myjobcontacts › States › Georgia
How many job searches do you need for unemployment in Georgia?
Short answer: You must do at least 3 new work search activities each week and send in a Weekly Work Search Record for that week. The newest GDOL handbook (June 2026) says to do them on 3 or more different days. Each one must be something GDOL can check.
Each week
3 work search activities
The week
Sunday through Saturday (ends at midnight Saturday)
Request payment
Request payment each week, starting the Sunday after the week ends.
Official log form
Keep records
Keep a copy of each weekly record.
What counts as a work search in Georgia
- Applying for a job that fits your skills, online, in person, by email, mail or fax
- Asking an employer about a job opening
- Interviewing for a job
- Going to a job fair
- Going to a GDOL workshop or reemployment services at a career center
- Making a work search plan or a resume, or uploading your resume to a job board
- Following up with an employer you already contacted, if it moves you closer to a job and you use a different method
What doesn’t count
- Applying for a job you are not qualified for
- Looking at job ads without applying
- Applying in a way the employer did not ask for (for example, mailing a resume when the employer said to apply online)
- Contacts GDOL cannot verify
Same employer twice? Each week's contacts should be new employers. You can list the same employer again only if you used a different contact method and it moved you a step closer to a job.
More on this in what counts as a work search contact.
How to report your job contacts
Each week, first request your payment, then submit your Weekly Work Search Record online in MyUI (Submit Weekly Work Search Record, under Employment Services Requirements). For each activity, give the company name, job title, and the employer address or the job listing link. If you can't go online, fill out form DOL-2798 and fax it. Keep a copy.
When: Request payment each week, starting the Sunday after the week ends. You have up to two weeks to request it.
Where: MyUI Claimant Portal.
When the search starts: Right away. GDOL says to start looking for work as soon as you apply. You send a work search record for every week you request payment, including your first week.
Keep a work search log
Keep a copy of each weekly record. GDOL does not say for how long. GDOL’s form is the Weekly Work Search Activities Record (DOL-2798). It asks for: activity completed (applied for a job, inquired about a job, created a reemployment plan, created a resume, attended a job fair, attended gdol workshop, other), method of contact (internet, in person, email, telephone), type of contact (new or follow-up), date of contact, job title / job requisition number, business name, business address / website, phone number, person contacted name or email, outcome (interview, job offer, application accepted).
The free myjobcontacts app keeps the same details and prints them in the same columns as GDOL’s form. Prefer paper? Use the free printable work search log.
Who doesn’t have to search
- Your employer filed a partial claim for you
- You are on a short layoff with a set date to go back to your employer within 6 weeks of your last day
- You are in the Claimant Trainee program or other training approved by GDOL
- You are a union member who gets all job referrals through a union hiring hall
- You are part of a strike or labor dispute
- GDOL told you in writing that you are exempt
Union members: If you are a union member who gets all job referrals through a union hiring hall, and you are on the hall's out-of-work list, you may not have to do the regular work search. You need proof of good standing and current registration with the union.
See work search exemptions for how these work in other states.
Reviews, audits and RESEA
GDOL checks work search contacts. You can be picked at any time for an audit or eligibility review, and you may be asked to prove the activities you reported.
RESEA: GDOL picks some people for Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessment (RESEA). If you are picked, you get a letter telling you to go to your local career center for an orientation. You must go.
What to expect: unemployment work search audits.
If you miss your number
If you don't send at least 3 activities for a week, or list contacts GDOL can't verify, you may be denied for that week, paid late, or have to pay benefits back. False reports can bring fraud penalties.
Sign up with the job bank
You must register with WorkSource Georgia (WorkSourceGAPortal.com) within 10 days of your first benefit payment, unless GDOL tells you that you are exempt. You create an account and upload or build a resume. WorkSource Georgia.
Keep every job contact in one place
myjobcontacts is a free work search log. Pick your state and it shows how many contacts you still need this week, reminds you before you request payment, and prints a clean log if GDOL ever asks for it. No sign-up. Your list stays on your phone.
Start my free logQuestions people in Georgia ask
How many job searches are required for unemployment in Georgia?
You must do at least 3 new work search activities each week and send in a Weekly Work Search Record for that week. The newest GDOL handbook (June 2026) says to do them on 3 or more different days. Each one must be something GDOL can check.
What counts as a work search in Georgia?
Applying for a job that fits your skills, online, in person, by email, mail or fax; Asking an employer about a job opening; Interviewing for a job; Going to a job fair, and 3 more on the list above. Check your notice for anything your state added for you.
Do I have to keep a work search log in Georgia?
Each week, first request your payment, then submit your Weekly Work Search Record online in MyUI (Submit Weekly Work Search Record, under Employment Services Requirements). For each activity, give the company name, job title, and the employer address or the job listing link. If you can't go online, fill out form DOL-2798 and fax it. Keep a copy. Keep a copy of each weekly record. GDOL does not say for how long.
What happens if I don’t do enough job searches in Georgia?
If you don't send at least 3 activities for a week, or list contacts GDOL can't verify, you may be denied for that week, paid late, or have to pay benefits back. False reports can bring fraud penalties.
Who doesn’t have to look for work in Georgia?
Your employer filed a partial claim for you. You are on a short layoff with a set date to go back to your employer within 6 weeks of your last day. You are in the Claimant Trainee program or other training approved by GDOL. Your notice will say if this applies to you.
Does Georgia check or audit work search records?
GDOL checks work search contacts. You can be picked at any time for an audit or eligibility review, and you may be asked to prove the activities you reported.
Checked against GDOL’s own pages and rules on November 6, 2026. We could not confirm who doesn’t have to search, how long to keep your records, the union rule on an official page, so check your notice for those.
Sources
- GDOL: Learn About Work Search Requirements
- GDOL Unemployment Insurance Claimant Handbook (June 2026)
- Weekly Work Search Activities Record DOL-2798 (R-01-24)
- GDOL Weekly Work Search Requirements FAQ
- Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 300-2-4-.02 Registration of Claimants (amended June 1, 2023)
- Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 300-2-4-.03 Reporting Requirements on Claims (eff. March 31, 2024)
- US DOL Comparison of State UI Laws 2023, Ch. 5, Tables 5-14 (work search requirements) and 5-15 (reporting and monitoring)
Work search rules in every state
myjobcontacts is not a government website and this is not legal advice. Rules change, and your own claim notice or letter is what counts. If something here doesn’t match what your state told you, follow your state.