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

What counts as a work search in Wisconsin

• Registering on Job Center of Wisconsin or taking part in required reemployment services
• Sending a resume or application to an employer that has openings or is taking applications
• Applying for a civil service (government) job
• Taking part in optional Job Center of Wisconsin reemployment services
• Registering with a staffing agency, placement office or recruiter for the first time
• Posting your resume on a job website for the first time (for example Indeed)
• Meeting with a career counselor
• Having a job interview
• Going to a professional networking group or event
• Creating a profile on a professional networking site (for example LinkedIn), or using mySkills myFuture

What doesn’t count

• Looking at job listings without applying
• Contacting an employer only to learn there are no openings or they are not taking applications
• Applying to the same employer again within 4 weeks when there is no new job opening
• Re-posting the same resume on job sites, unless you are applying for a specific job
• Applying for work that does not make sense for your training and experience

Same employer twice? Applying to the same employer more than once in a 4-week period does not count, unless there is a new job opening.

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

How to report your job contacts

You report each work search action to DWD. You can type them into the Weekly Work Search Entry Form in your Claimant Portal during the week (My UI Home, then Enter Work Search), and they are added to your weekly claim. Or you can enter them when you file your weekly claim, or read them from your log if you file by phone. If you enter fewer than 4 when 4 are required, the system denies that week.

When: File your weekly claim starting the Sunday after the week ends. It is due by 3 p.m. on the Saturday that is 14 days after the end of the week.

Where: Claimant Portal (My UI Home).

When the search starts: Every week you claim, unless your portal says your work search is waived.

Keep a work search log

Keep proof of your work search actions for one year (52 weeks after the week you did them). DWD’s form is the Work Search Action Log (UCB-12). It asks for: date of action, work search action performed, business/employer name, name and title of person contacted (if known), method of contact (in person, phone, virtual, email, website), contact information (address, phone, email, website/url, fax), result of contact (interview, waiting for response, not hired).

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

Who doesn’t have to search

• You are laid off and expect to go back to your employer within 8 weeks (up to 12 weeks if your employer verifies it with DWD)
• You will start a new job within 4 weeks and the new employer has confirmed the start date with DWD
• You are laid off, normally get work through union referrals, and are on a DWD-approved union out-of-work list
• You were called for jury duty
• You are in department-approved training
• You worked 32 or more hours that week
• You worked that week for an employer you work for on more than a temporary basis (more than 4 weeks)

Union members: If you are laid off, normally get work through union referrals, and are on the out-of-work list of a DWD-approved union, your work search can be waived.

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

Reviews, audits and RESEA

DWD runs two kinds of work search audits: random audits on a sample of claims and targeted audits on claims that look suspicious. In an audit, DWD asks you for proof of the actions you reported, such as confirmation emails, screenshots, or the name and phone number of the person you contacted. In 2023, about 39% of audited claims were denied (26% of random audits and 56% of targeted audits).

RESEA: If DWD tells you to take part in reemployment services through Job Center of Wisconsin, you must do it. Taking part counts as a work search action.

What to expect: unemployment work search audits.

If you miss your number

Any week without 4 valid actions (unless waived) is not payable. If an audit shows actions were invalid or can't be proven, you can be denied for those weeks and have to pay back benefits. Falsely reporting work search actions may be fraud, with penalties and denial of benefits.

Sign up with the job bank

If DWD tells you to, you must register with Job Center of Wisconsin within 14 days of filing your claim, including completing and activating a resume. If you miss the deadline, you may be denied benefits for weeks before you register. Job Center of Wisconsin.

Questions people in Wisconsin ask

How many job searches are required for unemployment in Wisconsin?

You must do at least 4 work search actions each week you claim. You enter each one in your weekly claim, and you must keep proof, because DWD audits work searches.

What counts as a work search in Wisconsin?

Registering on Job Center of Wisconsin or taking part in required reemployment services; Sending a resume or application to an employer that has openings or is taking applications; Applying for a civil service (government) job; Taking part in optional Job Center of Wisconsin reemployment services, and 6 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 Wisconsin?

You report each work search action to DWD. You can type them into the Weekly Work Search Entry Form in your Claimant Portal during the week (My UI Home, then Enter Work Search), and they are added to your weekly claim. Or you can enter them when you file your weekly claim, or read them from your log if you file by phone. If you enter fewer than 4 when 4 are required, the system denies that week. Keep proof of your work search actions for one year (52 weeks after the week you did them).

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

Any week without 4 valid actions (unless waived) is not payable. If an audit shows actions were invalid or can't be proven, you can be denied for those weeks and have to pay back benefits. Falsely reporting work search actions may be fraud, with penalties and denial of benefits.

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

You are laid off and expect to go back to your employer within 8 weeks (up to 12 weeks if your employer verifies it with DWD). You will start a new job within 4 weeks and the new employer has confirmed the start date with DWD. You are laid off, normally get work through union referrals, and are on a DWD-approved union out-of-work list. Your notice will say if this applies to you.

Does Wisconsin check or audit work search records?

DWD runs two kinds of work search audits: random audits on a sample of claims and targeted audits on claims that look suspicious. In an audit, DWD asks you for proof of the actions you reported, such as confirmation emails, screenshots, or the name and phone number of the person you contacted. In 2023, about 39% of audited claims were denied (26% of random audits and 56% of targeted audits).

Checked against DWD’s own pages and rules on November 6, 2026. We could not confirm how RESEA works, when the search starts, the job bank link on an official page, so check your notice for those.

Sources

• DWD: Work Search Requirements
• DWD UCB-18071-P (R. 09/2025) Work Search Requirements
• DWD Work Search FAQ
• DWD Claimant Handbook Section 5: Maintaining Your UI Eligibility
• DWD UCB-12 Work Search Action Log
• Wis. Admin. Code ch. DWD 127
• UI Advisory Council meeting materials, Oct 8, 2024

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.