Trade Act benefits are federal funds used to help individuals who become unemployed as a result of foreign trade coming into the U.S. markets or production being shifted to other foreign countries. The benefits are intended to assist individuals in returning to suitable employment. Some of the benefits available for qualified individuals are: training, job search allowances, relocation allowances, and Trade Readjustment Allowances (income support while in training).
Petitions for Trade Adjustment Assistance should be filed any time after worker separations or a threat of separations begins, but not later than one year after the earliest date on which workers lost their jobs with the employer. The Trade Act provides that a certification for TAA does not apply to any worker who was separated from the firm more than one year before the date the petition was filed.
You may file a petition for TAA by visiting the U.S. DOL website where you may file a petition online.
A complete petition will enable U.S. DOL to begin the investigation without additional delay. Please be sure that the information provided on the petition is printed clearly and is easy to read.
Eligible individuals may receive weekly unemployment benefits called Trade Readjustment Allowances (TRA). TRA benefits are paid after you have exhausted all rights to regular and federal unemployment compensation and meet the eligibility requirements.
In general, to be eligible for TRA benefits, you:
- must have worked for a certified trade affected employer for at least 26 weeks and have earned at least $30 in each of those weeks in the one year period prior to the layoff,
- must meet the eligibility requirements for a regular unemployment claim,
- must have a valid separation, and
- must also be enrolled in a training course approved under TAA or, have an approved waiver from the enrollment requirement.
A listing of employers that have been Trade Act approved by the office of Trade Adjustment Assistance is available from the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
For more information on TRA, visit the USDOL website.