What You Need to Know About Unemployment Benefits in Arkansas
This site provides clear, accurate information on collecting unemployment benefits in Arkansas, including:
- whether you are eligible for benefits
- how to apply for unemployment benefits in Arkansas
- how much you'll get (and how long your benefits will last)
- what you'll have to do to keep collecting benefits, and
- what to do if your application is denied.
Here are three key things to keep in mind as you get started:
1. You can apply for benefits -- and find helpful resources -- at the Arkansas Division of Workforce Services website.
Before you file for unemployment, you may want to learn more by reading our articles on benefit amounts, who qualifies for benefits, and so on.
Once you're ready to file, you can do it online.
Find detailed information and resources at the Arkansas Division of Workforce Services website, including:
- Arkansas's online portal where you can file your claim for benefits
- the Arkansas Claim Help: File Weekly Claims page, where you can learn how to file your weekly claims for benefits in Arkansas once your application is approved
- Notice of Work Search Requirements section of the Your Unemployment Insurance Information Handbook, which explains the work search requirements you will have to meet in Arkansas in order to keep receiving benefits
- Your Unemployment Insurance Information Handbook, a detailed guide to collecting unemployment in Arkansas, and
- information about how and when to file an appeal in Arkansas if your application for benefits is denied.
2. Eligibility rules, benefit amounts, and duration differ from state to state.
Unemployment insurance works pretty much the same everywhere: Employers pay into a fund or purchase insurance, then former employees receive benefits when they lose their jobs. But the rules about who qualifies for unemployment, how long unemployment lasts, and especially how much you will receive in benefits vary a lot from state to state.
Our site covers every state and the District of Columbia; this page gives you information specific to Arkansas.
In Arkansas, the base period is the first four of the five complete calendar quarters immediately before you filed for benefits. For example, if you file for benefits on March 15, 2024, your base period will be from October 1, 2022 through September 30, 2023. It would not include the most recent complete calendar quarter before you filed (October 1, 2023 through December 31, 2023) or the first two-and-a-half months of 2024.
If you did not earn enough to qualify for benefits during the regular base period, you may be able to use an alternate base period that counts more recent earnings. In this case, the Arkansas Division of Workforce Services will consider your earnings in the last four complete quarters before you file for benefits.
- For more, see:
3. You may be eligible for benefits even if you quit, you were fired for cause, or you are still working part-time.
Some people mistakenly believe that unemployment is available only to employees who are laid off. However, you don't have to lose your job in a layoff to qualify for benefits. The key question is whether you are out of work without fault on your part. So, if you were forced to quit your job in lieu of being fired, or you were fired because you don't have the necessary skills for your job, you could still be eligible for benefits.