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Lost your job in Minnesota? How unemployment works

Minnesota pays regular unemployment insurance through the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, Unemployment Insurance. Weekly benefits run up to $948 for up to 26 weeks. Total benefits are the lower of 26 times the weekly amount or 33-1/3% of total wage credits, so some people get fewer than 26 weeks. The state maximum resets on the last Sunday in October (Oct 25, 2026); the $948 figure applies to accounts effective Oct 26, 2025 through Oct 24, 2026, and the new figure was not yet published in the sources reviewed. 1 unpaid waiting week. Last checked .

What to do this week

  1. File your claim now. Apply the week you become unemployed or your hours are significantly reduced. You can file online, by phone. Open the DEED UI filing page or call 651-296-3644 (Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Greater Minnesota 1-877-898-9090; TTY 1-866-814-1252).
  2. Gather your records. The agency will ask for your last employers, dates and pay. To qualify: Wage credits of at least 5.3% of the state's average annual wage, rounded down to the next lower $100 (dollar figure not found in the official pages reviewed).
  3. Start certifying every week. Request a payment every week for the previous week (online Sunday to Friday 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., or by phone on an assigned day by Social Security number); request even while eligibility or an appeal is pending. No fixed number of contacts: you must make a serious, diligent effort to find suitable work every week you request payment, even with a part-time job; approved full-time training replaces the work search.
  4. Line up other help. Minnesota SNAP income limits, Minnesota health coverage, Minnesota take-home pay calculator.

Minnesota unemployment at a glance

Agency
Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, Unemployment Insurance (DEED UI)
Weekly benefit
up to $948 (table in force from October 26, 2025)
Most weeks
26 — Total benefits are the lower of 26 times the weekly amount or 33-1/3% of total wage credits, so some people get fewer than 26 weeks. The state maximum resets on the last Sunday in October (Oct 25, 2026); the $948 figure applies to accounts effective Oct 26, 2025 through Oct 24, 2026, and the new figure was not yet published in the sources reviewed.
Waiting week
The first eligible week is a nonpayable week (state law). You must still apply, request payment on time and be eligible for that week; you get only one nonpayable week in the 52 weeks after you apply.
Appeal deadline
Appeals must be filed by mail, fax or online within 45 calendar days after the determination was sent; the 'Appeal By' date is printed on the determination, and a faxed appeal must arrive, or a mailed one be postmarked, by that date.
Spanish / Chinese help
Official translated pages: Spanish https://www.uimn.org/applicants/language/spanish.jsp, Hmong https://www.uimn.org/applicants/language/hmong.jsp, Somali https://www.uimn.org/applicants/language/somali.jsp; translated handbooks also exist. No Chinese pages found.

How much you could get

Your weekly benefit will be about 50% of your average weekly wage up to a state maximum of $948 (for accounts effective Oct 26, 2025 to Oct 24, 2026). Once an account is set up, the weekly amount does not change when the maximum is reset. How it is figured: The higher of 50% of your average weekly wage over the base period (total wage credits divided by 52) or 50% of your average weekly wage in the high quarter (high quarter divided by 13), each capped at a share of the state average weekly wage.

At the top of the table — $948 a week for 26 weeks — the most a claim can pay is $24,648. That is a ceiling, not a typical claim; most people get less because the amount follows past wages.

Who qualifies

  • Base period. Usually the four most recent completed calendar quarters before your application date (for example, an application effective Feb 1 to Mar 31 uses the prior Jan 1 to Dec 31; Nov 1 to Dec 31 uses the prior Oct 1 to Sep 30). If you apply in the month right after a quarter ends (January, April, July, October), it is the first four of the most recent five completed quarters. The first-four-of-five period is also used whenever it gives you more wage credits.
  • Work and wages. Wage credits of at least 5.3% of the state's average annual wage, rounded down to the next lower $100 (dollar figure not found in the official pages reviewed).
  • If you quit. Quitting makes you ineligible unless an exception applies, such as a good reason caused by the employer, serious illness, loss of child care, domestic abuse, or a layoff notice within 30 days.
  • If you were fired. Discharge for employment misconduct (intentional, negligent or indifferent serious violation of expected standards) makes you ineligible; quit or misconduct ineligibility lasts until you earn wages equal to half the minimum wage credits needed to open an account.
  • Part-time, gig and self-employed work. Earnings under your weekly benefit amount reduce it by 50% of the earnings; you get no benefit for a week with earnings at or above the weekly amount or with 32 or more hours worked. Self-employment earnings (after direct business expenses) must be reported.

Weekly certification, taxes and appeals

How to file
Apply online at ui.mn.gov (Sunday to Friday, 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.) or by phone Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; the phone line offers English, Spanish, Hmong and Somali, and an interpreter can be requested for other languages.
Weekly certification
Request a payment every week for the previous week (online Sunday to Friday 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., or by phone on an assigned day by Social Security number); request even while eligibility or an appeal is pending.
Work search
No fixed number of contacts: you must make a serious, diligent effort to find suitable work every week you request payment, even with a part-time job; approved full-time training replaces the work search.
Taxes
Benefits are taxable by the federal and Minnesota governments; you can choose 15% (federal and state combined), 10% (federal only) or no withholding, and a 1099-G is mailed by Jan 31.
State withholding
optional, combined 15% federal + state option
If you are denied
Unemployment Insurance appeals (online in your account, fax 651-205-4007, or mail P.O. Box 4629, St. Paul, MN 55101-4629); hearing before an Unemployment Law Judge by phone Keep certifying every week while the appeal is pending.
Overpayments
Unrepaid overpayments are collected by deducting 50% or 100% of each weekly payment; failing to report hours and earnings makes you overpaid, and fraud brings a 40% penalty plus interest and no benefits until paid in full.

Good to know in Minnesota

  • Minimum weekly benefit amount and the dollar minimum wage credits were not found in the official pages reviewed (weeklyMin null).
  • The $948 maximum is the table in force today; a new maximum takes effect for accounts established on or after Oct 25, 2026 and was not yet published in the sources reviewed.
  • Eligibility determinations on quit or discharge are appealed on the same 45-day basis shown on the determination; always use the 'Appeal By' date printed on the notice.
  • Handbook version reviewed is dated Oct 26, 2025 to Oct 24, 2026.

Sources

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