TWC Work Search Log: Texas Unemployment Job Search Requirements

Your Texas unemployment claim doesn't just require you to be looking for work — you have to document it. TWC may ask to see your work search logs at any time for up to two years from your claim start date. If you do not provide a requested log, TWC may deny or delay benefits.

How Many Work Search Activities You Need

The statewide minimum is five work search contacts per week unless TWC exempts you. Your Local Workforce Development Board may set a higher number based on local labor market conditions. Follow the number and instructions in your TWC notice if they differ from the minimum.

Check your assigned requirement through TWC or your local Workforce Solutions office.

What Counts as a Work Search Activity

TWC's examples of work search contacts include:

• Submitting a job application or resume to an employer
• Attending a job interview
• Attending a job fair
• Using reemployment resources at a Workforce Solutions office or American Job Center
• Registering with a private employment agency
• Attending a job search seminar, job club, or employment workshop
• Searching for jobs online

The TWC log form lists "searched online" as an example, but include the employer or service details, contact information, and result requested on the form so the activity can be verified.

What Your Log Must Include

Every entry on your work search log needs these details:

• Date the activity happened (must fall within the Sunday-through-Saturday claim week)
• What you did (applied online, attended interview, visited staffing agency)
• Type of job you were seeking
• Employer or organization name in full
• Contact information (address, website, email, or phone number)
• Name of the person you contacted (for direct applications or interviews)
• What happened (applied, interviewed, referred, hired)

You can use TWC's official Work Search Log form or your own record as long as it captures the same fields. Keep your logs for up to two years from your claim start date in case TWC requests them.

You Don't Mail the Log — But You Keep It

TWC does not ask you to submit your log with each payment request. Submit it when TWC requests it; if you do not provide a requested log, TWC may deny or delay benefits.

Work Search Exemptions

A few situations excuse you from the weekly search requirement:

• Temporary layoff with a definite return date within eight weeks, or within 8 to 12 weeks if the separating employer explicitly requests the exemption in writing
• Union members in good standing whose union maintains a nondiscriminatory hiring hall
• Participants in TWC-approved or Trade Act training
• Certain claimants in disaster-affected areas and federal employees on temporary layoff due to a furlough or shutdown, under exemptions effective August 10, 2026

Other exemptions may apply. Follow TWC's instructions about whether you are exempt.

The Texas Unemployment Claims Guide includes a structured work search tracker designed around TWC's audit standards, so every entry captures exactly what an investigator would look for.

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