myjobcontacts › States › Michigan

How many job searches do you need for unemployment in Michigan?

What counts as a work search in Michigan

• Applying for a job, sending a resume, or interviewing with an employer (in person, online, email, fax)
• Going to a job fair or hiring event, in person or online
• Setting up or updating your profile on a job site like MiTalent.org, Indeed, or LinkedIn
• Uploading your resume to Pure Michigan Talent Connect and making it searchable (counts once per benefit year)
• Going to a job search workshop, seminar, or course, online or in person
• Using Michigan Works! reemployment services, including RESEA activities
• Registering with a private employment agency, recruiter, or school placement office
• Taking a state civil service exam
• Online skills tests and interest inventories, job shadowing, internships, or on-the-job training

What doesn’t count

• Applying for the same job with the same employer within 4 weeks (unless it is a new posting)
• Calling or emailing an employer just to ask if they are hiring (unless you must seek work through a union hiring hall)
• Just browsing online job boards
• Making duplicate profiles or re-uploading the same resume to the same site

Same employer twice? Applying for the exact same position with the same employer within a 4-week period does not count, unless it is a different job posting.

More on this in what counts as a work search contact.

How to report your job contacts

When you certify, you enter each work search activity: the date, what you did, the employer or website, the address or web link, and how you made contact. Your certification is not complete until you report them. Starting November 9, 2026, this is done online in MiUI each week; phone certification (MARVIN) ends. Also keep your own written record and save confirmation emails.

When: Starting November 9, 2026, certify every week in MiUI for the week that just ended. You can certify starting the Sunday after the week ends. Finish by Saturday at 11:59 p.m. Unfinished certifications are deleted each Saturday night. (Before Nov. 9, 2026, people certified every two weeks in MiWAM.)

Where: MiUI (replaces MiWAM on Nov. 9, 2026).

When the search starts: After you register for work with Michigan Works!, which must be done at least one business day before your first certification. You report work search for each week you claim.

Keep a work search log

Keep your work search records and proof, like confirmation emails and screenshots, for up to 2 years. UIA’s form is the Work Search Activity Worksheet (optional) (UIA 6507). It asks for: date of contact, activities, organization/employer/search engine, method of contact, address/website url/phone/fax.

The free myjobcontacts app keeps the same details and prints them in the same columns as UIA’s form. Prefer paper? Use the free printable work search log.

Who doesn’t have to search

• Your employer got a waiver for a temporary layoff and you are expected back full time within 45 days of filing
• You are laid off and expect to return to work within 15 days of your layoff date (short-term waiver; ask when you file)
• You are in an approved course of study and got a training waiver through Michigan Works!
• If you have a return-to-work date within 120 days or must get work only through a union hiring hall, the Job Attached Waiver only skips work registration. You still have to search and report.

Union members: If you must get work only through a union hiring hall, you can get a Job Attached Waiver that skips work registration, but you still have to search and report. Contacting the hiring hall to ask about work can count for you.

See work search exemptions for how these work in other states.

Reviews, audits and RESEA

UIA can ask you to prove your work search at any time during your claim. If your activities are incomplete or wrong, you may be found ineligible and have to pay back benefits.

RESEA: UIA may pick you for a Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessment (RESEA) at Michigan Works!. You get a letter and must contact a local center to schedule. If you do not take part, your benefits may be affected.

What to expect: unemployment work search audits.

If you miss your number

If you do not report 3 work search activities for a week, you will not be paid for that week. If UIA later finds you did not do them, you may have to pay the money back.

Sign up with the job bank

Create a job seeker profile on Pure Michigan Talent Connect (MiTalent.org), then meet with Michigan Works! staff (in person or online) to verify it at least one business day before your first certification. You do not need to register again for one year. Pure Michigan Talent Connect (MiTalent.org).

Questions people in Michigan ask

How many job searches are required for unemployment in Michigan?

You must do at least 3 different work search activities each week (since July 19, 2026). You report them when you certify. Starting November 9, 2026, you certify every week in MiUI.

What counts as a work search in Michigan?

Applying for a job, sending a resume, or interviewing with an employer (in person, online, email, fax); Going to a job fair or hiring event, in person or online; Setting up or updating your profile on a job site like MiTalent.org, Indeed, or LinkedIn; Uploading your resume to Pure Michigan Talent Connect and making it searchable (counts once per benefit year), and 5 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 Michigan?

When you certify, you enter each work search activity: the date, what you did, the employer or website, the address or web link, and how you made contact. Your certification is not complete until you report them. Starting November 9, 2026, this is done online in MiUI each week; phone certification (MARVIN) ends. Also keep your own written record and save confirmation emails. Keep your work search records and proof, like confirmation emails and screenshots, for up to 2 years.

What happens if I don’t do enough job searches in Michigan?

If you do not report 3 work search activities for a week, you will not be paid for that week. If UIA later finds you did not do them, you may have to pay the money back.

Who doesn’t have to look for work in Michigan?

Your employer got a waiver for a temporary layoff and you are expected back full time within 45 days of filing. You are laid off and expect to return to work within 15 days of your layoff date (short-term waiver; ask when you file). You are in an approved course of study and got a training waiver through Michigan Works!. Your notice will say if this applies to you.

Does Michigan check or audit work search records?

UIA can ask you to prove your work search at any time during your claim. If your activities are incomplete or wrong, you may be found ineligible and have to pay back benefits.

Checked against UIA’s own pages and rules on November 6, 2026. We could not confirm the exact questions asked when you request payment on an official page, so check your notice for that.

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.