Unemployment Insurance (Maine Department of Labor)

If you lost your job or had your hours cut through no fault of your own, Maine unemployment can pay temporary weekly benefits from the Maine Department of Labor. The fastest way to file is online through the ReEmployME system. You can also call the claim center at 1-800-593-7660, Monday through Friday, 8am to 3pm. If you use TTY, dial Maine Relay 711. Filing online is the fastest way to get your claim started, and it lets you check on your claim and file your weekly certifications from home.

Your weekly amount depends on your past pay. For new claims filed June 1, 2026 through May 31, 2027, the weekly benefit runs from a low of $113 to a high of $649. The amount is figured by taking your two highest-earning quarters in the base period, averaging them, and dividing by 22, then rounding down to the whole dollar. Your own award letter shows your exact amount. Since the amount is tied to your highest-earning quarters, workers with steadier pay usually land closer to the top of that range.

The base period decides if you qualify at all. Your base period is the oldest four of the last five completed quarters. To qualify on your earnings, you must have made at least $7,494.72 in that base period and at least $2,498.24 in two of the last four quarters. You also must have lost the job through no fault of your own, and be able, available, and actively looking for work. If you do not have quite enough earnings in your base period, it is still worth filing, since the department makes the final decision based on the wages your employers reported.

If you support dependents, you may get a little more. Maine adds a dependency allowance of $25 per dependent per week. That extra amount cannot push your total above 75 percent of your weekly benefit amount, so there is a cap on how much the allowance can add.

Plan for one week with no check. The first eligible week you claim is an unpaid waiting week. You still have to meet all the rules for that week, but you do not get paid for it. So the money starts after that first week clears, which is why filing right away helps. Once that waiting week is behind you, payments follow for the weeks you certify, as long as you keep meeting the rules.

Keep up with the weekly steps and stack other help. You file weekly certifications and keep looking for work while you claim, for up to 26 weeks in a benefit year. While you wait for a first payment, other programs can bridge the gap: SNAP catches many households, MaineCare keeps the family covered, and 2-1-1 can point you to local rent funds near you. Because benefits can run up to 26 weeks but no longer, it helps to line up these other supports early rather than waiting until the weeks run low. Stacking these programs can keep the essentials covered while your claim is active.