You will need the following information to apply for Unemployment Insurance in Maine:

• Your Social Security Number (and Alien Registration Number if applicable);
• The business name, address and telephone number of each place you worked during the past 18 months; and
• The jobs you held and the dates you worked (for each employer).
• Dependent Information: Social Security number (s) of children whom you’re the main support of.

Veterans who separated from the armed forces in the past 18 months will need to provide information from a DD-214. Federal civilian employees will need to provide information from a SF-8 or SF-50.

The dollar amount you are qualified to receive each week is called your weekly benefit amount (WBA). It is based on your earnings during a set period prior to losing your job. The figure is calculated by dividing the average of your wages in the two highest quarters of your base period by 22. The maximum WBA is adjusted annually. 

The maximum amount of benefits you can receive as well as the length of time that you may receive benefits in Maine depends on your individual earnings, but is limited to a maximum of 26 weeks of regular unemployment benefits. Not all individuals qualify for all 26 weeks. Not all weeks need to be used consecutively, but must be used within the benefit year.

A benefit year is a period of 52 consecutive weeks; it begins with the week in which you file your initial application for benefits. Because a benefit year must be created for each claimant, the term is commonly used as shorthand for a person's unemployment "account." So, the term is used both to define the period during which you may be eligible to receive benefits and to describe the record you have established with the unemployment bureau to receive benefits..

Almost all employers in the state are covered by the Maine unemployment compensation law; however, certain types of employment are not (for example, some non-profit entities or some agricultural employers). If a question arises during your initial claim as to whether your former employer was covered by unemployment law, the Unemployment Insurance (UI) office will research the issue for you and make a determination as to whether you are eligible to receive benefits.