Del. C. 3313) and the Department's FAQ show $450 for benefit years beginning on or after April 2, 2023, and DOL's July 2026 table agrees.
  • Weekly benefit amount chart in the handbook is out of date for the new maximum.
  • The 24-26 benefit-week range in DOL's table reflects claims with small wages; the cap is 26.

Sources

Legal and agency information, not legal advice. Rules and benefit tables change — confirm with DUI before you rely on a number. How we check: methodology.