If you are still unemployed by the time your UIF benefits have been used up, then you can apply for an extension of unemployment benefits. For an extension of ordinary benefits, you must apply on form UF139. You must write down on this form details of where you have tried to find work. The form must be handed in at a employment office.

If you have received illness benefits you can apply for extension of illness benefits on form UF140. This includes a medical certificate to be completed by the doctor.

The UIF treats all applications for extension of benefits on merit. This means they decide whether they think you have good reasons to get more benefits. There is no automatic right to an extension. Extension benefits are not easy to get. Three years is the maximum time for which normal benefits are paid out.

But it helps to prove that:

• You are still actively seeking work (show letters of refusal by employers).
• You depend for the necessities of life on the UIF benefits; a list of expenses such as rent receipts, food bills, water and electricity bills and schooling fees should be drawn up.
• You have been working for more than 4 years and have gained the maximum number of credits for which normal benefits are paid out. Three years is the maximum time for which normal benefits are paid out.