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You have exhausted your benefits when:

• You are not eligible for regular UI benefits because you have received the maximum amount of these benefits available to you based on your employment or wages during your base period; OR
• Your benefit year ended on or after July 1, 2019.

You are eligible for PEUC if:

• You have exhausted all rights to regular state or federal benefits and your Benefit Year End date is after July 1, 2019;
• You are not currently eligible for state or federal unemployment benefits; and
• You are able and available to work and actively seeking work, except in instances where COVID-19 has made it not possible, including illness, quarantine, or "stay at home" orders.

Under the original CARES Act, Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) provided claimants with up to 39 weeks of benefits. Benefits under the CARES Act expired on December 26, 2020. The New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions (NMDWS) is working to implement benefit extensions under the Continued Assistance Act (CAA). Under CAA, PUA will provide up to an additional 11 weeks of benefits, to a maximum of 50 weeks.

Once a claimant has exhausted all PUA benefits, under federal law, they will not be permitted to apply for Federal-State Extended Benefits (FDEB1).

Work search requirements are waived until further notice.

It is a federal requirement that you must be able and available to accept suitable work in order to qualify for unemployment benefits. For more information, please review the Able, Available, and Actively Seeking Fact Sheet (Hoja de Hechos: Capaz, Disponible, y Actualmente Buscando Trabajo)

Once your regular unemployment insurance benefits have been exhausted, you may be eligible to apply for Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC). PEUC provides an additional 13 weeks of benefits.

Once you have exhausted PEUC benefits, the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions will send you written notification informing you that you may be eligible for an additional 13 weeks of benefits under the Federal-State Extended Benefits (FDEB1) Program.