myjobcontacts › States › Virginia

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

Different numbers for some people

• Areas with 10% to 14.9% unemployment: 1 a week. The VEC can lower the requirement to 1 employer contact a week in high-unemployment areas. It reviews these areas every quarter.
• Areas with 15% or higher unemployment: 0 a week. The VEC can waive the work search in these areas.

What counts as a work search in Virginia

• Applying for a job with an employer (online, in person, by mail or other ways)
• Contacting a different employer about work each time (at least 2 different employers a week)
• Applying for a different job opening at an employer you already contacted
• Registering with the state job service, which the law says may count as an employer contact
• Contacting your union hiring hall, if you are a union member who finds work through the hall

What doesn’t count

• Repeating a contact with the same employer for the same job opening

Same employer twice? Job contacts cannot be repeated with the same employer unless you are applying for a different job opening.

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

How to report your job contacts

If you file online, you enter your job contacts in Customer Self Service when you file your weekly claim. If you file by phone, you give basic information by phone and then send detailed written information every four weeks on the Work Search Record form the VEC gives you. Keep your own record of each contact too.

When: File your weekly claim after the week ends (the week ends Saturday). File every 7 days until you go back to work. If you don't file within 20 days, your claim may be closed.

Where: Customer Self Service (CSS).

When the search starts: Each week you claim. Your job contacts must be made during the week you are claiming.

Keep a work search log

VEC’s form is the Sample Work Search Log. It asks for: employer name, date of contact, contact person and info, job title applied for, employer phone, outcome of contact (pending, interviewed, hired, etc.).

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

Who doesn’t have to search

• You are temporarily laid off with an expected return-to-work date that your employer confirms (you are 'attached' to your employer)
• You are a partial claimant (your employer cut your hours)
• You are a union member who must look for work only through the union hiring hall
• You live in an area with 15% or higher unemployment when the VEC waives the requirement

Union members: If you are a union member, the VEC may let you look for work only through your union hiring hall.

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

Reviews, audits and RESEA

All work search contacts can be checked. The VEC verifies job contacts and wages with employers, and your claim may be picked for an audit.

RESEA: RESEA is required if the VEC picks you. You do an online orientation and then a one-on-one meeting with a Reemployment Specialist at a Virginia Works Career Center. Bring a list of your recent job search activities. Skipping it without good cause can delay or deny your benefits.

What to expect: unemployment work search audits.

If you miss your number

If you make fewer than 2 job contacts in a week, you may be denied benefits for that week. Giving false job contact information can disqualify you from benefits for one year. Fraud also means paying the money back plus a 15% penalty.

Sign up with the job bank

You must be registered for work with Virginia Works (the Virginia Workforce Connection). Virginia Workforce Connection (Virginia Works).

Questions people in Virginia ask

How many job searches are required for unemployment in Virginia?

You must contact at least 2 different employers each week you claim. You report those job contacts to the VEC when you file your weekly claim. If you make fewer than 2, you may be denied benefits for that week. Some people have a different number: Areas with 10% to 14.9% unemployment (1); Areas with 15% or higher unemployment (0).

What counts as a work search in Virginia?

Applying for a job with an employer (online, in person, by mail or other ways); Contacting a different employer about work each time (at least 2 different employers a week); Applying for a different job opening at an employer you already contacted; Registering with the state job service, which the law says may count as an employer contact, and 1 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 Virginia?

If you file online, you enter your job contacts in Customer Self Service when you file your weekly claim. If you file by phone, you give basic information by phone and then send detailed written information every four weeks on the Work Search Record form the VEC gives you. Keep your own record of each contact too.

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

If you make fewer than 2 job contacts in a week, you may be denied benefits for that week. Giving false job contact information can disqualify you from benefits for one year. Fraud also means paying the money back plus a 15% penalty.

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

You are temporarily laid off with an expected return-to-work date that your employer confirms (you are 'attached' to your employer). You are a partial claimant (your employer cut your hours). You are a union member who must look for work only through the union hiring hall. Your notice will say if this applies to you.

Does Virginia check or audit work search records?

All work search contacts can be checked. The VEC verifies job contacts and wages with employers, and your claim may be picked for an audit.

Checked against VEC’s own pages and rules on November 6, 2026. We could not confirm how long to keep your records, the job bank sign-up rule, the list of what counts, the recent change, the official log form on an official page, so check your notice for those.

Sources

• VEC: Benefits Information
• VEC Unemployment FAQs
• 16VAC5-60-10 (Benefit claims, work search, high unemployment areas)
• Code of Virginia 60.2-612 Benefit eligibility conditions
• VEC: RESEA Program
• VEC Sample Work Search Log (Excel)
• VEC news: Virginia unemployment benefits increasing July (June 25, 2026)

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.